Congratulations to the 2023 November Monthly Contest Winners!

The KSPA November contest showcased remarkable achievements in various journalism categories, highlighting the diversity and excellence of Kansas high school journalism programs. Bishop Miege High School stood out as a dominant force, securing first place in Academics Photography, Feature Writing, and Sports Writing, as well as excelling in Portrait and Yearbook Layout. Mill Valley High School demonstrated strong performance, securing top positions in Academics Photography, Feature Writing, Multimedia Storytelling and Photo Illustration. Shawnee Mission East High School displayed expertise in Infographics and Video News, while Lawrence High School consistently placed in top positions across Feature Writing, News Writing and Student Life Photography. Maize Career Academy showcased prowess in Video News and Video Production, while Blue Valley Northwest demonstrated excellence in Infographics and Photo Illustration. The overall competition highlighted the outstanding journalism talents of schools like Bishop Miege, Mill Valley, Shawnee Mission East, and Lawrence, as well as individual achievements by students in various categories, showcasing the high caliber of journalism programs across Kansas high schools.

Academics Photography

first place: Academics Photography: Madi Nelson: Bishop Miege High School

Scared of getting burnt, sophomore Graham Walsh claps out the fire he is holding during a Chemoween demonstration that uses methane and dish soap to safely set participants’ hands on fire. Chemoween is a halloween tradition of Mrs. Nikki Burnett’s where her AP Chemistry students perform mini experiments throughout the school day on Halloween for other students whose class in attendance. “I thought it would be hotter than it actually was,” Walsh said. “It was super fun.”

second place: Academics Photography: Avery Clement: Mill Valley High School (Habiger)

Collaborating on a math question, sophomore Ian Weatherman, junior Carter Tollman and senior Georgia Hansen discuss how to solve the problem. The Scholar’s Bowl team placed second at the Eudora tournament Wednesday, Nov. 25. “Whenever I get a math question right, it’s always nice because I don’t usually get math questions. When I get world languages questions, it’s always nice because it’s what I’m studying in Spanish right now,” Weatherman said.

third place: Academics Photography: Katara Kincaid: Leavenworth High School

For the last 12 years teacher Justin Bode has his anatomy class dissect cats as a way to learn more about the human autonomy. A majority of his classes consist of juniors. His class teaches students about the anatomy and physiology about the human body. “We use the cat dissection to use as a comparative anatomy for humans. Cats have similar anatomy, they are mammals like us they have similar parts and most structures. And since we don’t have the ability to go see a true cadaver and study a cadaver, we use a mammal that has comparable parts to us,” Bode said. Photo by K. Kincaid

Feature Writing

first place: Feature Writing: River Ball: Bishop Miege High School
second place: Feature Writing: Ashlynn Tell: Lawrence High School
third place: Feature Writing: Anna Zwahlen, Quin Peters, Madelyn Mulryan: Mill Valley High School (Habiger)

Infographics

first place: Infographics: Sydney Eck: Shawnee Mission East High School

second place: Infographics: Prajwal Adhikari: Blue Valley Northwest

Multimedia Storytelling

first place: Multimedia Storytelling: Brooklyn Markovich, Meg McAfee, Thomas Helm, Stella Harryman: Mill Valley High School (Habiger)

News Page Design

first place: News Page Design: Will Atchity, Sami Porter, Sally Panis, Elaina Gibson: Bishop Miege High School
second place: News Page Design: Arabella Gipp: Lawrence High School
third place: News Page Design: Katie Kennedy: Blue Valley High School

News Writing

first place: News Writing: Maya Smith: Lawrence High School
second place: News Writing: Reagan Wald: Blue Valley Northwest
third place: News Writing: Greta Waller: Shawnee Mission South High School

Opinion Writing

first place: Opinion Writing: Isaac Hudson: Blue Valley High School
second place: Opinion Writing: Natasha Torkzaban: Lawrence High School
third place: Opinion Writing: Grace Rau: Shawnee Mission Northwest H.S.

Photo Illustration

first place: Photo Illustration: Avery Sigg: Blue Valley Northwest

Military service leads to different values and perspectives for those involved.

second place: Photo Illustration: Maya Stutzman: Maize Career Academy

Greenhouse Gas emissions are the highest they have ever been. The Global temperature has risen 2 degrees Fahrenheit since the 1880s. The US contributes to around 14% of carbon emissions, which is an increasing amount each year. The Earth is heating up and we are on the road to a mass extinction event. Meanwhile, carbon emissions are worse than ever because of consumerism and greed.

third place: Photo Illustration: Jule Shumaker: Mill Valley High School (Habiger)

Students are being overwhelmed with notifications on their phones, according to a study by Common Sense Media. Students in the study admitted to checking their phones over 100 times a day and 20% of all notifications come during the school day. Some students say checking their phones and scrolling through social media takes their mind off stress and anxiety they feel at school, while some students say all those notifications cause more stress in their daily lives.

Portrait

first place: Portrait: Kate Pedrotti: Bishop Miege High School

Singing his desire for his love to be accepted, senior Benedict Balino, playing the character Dean, performs “If I Can Dream” in Act II. “All Shook Up” was Balino’s third production, but it was the first time he was a lead role. “I wanted to take on more leadership roles this year,” Balino said. “I was really happy to get a principal role and ran up and down the halls when I found out I got the part.”

second place: Portrait: Madison Glaser: DeSoto High School

Senior Brodie Breckenridge sings his heart out in this year’s fall musical The Addams Family, which debuted Nov. 8 in the Performing Arts Center. Breckenridge played the role of Gomez Addams in the production. “It was really interesting to be able to connect with the character through his songs to the audience,” Breckenridge said.

third place: Portrait: Ryleigh Hartwell: Eudora High School

Senior Caitlyn Peterson smiles at the Eudora faithful during a football game Friday, Sept. 1, 2023. Peterson has cheered for three years and plans to continue through college at Fort Hays State. “It’s one of the best decisions I’ve made! I’ve gained so many friendships, lessons, and skills,” Peterson said.

Sports Photography

first place: Sports Photography: Blaine Leyden: Olathe South High School

Staring in amazement, freshman Annika Whitcomb sinks a birdie putt on hole 9 with her coach and teammates watching. The Falcons took all four of Whitcombs shots on this hole to make birdie at Oak Country Club. “It has been so fun to see these girls improve throughout the season,” coach Joan Radakovich said.

second place: Sports Photography: Mason Harding: Eudora High School

CHAMPION’S FINISH: Senior Sydney Owens crosses the finish line in 1st place at the girls’ 4A state championship race Saturday, Oct. 29, 2023, at Wamego Golf Course. Owens helped Eudora girls cross country complete their third straight 4A state title with a finishing time of 18:47.

third place: Sports Photography: Katie Gillian: Blue Valley West High School

GAME CHANGER! Blue Valley West quarterback, junior Tate Nagy, fights for a first down while playing against Shawnee Mission North on October 26, 2023. The BVW football team defeated SMN during their first playoff game of the season with a score of 69-35. “I was thinking to myself, ‘I’m not going to get tackled and I’m going to try my best to keep running no matter who’s in front of me,’” said Nagy.

Sports Writing

first place: Sports Writing: Daniel Sullivan: Bishop Miege High School
second place: Sports Writing: Kaitlyn Hood: Mill Valley High School (Habiger)
third place: Sports Writing: Emma Torres: Leavenworth High School

Student Life Photography

first place: Student Life Photography: Caroline Martucci: Shawnee Mission East High School

Junior Kevin Gomez and seniors Ego Babik and Natialia Rios walk through the SM East parking lot holding a sign towards the principal and police officers. Students held a walkout after a white male student shouted a slur and injured a Black girl in the hallways of SM East. “None of us want to experience violence and the fact that we are experiencing it at school is just unacceptable and we don’t want that to keep happening,” Babik said.

second place: Student Life Photography: Maison Flory: Lawrence High School

Preforming in front of the crowd, teacher Audrey Trowbridge participates in the teacher dance at Lawrence High Schools annual ‘Pack the House’.

third place: Student Life Photography: Carlee Milner: Marysville High School

A doe stands in the pasture south of the Milner house on Nov. 10. As the state shifts from bow to rifle season, numerous students spend part of their day in a blind or tree stand trying to bag a buck.