Online excellence

NSPA Pacemaker competition recognizes 40 websites as finalists for prestigious award

March 10, 2026

MINNEAPOLIS — The nation’s top scholastic websites were recognized today by the National Scholastic Press Association, which announced 40 finalists in its annual Pacemaker competition.

Pacemaker finalists will be honored and Pacemakers announced for the first time during the awards ceremony on Saturday, April 18, at the JEA/NSPA Spring National High School Journalism Convention in Minneapolis. 

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 41 schools we are naming as finalists today, the competition is still happening in real time.”

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

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, broadcast programs and innovation were added to the competition. 

The 40 Pacemaker finalists represent 17 states and the United Kingdom. California led with nine finalists, followed by Texas with six.

To select the Pacemaker finalists, judges carefully studied approximately 90 sites submitted from 21 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, 52 sites were companions to print newspapers and newsmagazines and 38 were online-only products.

A separate 2025 NSPA Newspaper/Newsmagazine Pacemaker competition recognized 41 print news publications and specialty magazines in November. In all, 16 schools earned Pacemaker recognition for both their print and online products.A “From the Online Pacemaker Judges” panel discussion is planned for  JEA/NSPA Spring National High School Journalism Convention in Minneapolis.  Judges will share what sets apart the Pacemaker-winners and showcase the yearbooks.

Please join us at the JEA/NSPA Spring National High School Journalism Convention April 16-18, 2026, in Minneapolis.

The convention offers hundreds of instructional sessions, keynote speakers from national newsmakers, dozens of media critiques, JEA’s popular on-site media contests and the announcement of NSPA Pacemaker winners. NSPA also offers a convention Best of Show competition that celebrates current student media work.

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Scot Scoop
Carlmont High School
Belmont, California
Editor-in-chief: Naomi Hsu
Adviser: Justin Raisner

The Wildcat
Brea Olinda High School
Brea, California
Editor-in-chief: Siena Codekas
Adviser: Alex Koers

El Estoque
Monta Vista High School
Cupertino, California
Editors-in-chief: Sophia D’Sa, Jillian Ju, Isabelle Kok, Liz Liu, Stella Petzova, Benjamin Zhang
Advisers: Vennessa Nava, Julia Satterthwaite

The Accolade
Sunny Hills High School
Fullerton, California
Editor-in-chief: Aashna Dialani
Adviser: C.J. D’Innocente

The Pearl Post
Daniel Pearl Magnet High School
Lake Balboa, California
Editor-in-chief: Tania Lopez
Adviser: Adriana Chavira

Falconer
Torrey Pines High School
San Diego, California
Editor-in-chief: Sarina Feng
Adviser: Kara Adler

Harker Aquila
The Harker School
San Jose, California
Editors-in-chief: Eva Cheng, Lily Shi
Adviser: Whitney Huang

VHNSMirror
Van Nuys High School
Van Nuys, California
Editors-in-chief: Joel Nam, Olamide Olumide
Adviser: Ron Goins

The Foothill Dragon Press
Foothill Technology High School
Ventura, California
Editors-in-chief: Fiona Aulenta, Jane Kim
Adviser: Yiu Hung Li

CavsConnect
Coral Gables Senior High School
Coral Gables, Florida
Editors-in-chief: Marina Astorga, Olivia Russo
Adviser: Patricia Passwaters

The BluePrint Online
Hagerty High School
Oviedo, Florida
Editors-in-chief: Lia Miller, Holly Smyers
Adviser: Brit Taylor

Odyssey Media Group
Clarke Central High School
Athens, Georgia
Editor-in-chief: Lea D’Angelo
Adviser: David A. Ragsdale

Metea Media
Metea Valley High School
Aurora, Illinois
Editor-in-chief: Ryder Preston Brown
Adviser: Adam Page

U-High Midway
University of Chicago Laboratory High School
Chicago, Illinois
Editors-in-chief: Light Dohrn, Kabir Joshi, Sohana Schneider
Adviser: Logan Aimone

HiLite
Carmel High School
Carmel, Indiana
Editors-in-chief: Mahitha Konjeti, Magan Xia
Adviser: Jim Streisel

The Spartan Shield
Pleasant Valley High School
Bettendorf, Iowa
Editor-in-chief: Ishika Desai
Adviser: Maureen Dyer

The Little Hawk
Iowa City High School
Iowa City, Iowa
Editor-in-chief: Lily Rantanen
Adviser: Jonathan Rogers

West Side Story
Iowa City West High School
Iowa City, Iowa
Editor-in-chief: Evelyn Kraber
Adviser: Sara Whittaker

The Harbinger
Shawnee Mission East High School
Prairie Village, Kansas
Editors-in-chief: Sophia Brockmeier, Libby Marsh, Luciana Mendy, Lucy Stephens
Adviser: Dow Tate

Mill Valley News
Mill Valley High School
Shawnee, Kansas
Editors-in-chief: Evan LeRoy, Maddie Martin
Adviser: Kathy Habiger

Manual RedEye
duPont Manual High School
Louisville, Kentucky
Editor-in-chief: Stella Kolers
Adviser: Liz Palmer

The Cougar Star
Clague Middle School
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Editors-in-chief: Aeda Baang, Medha Sangi
Advisers: Sara-Beth Badalamente, Satvika Ramanathan

The Communicator
Community High School
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Editors-in-chief: Luca Hinesman, Vedha Kakarla, Lucy Lowenschuss, Paige Plavnick, Wilson Zheng
Adviser: Tracy Anderson

The Huron Emery
Huron High School
Ann Arbor, Michigan
Editors-in-chief: Amelia Bai, Emily Hu, Ishaan Kamat, Isha Savi
Adviser: Sara Badalamente

The Rubicon
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
St. Paul, Minnesota
Editor-in-chief: Thomas Chen
Adviser: Kathryn Campbell

Pathfinder
Parkway West High School
Ballwin, Missouri
Editors-in-chief: Yein Ahn, Ruthvi Tadakamalla
Adviser: Lindsey Katz

FHNtoday
Francis Howell North High School
Saint Charles, Missouri
Editor-in-chief: Peyton Thies
Advisers: Jordyn Kiel, Aaron Manfull

Eastside
Cherry Hill High School East
Cherry Hill, New Jersey
Editors-in-chief: Laavanya Viswanathan, Dino Russo
Adviser: Greg Gagliardi

The Delphi
Delaware Valley Regional High School
Frenchtown, New Jersey
Editor-in-chief: Gianna Roberts
Adviser: Brian Smith

The Classic
Townsend Harris High School
Flushing, New York
Editors-in-chief: Ryan Chen, Yasmeen Ismail
Adviser: Brian Sweeney

The La Salle Falconer
La Salle Catholic College Preparatory
Milwaukie, Oregon
Editors-in-chief: Finnuala Christensen-McElroy, Kayah Cieslak
Adviser: Miles Kane

The Panther Press
Strath Haven High School
Wallingford, Pennsylvania
Editors-in-chief: Kaitlyn Ho, Matthew Ramirez
Adviser: Kate Plows

The Voice
Vandegrift High School
Austin, Texas
Editor-in-chief: Audryn Lee
Adviser: Jessica Stamp

Coppell Student Media
Coppell High School
Coppell, Texas
Editor-in-chief: Yug Talukdar
Adviser: Chase Wofford

Wingspan
Liberty High School
Frisco, Texas
Editors-in-chief: Lea Garcia-Salazar, Sankeertana Malakapalli
Adviser: Brian Higgins

KP Times
Kingwood Park High School
Kingwood, Texas
Editors-in-chief: Tricia Darcy, Danielle Nalley, Sydney Ortiz
Adviser: Megan Ortiz

The Rider Online
Legacy High School
Mansfield, Texas
Editors-in-chief: Katie Keating, Kati Waguespack
Advisers: Rachel Dearinger, Jonathan Dixon

Mule Time Media
Alamo Heights Junior High School
San Antonio, Texas
Editor-in-chief: Teyton Mendez
Adviser: Brandon Boylan

The Puma Press
UPrep
Seattle, Washington
Editors-in-chief: Sofia Delgado-Pack, Avi Patel
Adviser: Scott Collins

The Standard
The American School in London
London, England
Editor-in-chief: Yasmine Rivera
Adviser: Louisa Avery