NSPA recognizes online excellence

Pacemaker competition recognizes 16 online news sites for excellence

April 18, 2026

MINNEAPLIS — The nation’s top scholastic websites were recognized today by the National Scholastic Press Association, which announced 16 winners in its annual Pacemaker competition.

Pacemaker winners were announced for the first time on Saturday, April 18 at the convention’s awards ceremony.

“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 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.

2025 Spring convention awards

2026 Innovation Pacemaker
2025 Literary Arts Magazine Pacemaker
2026 Online Pacemaker
2025 Yearbook Pacemaker

Individual Best of Show
Staff Best of Show

Pacemaker finalists

2026 Innovation Pacemaker finalists
2025 Literary Arts Magazine Pacemaker finalists
2026 Online Pacemaker finalists
2025 Yearbook Pacemaker finalists

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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