By Sidney Reynolds

Last Friday The Bagpiper newspaper Staff and Bartizan Yearbook staff went to Southeastern Indiana’s High School Press Association convention at Indiana University Southeast where The Bagpiper was named Newspaper of the Year for the ninth consecutive year. Additionally, the Bartizan yearbook was named Yearbook of the Year.

These honors came one week after The Bagpiper was named a Hoosier Star newspaper at the annual Indiana High School Press Association convention at Franklin College, placing it among the state’s top newspapers. The newspaper and Bartizan yearbook also won several individual Harvey awards at the IHSPA convention.

“I was really happy to see it do so well. We spent a lot of time and dedication on producing a good book for our students and competitions,” said senior Lauren McNeeley, Bartizan editor-in-chief.

Sophomore Jalyn Kowalski won second place in On-site Student Life Design at the IHSPA convention.

“It was really a big accomplishment for me because it was the first time I’ve ever done something like that,” said Kowalski.

McNeeley said the numerous yearbook awards are a reflection of the staff’s high standards. “We have very high standards for the work that we do. I think that’s what pushes us for our photos and captions to make a good yearbook,” she said.

Senior Anna Boone, co-editor-in-chief of The Bagpiper, said the newspapers staff’s focus on producing quality journalism has paid off.

“It was very rewarding,” she said. “I think it solidifies all the hard work we have been doing throughout the year.”

Senior Grace Runkel, co-editor-in-chief of The Bagpiper, agreed with Boone.

“I was really honored to win this award again. It was nice to see all our hard work pay off,” said Runkel.

Boone said the writing and reporting talents of the newspaper journalists helped lead to the recent honors.

“I think every single year we’ve had great writers on our staff, especially this year,” she said.

For next year, The Bagpiper plans to work on their website design and layout, and the Bartizan is already putting together this year’s yearbook for the next competition.

“We are going to continue our excellent writing,” added Boone.

The most recent edition of The Bagpiper was published and distributed at FC today. Interested readers can look through pdf’s of pages posted on this website.

To see a complete list of individual students honored at the SISPA convention, click here.

To see a complete list of individual students honored at the IHSPA convention, click here.