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Congratulations to the 2024 February Monthly Contest Winners!

In the realm of high school journalism, the latest competition unveiled a thrilling showcase of talent and creativity. Olathe West High School took the lead in Academics Photography with a stunning first-place win, capturing the essence of scholarly excellence. Meanwhile, Shawnee Mission East High School dominated the Feature Writing category with not one, but two impressive victories. Mill Valley High School showcased their visual storytelling by triumphing in both Infographics and Multimedia Storytelling, while Shawnee Mission Northwest H.S. impressed with their top-ranking News Writing. Olathe South High School showcased their talent in Photo Illustration, and Lawrence Free State High School excelled in Sports Photography. Gardner-Edgerton High School captivated audiences with their compelling Video News productions, and Shawnee Mission East High School brought cinematic magic to life with their top-notch Video Production. In yearbook categories, Blue Valley Southwest High School’s copy stood out, while Shawnee Mission Northwest H.S. wowed with captivating layouts. These achievements paint a vivid picture of the remarkable talent and dedication within Kansas’ high school journalism community.

Academics Photography

  • first place: Academics Photography: Sophie Templeton: Olathe West High School

Sophomore Lyanna Beeland laughs with friends while working on her ASL assignment on the learning stairs on Feb. 5. Students enjoy going to the learning stairs to work on assignments and projects. “The learning stairs are the best place to study,” Beeland said. “Its always quit and easy to focus.”

  • second place: Academics Photography: Brecken Dowsey: Trinity Catholic High School

In anatomy and physiology, Kelly Donahy (12) and Gavin Judy (12) watch in amazement as Sr. Mary Jane Francis cuts open a fresh cow heart and lungs Feb. 13. “I think it helps them actually get to see how the flap stopped blood from going backwards. It came with the lungs so they could see the difference in the tissues,” Sister said.

  • third place: Academics Photography: Ashley Broils: Shawnee Mission Northwest H.S.

After the ending of “When Your Are an Addams,” junior Luke Dent poses Feb. 14 in the Auditorium. Dent played Gomez Addams in ‘The Addams Family’ musical. “Playing Gomez Addams has been the best role of my life,” Dent said. “I really enjoyed learning a Spanish accent for the role and getting to sing and dance for so much of the show.”

Feature Writing

Infographics

Multimedia Storytelling

News Page Design

News Writing

Opinion Writing

Photo Illustration

  • first place: Photo Illustration: Kai Magana: Olathe South High School

The cover paints a student walking in a hallway, behind her flowers sprout from cracks in the floor and walls. This illustrates how we as a school are attempting to heal the damage that’s been done by acknowledging the consequences, growing from them, and moving forward. Though we cannot make the damage go away, we can start to “grow.” Inside this issue, we address continued concerns of harassment at school, but also the positive changes the new administration has made.

  • second place: Photo Illustration: Kara Simpson: Shawnee Mission Northwest H.S.

Meet Your Match: Why do people take the matchmaker quiz?

  • third place: Photo Illustration: Anne Self: Olathe West High School

Portrait

  • first place: Portrait: Adalyn Sparks: Olathe South High School

Travis Kelce celebrates with the people of Kansas City during the Feb. 14 Super Bowl celebration. The Chiefs took to the streets as people gathered to see the Super Bowl 58 Champions. After winning Super Bowl 58, as well as Super Bowl 57, the Kansas City Chiefs have adopted the label of becoming a dynasty team.

  • second place: Portrait: Gregory Mayhew: Lawrence Free State High School

Sitting side by side, history teacher Jeff Haas and science teacher Wendy Haas grade stacks of papers together. They have been married for 19 years, and met through a May Day program through the school. “My favorite thing about her is the way that she inspires me and makes me better at everything, teaching is a part of it but it certainly isn’t the only thing,” Jeff Haas said.

  • third place: Portrait: Ava Madden: Trinity Catholic High School

Hyping up the crowd of students and herself during roll-offs, Allison Palacioz (12) high fives the line of people cheering for the team before the varsity homecoming game against Remington Feb. 2. “I think of how we have a good support system cheering us on, especially how this year we have the kids club. It’s fun to stay involved with all the kids,” Palacioz said.

Sports Photography

  • first place: Sports Photography: Chloe Cook: Lawrence Free State High School

Senior Alec Lopez from Blue Valley North glides through the water during the Boys 100 Yard Freestyle at 6A state swim finals on Feb. 17.

  • second place: Sports Photography: Alex Guajardo: Trinity Catholic High School

Xavier Bell (7) hits the brakes and reads the court after his drive on a fast break vs. Marion Jan. 22. “Basketball is the best sport. I grew up doing it, but it wasn’t a big thing first and second grade, but eventually it got going. This year was definitely a learning experience,” Bell said.

  • third place: Sports Photography: Melayna Murphy: Olathe West High School

At a winter pep assembly on Feb. 8, Kaiya Thorn (12) plays the ukulele for the first time while also attempting to make the audience guess the song, “Yeah” by Usher. At this assembly students including Thorn used instruments they had never used before to play songs by African American singers in honor of Black History Month. “I loved getting to play a new instrument for fun. My favorite part of the pep assemblies is hearing the band play at the end of it,” Thorn said.

Sports Writing

Student Life Photography

  • first place: Student Life Photography: Anders Benson: Lawrence Free State High School

Gracefully suspended above the stage, seventh grader Ellie Earl performs an aerial silks routine at the Lied Center as part of the Ovation Talent Show. Earl discovered an enjoyment for aerial silks two years ago after starting lessons at Inspired Aerial Arts.

  • second place: Student Life Photography: Will Bensman: Blue Valley West High School

“THIS YEAR’S QUEEN IS…”. Reacting to winning this year’s sweetheart queen, Blue Valley West senior Yeabin Son stands shocked alongside her father as her name is announced. On Feb. 9, during halftime of the basketball game versus Blue Valley Northwest, the sweetheart court was honored and the king and queen were crowned. “I had a couple of nerves walking out at halftime, but ultimately I would be excited for anyone who won. I was really surprised to hear my name called and that joy was definitely shared between me and my dad,” said Son.

  • third place: Student Life Photography: Allie Elton: Olathe South High School

Southside Singers perform at KMEA honors recognition on Feb. 22. This was an immense privilege to showcase the singer’s 7 demanding pieces. “Actually at first I didn’t like the song cause it was a really hard piece. But after we added all the movement it was so fun and I loved it,” junior Alicen Silva said. “I was feeling pure joy because we’ve worked for that moment for like eight months and it was just so much fun to showcase everything that we’ve done and worked so hard for.”

Video News

Video Production

Yearbook Copy

Yearbook Layout

  • first place: Yearbook Layout: Jose Duran: Shawnee Mission Northwest H.S.

  • second place: Yearbook Layout: Austin Sturdivan: Olathe West High School

  • third place: Yearbook Layout: Gabby Anderson: Bishop Miege High School

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