NSPA names ‘best of the best’

Pacemaker competition recognizes
47 high school news sites for journalistic excellence

March 3, 2022

MINNEAPOLIS — The nation’s top scholastic news sites were recognized today by the National Scholastic Press Association, which announced 47 finalists in its annual Pacemaker competition.

While the judges have named the Pacemaker finalists, the Pacemaker winners have not been selected.

 “The judging teams will now continue to study the sites named as Pacemaker finalists on a frequent basis,” said Gary Lundgren, associate director and coordinator of the Pacemaker competition. “The Pacemaker winners will be selected shortly before they are named in April, so for the 47 schools we are naming as finalists today, the competition is still happening in real time.”

Pacemaker finalists will be honored and will receive plaques during the opening ceremony of the JEA/NSPA Spring National High School Journalism Convention at 7 p.m. Thursday, April 7, in Los Angeles.

Pacemaker winners will be announced for the first time at 3:30 p.m. Saturday, April 9, at the convention’s awards ceremony.

The NSPA Pacemaker, one of the oldest awards for scholastic journalism, has a rich tradition. The association started presenting the prestigious award to high school newspapers soon after the organization was founded in 1921. Throughout the years, yearbooks, magazines, online sites and broadcast programs were added to the competition. The organization is celebrating its 100th birthday this year.

“The Pacemaker is the association’s preeminent award,” Executive Director Laura Widmer said. “NSPA is honored to recognize the best of the best.”

The 47 Pacemaker finalists represent 16 states. California led with 12 finalists, followed by Texas with five and Illinois with four.

To select the Pacemaker finalists, judges carefully studied approximately 140 sites submitted from 31 states and three countries.

The online sites competed in two different categories based on school population. Two teams of three judges studied every entry, analyzing its strengths. The status of each entry was agreed upon by at least two of the three judges.

In this competition, only the online news product was judged. The news sites were either digital companions to print newspapers and newsmagazines or online-only products. In all, 91 sites were companions to print newspapers and newsmagazines and 44 were online-only products.

A separate 2021 NSPA Newspaper/Newsmagazine Pacemaker competition recognized 66 print news publications and specialty magazines in November. In all, 23 schools earned Pacemaker recognition for both their print and online products.

M-A Chronicle
Menlo-Atherton High School, Atherton, California
Editors: Brianna Aquayo Villalon, Isabelle Stid, Jane White, Katherine Welander
Adviser: John McBlair

Scot Scoop
Carlmont High School, Belmont, California
Editor: Elle Horst
Adviser: Justin Raisner

Berkeley High Jacket
Berkeley High School, Berkeley, California
Editor: Estella Zhou
Adviser: Peter Rodrigues

El Estoque
Monta Vista High School, Cupertino, California
Editors: Michelle Chen, Anushka De, Jayanti Jha
Adviser: Julia Satterthwaite

Portola Pilot
Portola High School, Irvine, California
Editors: Ryne Dunman, Claudia Lin
Adviser: Brianna Rapp

The Pearl Post
Daniel Pearl Magnet High School, Lake Balboa, California
Editor: Delilah Brumer
Adviser: Adriana Chavira

The Oracle
The Archer School for Girls, Los Angeles, California
Editor: Vaughan Anoa’i
Adviser: Kristin Taylor

The Paly Voice
Palo Alto High School, Palo Alto, California
Editors: Arohi Battarchaya, Tara Kapoor, Emily Yun
Adviser: Paul B. Kandell

The Campanile
Palo Alto High School, Palo Alto, California
Editor: Ajay Venkatraman
Adviser: Rod Satterthwaite

The Octagon
Sacramento Country Day School, Sacramento, California
Editors: Sanjana Anand, Ethan Monasa, Arijit Trivedi, Arikta Trivedi
Adviser: Bonnie Stewart

Harker Aquila
The Harker School, San Jose, California
Editors: Alysa Suleiman, Nicole Tian
Adviser: Ellen Austin

The Chronicle
Harvard-Westlake School, Studio City, California
Editors: Tessa Augsberger, Mill Ben-Ezra
Adviser: Jim Burns

Inklings News
Staples High School, Westport, Connecticut
Editors: Natalie Bandura, Katie Simons
Advisers: Joseph DelGobbo, Mary Elizabeth Fulco

The Raider Voice
Gulliver Preparatory Upper School, Miami, Florida
Editor: Kathleen Lewis
Adviser: Monica Rodriguez

The Eagle Eye
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School, Parkland, Florida
Editors: Ivy Lam, Travis Newbery, Lily Singer
Adviser: Melissa Falkowski

The Muse
Alexander W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts, West Palm Beach, Florida
Editors: Alissa Gary, Sophia Roud
Adviser: Carly Gates

Metea Media
Metea Valley High School, Aurora, Illinois
Editors: Kat Viloria and Mishal Nizar
Adviser: Adam Page

U-High Midway
University of Chicago Laboratory High School, Chicago, Illinois
Editors: Lucia Kouri, Berk Oto, Peter Pu
Adviser: Logan Aimone

Blueprint
Downers Grove South High School, Downers Grove, Illinois
Editors: Anika Brown, Kassem Ossman, Gwendolynne Royle
Advisers: Kari Alore, Mark Indreika, Mary Long

The McHenry Messenger
McHenry High School, McHenry, Illinois
Editor: Kennedy Tetour
Adviser: Dane Erbach

HiLite
Carmel High School, Carmel, Indiana
Editors: Cady Armstrong, Chloe Sun
Adviser: Jim Streisel

The Little Hawk
City High School, Iowa City, Iowa
Editor: Rebecca Michaeli
Adviser: Jonathan Rogers

West Side Story
Iowa City West High School, Iowa City, Iowa
Editor: Owen Aanestad
Adviser: Sara Whittaker

BVNW News
Blue Valley Northwest High School, Overland Park, Kansas
Editors: Megan Yates, Liz LaHood
Adviser: Jim McCrossen

The Harbinger
Shawnee Mission East High School, Prairie Village, Kansas
Editors: Sophie Henschel, Campbell Wood
Adviser: Dow Tate

Mill Valley News
Mill Valley High School, Shawnee, Kansas
Editors: Gabby Delpleash, Avery Gathright, Damara Stevens, Ally Sul
Adviser: Kathy Habiger

The Gator
Brimmer and May School, Chestnut Hill, Massachusetts
Editor: Karly Hamilton
Adviser: David Cutler

The Harbinger
Algonquin Regional High School, Northborough, Massachusetts
Editor: Melissa Dai
Advisers: Lindsay Coppens, Michelle Shappard

Wayland Student Press Network
Wayland High School, Wayland, Massachusetts
Editors: Taylor McGuire, Garrett Spooner
Advisers: Mary Barber, Brian Keaney

The Communicator
Community High School, Ann Arbor, Michigan
Editors: Scarlett London, Sebastian Oliva, Lucy Tobier
Adviser: Tracy Anderson

The Tower
Grosse Pointe South High School, Grosse Pointe Farms, Michigan
Editor: Paige Evers
Adviser: Kaitlin Edgerton

The Rubicon
St. Paul Academy and Summit School, St. Paul, Minnesota
Editors: Elle Chen, Elizabeth Trevathan
Adviser: Kathryn Campbell

Knight Errant
Benilde-St. Margaret’s School, St. Louis Park, Minnesota
Editors: Andrew Lyons, Grace Cochrane, Flint Frohman
Adviser: Tiffany Joseph

Echo
St. Louis Park High School, St. Louis Park, Minnesota
Editors: Talia Lissauer, Maddie Schutte
Adviser: Lori Keekley

Pathfinder
Parkway West High School, Ballwin, Missouri
Editors: Leah Schroeder, Mira Nalbandian, Brinda Ambal
Adviser: Debra Klevens

FHN Today
Francis Howell North High School, St. Charles, Missouri
Editor: Amber Winkler
Adviser: Aaron Manfull

The Lancer Feed
Lafayette High School, Wildwood, Missouri
Editor: Makayla Archambeault
Adviser: Nancy Smith

Southwest Shadow
Southwest Career and Technical Academy, Las Vegas, Nevada
Editor: Gurleen Swaich
Adviser: Matthew LaPorte

Eastside Online
Cherry Hill High School East, Cherry Hill, New Jersey
Editors: Alexa Atlas, Nicole Vital, Angelina Witting
Adviser: Greg Gagliardi

The La Salle Falconer
La Salle Catholic College Preparatory, Milwaukie, Oregon
Editors: Brooklyn Chillemi, Mary Loeb, Avery Rush
Adviser: Miles Kane

The Shield
McCallum High School, Austin, Texas
Editors: Lucy Marco, Alice Scott
Adviser: Dave Winter

Coppell Student Media
Coppell High School, Coppell, Texas
Editor: Anjali Krishna
Advisers: Chase Wofford, Irma Kennedy

Wingspan
Liberty High School, Frisco, Texas
Editor: Trisha Dasgupta
Adviser: Brian Higgins

The Rider Online
Legacy High School, Mansfield, Texas
Editor: McKenzie Canton
Advisers: Rachel Dearinger, Leland Mallett

Eagle Nation Online
Prosper High School, Prosper, Texas
Editor: Amanda Hare
Adviser: Lisa Roskens

HHS Media
Harrisonburg High School, Harrisonburg, Virginia
Editor: Oziel Valdez
Adviser: Val Kibler

The Highlander
McLean High School, McLean, Virginia
Editor: Akash Balenalli
Adviser: Lindsay Benedict