Journalism Awards
CSPA Crown Awards
Columbia Scholastic Press Association: “The Crown Awards are the highest recognition given by the CSPA to a student print or digital medium for overall excellence.”
• 2024 Silver Crown Award
NSPA Leadership Award in Student Journalism
National Scholastic Press Association: “To earn the NSPA Leadership Award in Student Journalism, a high school student must serve with distinction for at least two years on the staff of an NSPA-member broadcast, literary arts magazine, newspaper/newsmagazine, specialty magazine, website or yearbook by the end of the current school year.
Students are nominated by their advisers. A specific grade-point average is not required; however, students must be in good academic standing and demonstrate journalistic excellence and staff leadership while maintaining the high ethical standards outlined in the NSPA Model Code of Ethics.”
2024
• Abby ’24, Co-Editor-in-Chief
• Abigail ’24, Co-Editor-in-Chief
• Dalton ’24, Co-Managing Editor and Head of Politics
• Ciara ’24, Co-Managing Editor
2023
• Rebecca ’23, Co-Editor-in-Chief
• Stella ’23, Co-Editor-in-Chief
Best of SNO
SNO Sites: “Best of SNO showcases the best student journalism from members of the SNO Network. Why? We want to recognize excellent work; you’ve likely put a lot of time and effort (possibly some blood, sweat and tears — we don’t judge) into your various journalistic explorations, and you deserve to be congratulated! Plus, we hope to inspire other students with your awesomeness by giving them fresh ideas and showing them some new approaches to traditional news material.”
2025
• Cara ’26: ‘By 7 p.m., I knew my home was gone’
• Channing ’25, Francesca ’25 and Addie ’26: A tribute to Altadena and the Palisades
Previous Awards
National Group Critiques
Quill and Scroll, News Media Evaluation
Quill and Scroll was founded by George H. Gallup, inventor of the “Gallup poll.” The international honorary society was organized on April 10, 1926, by a group of high school advisers for the purpose of encouraging and recognizing individual student achievement in journalism and scholastic publication.
National Scholastic Press Association, Honor Critiques
NSPA is a nonprofit membership organization exclusively for high school and other secondary school publications – yearbooks, newspapers, magazines, broadcast programs, and online publications. Since 1921, it’s offered our members resources to help their publications improve, including national high school journalism conventions, prestigious contests and scholarships, a publication critique service, and much more.
Columbia Scholastic Press Association, Medalist Critiques
Founded in 1925, the Columbia Scholastic Press Association unites student editors and faculty advisers working with them to produce student newspapers, magazines, yearbooks, and online media. The Association is owned by Columbia University and is operated as a program affiliated with its Graduate School of Journalism.
National Individual Awards
The American Society of Newspaper Editors/Quill & Scroll International Writing and Photo Contest
Columbia Scholastic Press Association, Gold Circle Awards
National Scholastic Press Association, Individual awards and Best of the Press
NSPA awards may be the most prestigious and competitive in high school journalism. They give a single first, second and third place nationwide in four categories – best story, photo, design, and cartooning – and then a very select handful of additional entries are included in NSPA’s annual “Best of the Press” publication, which is used for teaching purposes across the country.
Scholarships
Edward J. Nell Memorial Scholarhips in Journalism
The Edward J. Nell Memorial Scholarship in Journalism is the only merit scholarship awarded to student journalists by the Quill & Scroll International Honorary Society. Awards range from $500 to $1,500. Selection is highly competitive based on student’s journalistic experience and accomplishments, published work, academic record, standarized test scores, and teacher recommendations. Applicants must be seniors, they must be Gold Key winners in the ASNE/Quill & Scroll International Writing and Photo Contest, and they must plan to major in journalism in college.
Honor Societies
National Scholastic Press Association National Honor Roll
The NSPA Journalism Honor Roll honors student journalists who have achieved a 3.75 or higher grade point average (on a 4.0 scale) and have worked in student media for two or more years.
Quill & Scroll International Journalism Honorary Society
Student journalists are inducted into Quill and Scroll International Journalism Honorary Society if they are of junior or senior classification, are in the upper third of their class in general scholastic standing, and have done superior work in some phase of journalism or school publications work.
Workshops
Medill-Northwestern Journalism Institute (previously known as the National High School Institute for Journalism)
Only 88 high school seniors are chosen globally to participate in this intensive five-week journalism summer program. Northwestern is known for its world-renowned Medill School of Journalism.
California Scholastic Press Association/Cal-Poly Summer Workshop
CSPA was created in 1950 and calls itself the most prestigious high school journalism workshop in the nation. Only 25 California high school juniors and seniors considering a career in communications are chosen to participate in the exhaustive two-week camp.
Newspaper by the Bay
The one-week newspaper camp, held each summer on the Stanford campus, provides student journalists with both the broad perspective and specific skills necessary to be leaders on their school papers.
