2017 Story of the Year Finalists

Story of the Year winners will be announced at the JEA/NSPA Fall National High School Journalism Convention, Nov. 16-19 in Dallas.


News Story

Meghan Bobrowksy, Albert Hu
Sub pay lower in Davis schools
The HUB, Davis Senior High School
Davis, California

Sonja Hansen
Board decision to terminate Breakthrough support ignites controversy in SCDS community
The Octagon, Sacramento Country Day School
Sacramento, California

Katherine Nguyen
Inside Inclusion
The Lowell, Lowell High School
San Francisco, California

Melanie Lust
‘13 Reasons Why’ removed for review from middle school English book rooms, Bedford library
Inklings, Staples High School
Westport, Connecticut

Grace Chisholm, Robbie Veglahn
Hidden Juul
The Harbinger, Shawnee Mission East High School
Prairie Village, Kansas

Cadence Elder, Asher Norberg
Parking Lot Parade
The Northwest Passage, Shawnee Mission Northwest High School
Shawnee, Kansas

Harper Carlton
You’re testing my limits
On The Record, duPont Manual High School
Louisville, Kentucky

Mitali Sharma, Samantha Zeid
The Heroin Epidemic
The Globe, Clayton High School
Clayton, Missouri

Michelle Chu, Emma Stiefel, Erinn Aulfinger, Lauren Wilson, Taylor Anderson, Sarah Aftab
Defining Fake News
Lakota East Spark, Lakota East High School
Liberty Township, Ohio

Andrea Klick, Cathryn Seibert
District officials weigh in on N-word, swastika on EPSD school bus window
The Stinger, Emmaus High School
Emmaus, Pennsylvania


Feature Story

Sam Straessle
Good kids, bad habits
The Rocket Times, Catholic High School for Boys
Little Rock, Arkansas

Rohini Kumar
Under the Influence
Devil’s Advocate, Stanton College Preparatory
Jacksonville, Florida

Sarah Kallis
Inside an immigrant’s journey
C&G, Holy Innocents’ Episcopal School
Atlanta, Georgia

Hermela Mengesha, Laura Espinoza
Community seeks action against educator sexual misconduct
Silver Chips, Montgomery Blair High School
Silver Spring, Maryland

Camille Respess, Ellie Tomasson, Charlie Brennan
Separate and Unequal
The Globe, Clayton High School
Clayton, Missouri

Katie Bullock
Saving Superman
Tonka News Online, Winnetonka High School
Kansas City, Missouri

Molly Turner
Fake news makes headlines on social media
The Sequoyah Scribe, John Sevier Middle School
Kingsport, Tennessee

Jayne Goodman
Finding faith in the forum
Geneva Quarterly, Geneva School of Boerne
Boerne, Texas

Sarah Kate Padon, Emma Gilliam
Houston’s human trafficking problem
The Kinkaidian, The Kinkaid School
Houston, Texas

Sri Medicherla, Melanie Pincus
Beyond Gender
The Highlander, McLean High School
McLean, Virginia


Sports Story

Marina Furbush, Marie Hogan
This Chair was Made for Skatin’
The Tam News, Tamalpais High School
Mill Valley, California

Maya Homan
Female sports correspondents experience harassment
The Campanile, Palo Alto Senior High School
Palo Alto, California

Jess Canaley, Kelly Truax
In order to gain an edge, many CHS athletes turn to sports psychology for a leg up
HiLite, Carmel High School
Carmel, Indiana

Courtney McClelland
Relationships Through Rock Climbing
The Harbinger, Shawnee Mission East High School
Prairie Village, Kansas

Katherine Bird
ObstACLe Course
The Tower, Grosse Pointe South High School
Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan

Sierra Roseby
Freshman kills stereotypes, bullying
The Orator, Omaha Bryan High School
Omaha, Nebraska

Will Morris
Lau Eyes Records, Wildcats Eye State
Pawprint, Millard West High School
Omaha, Nebraska

Esha Nittoor
The Lone Cross Country Runner
WordsWorth, Moorestown Friends School
Moorestown, New Jersey

Chase Brown, Max Arnold
Difference
The Ravine, Worthington Kilbourne High School
Columbus, Ohio

Hannah Ortega
Unforeseeable future
The Red Ledger, Lovejoy High School
Lucas, Texas


Editorial/Opinion

Julia Nall
A Girl I Knew
Prospective, Bryant High School
Bryant, Arkansas

Alec Fields, Ma’ayan Waldman
When hate comes to visit
The Boiling Point, Shalhevet High School
Los Angeles, California

Staff
The truth is out about the international students; it’s time to act
The Octagon, Sacramento Country Day School
Sacramento, California

Peyton Wilson
More Than a Hashtag
Pitchfork, Marietta High School
Marietta, Georgia

Etana Parks
Be true to yourself
Red & Black, Lawrence High School
Lawrence, Kansas

Samantha Joslin
Let Freedom Ring
The Northwest Passage, Shawnee Mission Northwest High School
Shawnee, Kansas

Lucy Calderon
Break Your Silence
On The Record, duPont Manual High School
Louisville, Kentucky

Nathanael Ashton-Piper
What an Obama presidency meant to me
Knight Errant, Benilde-St. Margaret’s School
St. Louis Park, Minnesota

Noah Brown
State of Journalism
The Globe, Clayton High School
Clayton, Missouri

Laura Nicolescu
Emoji Mania
Cen10 News, Centennial High School
Frisco, Texas


Diversity Series

Kathryn Stratz
Interracial relationships still face scrutiny
Scot Scoop News, Carlmont High School
Belmont, California

Vivian Feng
Yusra Rafeeqi’s Muslim Initiative: Have dinner with a Muslim
The Campanile, Palo Alto High School
Palo Alto, California

Khrista Sayo, Elissa Choi
How Race Plays a Role in College Admissions
The Mirror, Van Nuys High School
Van Nuys, California

Kate Janda, Mary Youngblut, Molly Keady
Women in the workplace
Knight Errant, Benilde-St. Margaret’s School
St. Louis Park, Minnesota

Alex Davis, Linden O’Brien Williams
Paraprofessionals, peer mentors and trailblazing: An exploration of area Special Education programs
The Dart, St. Teresa’s Academy
Kansas City, Missouri

Sarah Zimmerman
One Incredible Goal
North Star, Francis Howell North High School
Saint Charles, Missouri

Emily Mann, Skylar Laird, Lukas Mendel, Taylor Tinnes
His Struggle
Central Focus, Francis Howell Central High School
St. Charles, Missouri

Brooke Colombo
Proposed police interaction law an old habit for some
Wingspan, Liberty High School
Frisco, Texas

Helen Bloom, Carlyn Kranking, Sri Medicherla, Sanskriti Neupane, Melanie Pincus, Aisha Singh
Finding Refuge
The Highlander, McLean High School
McLean, Virginia

Robert Brown
Access Denied
Cardinal Columns, Fond du Lac High School
Fond du Lac, Wisconsin