NSPA honors top scholastic designs & illustrations

Design of the Year

Newspaper Front Page • Newspaper Page/Spread
Newsmagazine Cover • Newsmagazine Page/Spread
Literary/Specialty Magazine Cover • Yearbook Spread
Yearbook Theme Package • Informational Graphic • Illustration • Artwork

Nov. 15, 2025

National Scholastic Press Association salutes the winners of its 2025 Broadcast Story of the Year competition.

NSPA’s Individual Awards are among the top prizes in scholastic media, and the awards are a showcase of journalistic excellence.

Winners were announced during the JEA/NSPA Fall National High School Media Convention, on Nov. 15, in Nashville.

2025 Fall Convention Awards

Fall 2025 Pacemakers
Broadcast
Newspaper/Newsmagazine/ Specialty Magazine

2025 Individual Awards
Broadcast Story of the Year
Cartoon of the Year
Design of the Year
Digital Story of the Year
Photo of the Year
Story of the Year
Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
Fred Ross Systemic Change Student Journalism Competition
Local Climate Change Reporting
Portfolio of the Year
Best Use of Social Media

Nashville Best of Show
Individual Recognition
Staff Recognition

First Place
Matthew Ramirez
Panther Press
Strath Haven High School
Wallingford, Pennsylvania
About the Box

Second Place
Joshua Goforth, Hilton Sampson
ReMarker
St. Mark’s School of Texas
Dallas, Texas
Sculpting Perfection

Third Place
Abigail Kim
The Mirror
Van Nuys High School
Van Nuys, California
The Rise and Fall of Generation Alpha

Fourth Place
Serina Yan
The Review
St. John’s School
Houston, Texas
Living with the Death Penalty

Fifth Place
Elena Pozzo
The Puma Press
UPrep
Seattle, Washington
Washington, Not Washington (DC)

Honorable Mention
Stella Bartley, Reese Rawson
Eagle Edition
Episcopal School of Dallas
Dallas, Texas
The Nation’s Return to Red

Kate Xia, Lucas Yuan
The Campanile
Palo Alto High School  Campanile
Palo Alto, California
Seniors Strike Gold  

Joshua Goforth, Hilton Sampson
ReMarker
St. Mark’s School of Texas
Dallas, Texas
The Lonely Generation

Rina Kobayashi, Laila Taraporevala
The Standard
The American School in London
London, United Kingdom
Confronting Racist Humor Culture at School

Taariq Ahmed
U-High Midway
University of Chicago Laboratory High School
Chicago, Illinois
DEI Celebrated Amid Backlash

First Place
Lynn Soivilus
The Eagle Eye
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School
Parkland, Florida
Victory Visit

Second Place
Nathalia Arias
Verde
Palo Alto High School  Verde
Palo Alto, California
Livin’ in the Golden State

Third Place
Amanda Hsu
The Rubicon
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
St. Paul, Minnesota
Hidden Racism

Fourth Place
Olivia Martin
The Chronicle
Shorecrest Preparatory School
St. Petersburg, Florida
Shorecrest Moves Mountains

Fifth Place
Marisa Chi, Lucy de Leon, Rafaella Kolesnik, Kaitlyn Lu, Mali Nangia
Torch
Glenbrook North High School
Northbrook, Illinois
Teen Budgeting

Honorable Mention
Manasa Borra
The Sidekick
Coppell High School
Coppell, Texas
How Coppell Athletes Balance Success, Sacrifice

Jaiden Han, Rafaella Kolesnik, Kaitlyn Lu
Torch
Glenbrook North High School
Northbrook, Illinois
Behind the Headlines

Kora Smith
The Bell
Liberty High School (Liberty, MO)
Liberty, Missouri
Quiet on Set

Lillian Antin, Akash Krishna, Lily Phillips
Patriot Press
Liberty High School (Renton, WA)
Renton, Washington
Overconsumption Is Consuming the Holiday Season

Hamna Humanyou
The Highlander
McLean High School
McLean, Virginia
A Model Student

First Place
Josephine Lim
The Blueprint
Hagerty High School
Oviedo, Florida
Who Holds the Power?

Second Place
Mira Patel
The Shield
McCallum High School
Austin, Texas
Voice of the Voter

Third Place
Max Bykowski, Marley Helfer
Talisman
Ballard High School
Seattle, Washingon
Rolling the Dice on Teen Gambling

Fourth Place
Quinn Rudnick
The Union Street Journal
Cherry Creek High School
Denver, Colorado
When Students Drink

Fifth Place
Michaela Manfull, Violet Newton
North Star
Francis Howell North High School
Saint Charles, Missouri
Generative AI and the Future

Honorable Mention
Kiara Benoit
The Muse
Alexander W. Dreyfoos School of the Arts
West Palm Beach, Florida
District Pilots AI Student Surveillance Program

Yomi Hemley, Lily Rantanen
The Little Hawk
Iowa City High School
Iowa City, Iowa
Battle for the Phones

Lily Rantanen
The Little Hawk
Iowa City High School
Iowa City, Iowa
Brain Drain

Maya VanVleet
The Mix
Monarch High School
Louisville, Colorado
Torn Apart

Alex Gaines, Allison Ginzburg, Madison Sanjuas, Olivia Signorile
Inklings News
Staples High School
Westport, Connecticut
Hometown Haunts

First Place
Victoria Damaso
The Eagle Eye
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School
Parkland, Florida
Brace for Impact

Second Place
Vincent Hsiao
Panorama
Ladue Horton Watkins High School
St. Louis, Missouri
Full Throttle

Third Place
Nate Williams
The Shield
McCallum High School
Austin, Texas
Eye on the Target

Fourth Place
Kendall Bowers
Tribal Tribune
Wando High School
Mount Pleasant, South Carolina
A Vote for Redemption, the Lesser of Two Evils, or a Historical First?

Fifth Place
Kendall Bowers
Tribal Tribune
Wando High School
Mount Pleasant, South Carolina
Triple Threat

Honorable Mention
Peter Philpott, Quinn Rudnick
The Union Street Journal
Cherry Creek High School
Denver, Colorado
In Our Backyard

Gabe Deedler
The Communicator
Community High School (MI)
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Bullet by Bullet

Harper Finck
The Free Press
Free State High School
Lawrence, Kansas
Environmental Footprint

Nate Williams
The Shield
McCallum High School
Austin, Texas
Read Banned Books

Lydia Greves, Rachel Larsen, Greta Van Steenberg
The Mix
Monarch High School
Louisville, Colorado
Torn Apart

First Place
Gina Copetti, Valentina Mouhaffel Mattey
Reflections
Gulliver Preparatory School
Miami, Florida
Our Voices

Second Place
Elizabeth Buescher, Julia Ramadan
Burn
Marian High School
Omaha, Nebraska
Burn

Third Place
Roman Farley, Annika Kim
Iris: Art + Lit
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
St. Paul, Minnesota
Missing Piece/Peace

Fourth Place
Ethan Wang
Viking
Palo Alto High School  Viking Sports Mag
Palo Alto, California
Mind, Body, Meds

Fifth Place
Olivia Hendershot
Illiad Literary-Art Magazine
Clarke Central High School
Athens, Georgia
Sound & Color

Honorable Mention
Temira Bolds
Inkslinger
Darlington School
Rome, Georgia
Equilibrium

Emmy Warren
Pawprints
H.B. Plant High School
Tampa, Florida
Now Feel

Maya Mathew
Panorama
Ladue Horton Watkins High School
St. Louis, Missouri
Identity

Camille Dotson, Kyla Granville, Gabby Short, Nathan Terrio
Silent Voices
Woodward Academy
College Park, Georgia
Silent Voices

First Place
Isabella Luo
Vibrato
The Hockaday School
Dallas, Texas
Ink and Paper Lives

Second Place
Sneha Budhathoki, Zulema Van der Noordaa
The HUB
Davis Senior High School
Davis, California
Never Ending Cycle

Third Place
Catherine Buescher, Lucy Mendenhall, Claire Pogge, Ruby Scanlan, Bailey Shea
Burn
Marian High School
Omaha, Nebraska
The Challenge of Painting

Fourth Place
Juliet Frick, Elena Salvatierra, Sarah Thieman, Lucas Tung
Viking
Palo Alto High School  Viking Sports Mag
Palo Alto, California
Plate of Pressure

Fifth Place
Kaylee Gadepalli, Sylvia Stoermer
Voice Literary + Arts Journal
Community High School (MI)
Ann Arbor, Michigan
The Shrouded One

Honorable Mention
Meena Chrzanowski, Madeline Chu, Abigail Chung, Phoebe Rubin, Nila Shaines
Briars & Ivy
Briarcliff High School
Briarcliff Manor, New York
Wildflower Wildfire and Glow of a Fire

Valentina Mouhaffel Mattey
Reflections
Gulliver Preparatory School
Miami, Flora
Where I’m From

Rachel Noh, Rachel Zamsky
The Tartan
McLean High School
McLean, Virginia
October Sunsets

Emily Ma, Ava Zhang
The Tartan
McLean High School
McLean, Virginia
Life Measured in Bites

Asra Swinson
Inscriptions
Shawnee Mission South High School
Overland Park, Kansas
Stolen Moments

First Place
Sloan Meyer
Hauberk
Shawnee Mission East High School
Prairie Village, Kansas
Going the Extra Mile

Second Place
Camden Smith
The Arena
Mansfield, Texas
On the Field

Third Place
Jillian Freeman, Chloe Johnston
The Spectator
Liberty, Missouri
Top 10 of This Year

Fourth Place
Lucie Maraine
The Talon
O.D. Tompkins High School
Katy, Texas
Feast or Famine

Fifth Place
Vera Lopresti, Aleah Sawyer
Raider
Gulliver Preparatory School
Miami, Florida
Hot Wheels

Honorable Mention
Allie Mickel-Lindner
The Talon
Free State High School
Lawrence, Kansas
Swimming for Sport

Jeanine Cruz
The Lion
McKinney High School
McKinney, Texas
Running to Victory

Hannah Hampton, Lynleigh Henderson
The Hawk
Pleasant Grove HIgh School
Texarkana, Texas
It Was a Happy Ending

Molly McCracken
Heritage
Shawnee Mission South High School
Overland Park, Kansas
TikTok Is On the Clock

Maria Gonzalez, Huntly Poole, Hannah Whitaker
Legend
Wando High School
Mount Pleasant, South Carolina
Our Turn to Take Over

First Place
Kate Basler, Audrey Scarpace, Anna Waters
Spirit
Lindbergh High School
St. Louis, Missouri
We’ve Been Through It All and the Wait Is Finally Over

Second Place
Elijah Gross, Jay Hillis, Jade Vu
The Arena
Legacy High School 
Mansfield, Texas
Off the Main

Third Place
Dulce Nuñez, Yee Lam Zhou
The Lion
McKinney High School
McKinney, Texas
Unreal

Fourth Place
Makenna Bendorf, Johanna Frandeen, Callie Huffman, Irene Jones, Ban Puoch
The Burke Book
Omaha Burke High School
Omaha, Nebraska
Maybe You Don’t Know

Fifth Place
Rhea Erukulla, Eleanor Ronan
The Lonestar
Vista Ridge High School
Cedar Park, Texas
Y’all Ready for This?

Honorable Mention
Lainey Green, Ana Ruth Mikos, Emercyn Randolph
Lion’s Roar
Christ Presbyterian Academy
Nashville, Tennessee
All These Things

Richard Li, Avery Smiley
The Talon
Free State High School
Lawrence, Kansas
This is Why

Samantha Atkins, Francie Garrison, Camilla Simmons
Hauberk
Shawnee Mission East High School
Prairie Village, Kansas
Here’s Proof.

Leila Henderson, Molly McCracken, Delani Young
Heritage
Shawnee Mission South High School
Overland Park, Kansas
We

Wavy Ronning, Flynn Yoshinobu
Showcase
UPrep
Seattle, Washington
That’s All U

First Place
Molly McCracken
Heritage
Shawnee Mission South High School
Overland Park, Kansas
See Ya’ Later

Second Place
Alex Schwind
Spark
Lakota East High School
Liberty Township, Ohio
Seizure Breakdown

Third Place
Madeline Awad, Josh Devine
Panorama
Ladue Horton Watkins High School
St. Louis, Missouri
Game, Set, Pickle

Fourth Place
Cassidy Brausa, Blake Dundon, Searcy Mae Ferguson, Gabriela Loewen-Eells, Isabella Villegas
Carillon
Episcopal School of Dallas
Dallas, Texas
Eagles Turn 50

Fifth Place
Anwen Chen
The Nueva Current
The Nueva School
San Mateo, California
The Half-Full Generation?

Honorable Mention
Jeremy Young
On the Record
duPont Manual High School
Louisville, Kentucky
A History of Redlining in Louisville

Anna Greenlee
West Side Story
Iowa City West High School
Iowa City, Iowa
What’s Next?

Will Huelskamp
Spark
Lakota East High School
Liberty Township, Ohio
“Let Them Eat Cake”

Jillian Freeman, Amelia Hunt
The Spectator
Liberty High School (Liberty MO)
Liberty, Missouri
Surveying the Scene

Kate Basler, Cami Dunajcik, Molly Eisele, Demi Jorgji, Lena Pacanowski
Spirit
Lindbergh High School
St. Louis, Missouri
Through the Year

First Place
Audrey Finigan, Daniella Smit
Scot Scoop
Carlmont High School
Belmont, California
The Clear Solution

Second Place
Sofia Exposito
The Sidekick
Coppell High School
Coppell, Texas
Not Your Stereotypical Woman of Color

Third Place
Joselyn Ambrosio-Fierro
The Burke Book
Omaha Burke High School
Omaha, Nebraska
Finding Faith

Fourth Place
Mira Patel
The Shield
McCallum High School
Austin, Texas
Winds of Change

Fifth Place
Cathy Wu
The Prospector
Cupertino High School
Los Gatos, California
Jack of All Trades

Honorable Mention
Katie Kennedy
The Tiger Print
Blue Valley High School
Overland Park, Kansas
And with Every Passing Hour I’m So Glad I Left My Tower

Sydney Ross
FHCtoday
Francis Howell Central High School
Cottleville, Missouri
A Violent Shift

Maya VanVleet
The Mix
Monarch High School
Louisville, Colorado
Torn Apart

Ziching Yang
The Tide
Richard Montgomery High School
Rockville, Maryland
Coachella Draws in New Stars, Old Criticism

Sygne Stole
U-High Midway
University of Chicago Laboratory High School
Chicago, Illinois
Addicted to the Algorithm

First Place
Raina Kim
The Wildcat
Brea Olinda High School
Brea, California
The Tide that Brings Us Back

Second Place
Candace Groves
Pawprints
H.B. Plant High School
Tampa, Florida
Table of Contents

Third Place
Sneha Budhathoki
The HUB
Davis Senior High School
Davis, California
Game Board

Fourth Place
Sarah Li
The Tartan
McLean High School
McLean, Virginia
Multifaceted

Fifth Place
Franny Wagner
Iris: Art + Lit
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
St. Paul, Minnesota
Untitled

Honorable Mention
Kathleen Hwang
Inkslinger
Darlington School
Rome, Georgia
Forever Rotating

Isabela Cazares
Menagerie
Lyons Township High School
La Grange, Illinois
Learning Spanish

Cindy Chan
The Tartan
McLean High School
McLean, Virginia
Pearfections of a Woman

Angela Ma
The Review
St. John’s School
Houston, Texas
Color Rush

Daniele Naujokas
Silent Voices
Woodward Academy
College Park, Georgia
Long Live Lithuania