The publication groups won several awards from various prestigious organizations, 

Students from both classes submitted their work to organizations including Michigan Interscholastic Press Association, Ball State, Quill and Scroll, and Columbia Scholastic Press Association.

“Personally, I’m very proud of my Quill and Scroll award because that is a national organization and it is a really big deal,” yearbook editor-in-chief Madeline Elton said. “So that award definitely has a special place in my heart.”

Under the direction of publications advisor Erica Kincannon, both classes are mostly student-led. The two classes work hard year round to get the “Eagle’s Eye” newspaper and the yearbooks out to the student body in a timely manner. 

“It’s not always about the awards, but it sure is nice when somebody outside of school recognizes all the hard work that your students are doing,” Publications advisor Erica Kincannon said. 

This year the newspaper staff took home a record-breaking amount of awards in school history. The yearbook staff won 33 awards from MIPA, four awards from CSPA and two awards from Quill and Scroll organization. 

“It felt really good to know that both publication groups were so successful this year,” newspaper editor-in-chief Danielle Carlisi said. “It’s been tough working with a whole new staff, but it felt really rewarding to be recognized by such prestigious organizations.” 

Some of the work that was submitted to these organizations was from when the staff was learning online. Last year, due to the pandemic, both classes had to take “Teams messages” and Zoom calls in order to get the content they needed for their assignments.

Along with creating content to be published for the students and the community, the publication groups submit work to be adjudicated and reviewed. Upon receiving awards, feedback is also given to help improve for future yearbooks and newspapers. 

“Being recognized at the state level and for national awards is a really great way for the student body to realize just how much of an impact our work can make,” yearbook editor-in-chief Madeline Elton said. “This is a class where you can take everything you’ve learned and apply it to real world experiences.”