UPDATE
Journalism students brought another online newspaper Pacemaker home to Legacy from the JEA/NSPA Spring National High School Journalism Convention. The Rider Online won a Pacemaker and was honored with first place in Best in Show. Journalism adviser Mr. Leland Mallett was named a 2017 Distinguished Adviser of the Year.
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The National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA) has awarded Legacy Student Media Publications the honor to be finalists for the national Pacemaker Award once again. The newspaper editors will travel to San Francisco where the winners of 2018 Pacemaker will be announced April 12-14. Newspaper Editor-in-Chief Lauren Hargrove has high hopes for the publication due to their productive year.
“I hope when we attend the convention in San Francisco, we take the Pacemaker home,” Hargrove said. “We all worked hard to deserve the awards we get nominated for. As Editor-In-Chief it would be an awesome experience to win this award again for our school.”
Legacy High School journalism students traveled to Seattle last year, winning the prestigious award for not only newspaper but also the very first for their yearbook. With Crown awards being the highest recognition given by the Columbia Scholastic Press Association (CSPA), only six high schools in the United States earned a Gold Crown for a digital news site.
“I think one of the most important things to make sure the staff does during judging season is making sure the stories we publish are relevant to what is going on in our school,” Entertainment Editor Katherine Powell said. “Writing stories that pertain to our school serves as a big factor when looking for how well the publication covers the school.”
The newspaper has earned many Crown awards since the school opened in 2009. Newspaper Editor-In-Chief Grant Baker anticipates keeping this winning streak going.
“It feels great to be recognized for the great work we do, and I’m so proud of how hard our staff has worked,” Baker said. “I expect to leave San Francisco with another Pacemaker to hang up in our room.”
The CSPA also awards specific students who write impressive stories in their publications. The program aims to be successful in receiving recognition for both stories and the paper as a whole.
“My wishes next year are to keep up the good work we’ve done and also to improve in areas that we are weaker in,” Junior staff writer Kathryn Pedroza said. “As a writer, I would like to stretch myself and try writing stories that are out of my comfort zone.”
