April 17, 2020 / News

Gresham, McKinney place first in unusual NSPA Best of Show

Written by Evan Blackwell, CJE

Thirteen Walsworth Yearbooks schools placed in the Best of Show contest the National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA) held this spring, originally intended to take place at the JEA/NSPA Spring National High School Journalism Convention in Nashville. The convention was canceled due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, but NSPA still allowed entries into the Best of Show and announced the winners on Friday.

Two Walsworth Yearbooks schools placed first in their categories. Munhinotu from Gresham High School in Gresham, Oregon, finished at the top of the “Yearbook up to 220 pages” category. The Lion from McKinney High School in McKinney, Texas, finished first in the “Yearbook 336+ pages” category.

Right behind McKinney in the largest page category, Hauberk from Shawnee Mission East High School in Prairie Village, Kansas, placed second; while The Lair from Shawnee Mission Northwest High School in Shawnee, Kansas, placed third.

Three Walsworth schools placed in the “Yearbook 280-332 pages” category: Ayrie from Liberty North High School in Liberty, Missouri, finished fifth; Legend from El Dorado High School in El Paso, Texas, finished sixth; and Arena from Legacy High School in Mansfield, Texas, placed 10th.

In the “224-272 pages” category, Hoofbeats from Burges High School in El Paso, Texas, placed fifth. Le Flambeau from Notre Dame de Sion in Kansas City, Missouri, finished second in the “Yearbook Up to 220 pages” category.

The Round-Up from Woodland Junior High School in Fayetteville, Arkansas, placed second in the “Junior High/Middle School Yearbook” category; while the Oro from Cactus Canyon Junior High School in Apache Junction, Arizona, finished fifth.

In a new category to honor COVID-19 coverage for Yearbook Spreads, the Cactus Canyon Oro placed second. Horizon from Blue Valley Northwest High School in Overland Park, Kansas, finished fifth. The Spectator from Liberty High School in Liberty, Missouri, placed 10th.

The Best of Show competition is typically held at every national convention and recognizes overall excellence among the attendees and entries.

To watch NSPA’s entire Best of Show award presentation, visit this link.

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Evan Blackwell, CJE

Evan Blackwell, CJE, is the Marketing Automation Supervisor for Walsworth. He's been a writer, editor and web content specialist for Walsworth for the past 15+ years, and is the author of the Yearbook Suite's "The Art of the Interview" unit. Prior to joining Walsworth, Blackwell spent five years as an award-winning newspaper and magazine journalist. He holds a bachelor’s degree in journalism from the University of Kansas.