Fusion, Yearbook

Hagerty High School

Each year, the National Scholastic Press Association recognizes excellence in student media with scholastic journalism’s preeminent award, the Pacemaker. Pacemakers are awarded in each category of publication — online, newspaper, yearbook, magazine and broadcast.

Entries are judged by teams of professionals based on the following criteria: coverage and content, quality of writing and reporting, leadership, design, photography and graphics.

NSPA contacted Brit Taylor, adviser of 2015 Yearbook Pacemaker recipient Fusion, for a Q&A. Fusion is the yearbook of Hagerty High School in Oviedo, Florida. Fusion won a Yearbook Pacemaker in the 289-336 pages category.

Winners of the 2015 Yearbook Pacemaker were announced April 16 at the JEA/NSPA National High School Journalism Conference in Los Angeles, California. See the full list of winners and finalists here.

 

NSPA: Tell us a little bit about the editors and staff of your Pacemaker-winning publication.

Brit Taylor: We had a staff of 25 students, with a senior editor-in-chief and a junior assistant editor. Both editors started in Journalism I as freshmen and progressed to staff class as sophomores. Most of the staff has been in a journalism class for two years or more, and most attend a summer workshop every summer.

 

NSPA: How did the staff ensure the quality of the publication?

BT: We have a process where spreads are broken into parts and mini-deadlines, and the two editors and adviser check progress along the way. Each spread goes through several rounds of checks with regard to copy, captions, layout, photos, etc.

 

NSPA: Is there any one issue, story, photo, package, etc. that stood out during the year?

BT: We tried to push the envelope with some of our spreads and break out of some of the traditional designs our readers were used to. That worked well, but the one place I felt the book really made a statement was in our spotlight (full spread) photos. These photos really got attention, and they captured some great moments, like the cheerleading team learning they had won a state title, a great sports reaction photo.

 

NSPA: Tell us about a hardship or obstacle you felt your staff overcame.

BT: We really changed a lot of our design between first submission and proofs, so the year finished rougher than normal. It took long hours and at times, got a little painful.

 

NSPA: What qualities will you remember the most about this Pacemaker-winning staff?          

BT: A lot of unexpected people stepped up. It wasn’t always who was expected. When our editor was for water polo much of the final few weeks, we had other people, and several of them freshmen and sophomores, produce quality work under pressure.

 

NSPA: What does winning a Pacemaker mean to you and your staff?

BT: This is our second Pacemaker, and I’ll be honest, it was a bit of a surprise. The year was not easy and not everything went smoothly, especially compared to the year before (our first Pacemaker). So my staff will tell you I was not happy at the end of the process, and my frustration tainted my feelings toward the book.

I can’t speak for everyone, but this Pacemaker, even more than the first, validates the process we go through, the pain we sometimes go through, and the need to celebrate the high-quality product that we put out every year, even if the journey was more of a struggle than most.