High school journalists recognized with Review-Journal awards

Green Valley’s newspaper, The InvestiGator, was named the best newspaper in the reduced format and captured the RJ’s First Amendment Award.

Seventeen high schools across the valley took home awards Monday during a ceremony at the Suncoast. In addition to the best newspaper awards, students were honored for headlines, copy editing, design, photography and advertisements.

Green Valley has a history of producing high-quality journalism. Monday marked the 19th top award for the paper, which competed in the standard format category before switching to a smaller size a couple years ago.

“There’s this really high standard,” said Shila Sherafat, a 17-year-old senior who serves as one of the paper’s co-editors-in-chief.

Other than adviser Eric Johnston, the staff of the newspaper is all female. Sherafat and managing editor Erinn Veach, a 17-year-old junior and managing editor of the paper, said they weren’t sure why. A wall in the classroom displays photos of past editors of the paper.

“There was a guy about eight years ago, but since then it’s been all girls,” Veach said.

In the larger format, The Grizzly Growler of Spring Valley High School netted the best newspaper award under its editor-in-chief, Donovan Souder.

The paper’s news editor, Andrew Mendez, brought home two first-place awards and a second-place award and was named the paper’s most valuable staffer. The latter award is based on nominations from the newspaper’s adviser. Other awards are judged by Review-Journal staff.

Mendez said he’s motivated to make sure the student newspaper is as diverse as the school’s population, which speaks more than 30 languages. Mendez plans to study journalism at the University of Nevada, Reno next year.

“That’s what I want to do for the rest of my life, get these voices heard,” he said.

One of Mendez’s awards was for an article he wrote on the Route 91 Harvest festival shooting, a common subject among works honored in a busy news year in Clark County.

Review-Journal Executive Editor Glenn Cook commended the students for their coverage of that shooting and of the debates that erupted on high school campuses after the school shooting in Parkland, Florida, in February. Student work this year also covered the Clark County School District’s budget crisis and search for a new superintendent.

“The ever-higher quality of entries we see never ceases to amaze,” Cook said.

Contact Meghin Delaney at 702-383-0281 or mdelaney@reviewjournal.com. Follow @MeghinDelaney on Twitter.

Best newspaper / standard format

1st Place – The Grizzly Growler – Spring Valley High School – Editor-in-Chief: Donovan Souder

2nd Place – Sunrise Mountain Echo – Sunrise Mountain High School – Editor: Karen Virgen

3rd Place – Mountain Lion Messenger – Sierra Vista High School – Editors: Jubelyn Lumboy,

Deyan Vekic, Katherine Mohler, Luis Gutierrez, Marisol Reano-Lopez, Loi Sheih

Honorable Mention – The Silverado Star – Silverado High School – Editors: Taylor Lane and Morgan Allen

Best newspaper / reduced format

1st Place – The InvestiGator – Green Valley High School – Editors: Sarah Fernandez and Shila Sherafat

2nd Place – Hillside Hotwire – Foothill High School – Editors: Elly Davis and Kaylee Schwurack

3rd Place – LVA Accolades – Las Vegas Academy – LVA Accolades Staff Members

Best news website

1st Place – Southwest Shadow – Southwest Career and Technical Academy

2nd Place – Crusader Chronicle – Faith Lutheran High School

3rd Place – Maverick Pulse – Advanced Technical Academy

Honorable Mention – West Tech Times – West Career and Technical Academy

First Amendment

1st Place – Sarah Fernandez, Shila Sherafat – The Investigator – Green Valley High School

2nd Place – Jubelyn Lumboy – Mountain Lion Messenger – Sierra Vista High School

3rd Place – Taylor Lane – Silverado Star – Silverado High School

Honorable Mention – Chloe Brown and Juliette Singer – LVA Accolades – Las Vegas Academy

Best editorial

1st Place – Dillon Concepcion – The Grizzly Growler – Spring Valley High School

2nd Place – Dillon Concepcion – The Grizzly Growler – Spring Valley High School

3rd Place – Southwest Shadow Editorial Board – Southwest Shadow – Southwest Career

and Technical Academy

Honorable Mention – Taylor Lane – Silverado Star – Silverado High School

Opinion writing / Humorous

1st Place – Drew Comer – Maverick Pulse – Advanced Technologies Academy

2nd Place – Sabrina Galaviz – Silverado Star – Silverado High School

3rd Place – Vinh Tran – Southwest Shadow – Southwest Career and Technical Academy

Honorable Mention – Sage Tipple – The Roar – Coronado High School

Opinion writing / Serious

1st Place – Hanna Helfand _ The Grizzly Growler – Spring Valley High School

2nd Place – Jake Grosvenor and Eli Duncan – Panther Print – Palo Verde High School

3rd Place – Laura Sanchez Zavala – Maverick Pulse – Advanced Technologies Academy

Honorable Mention – Portia Bingham – Sunrise Mountain Echo – Sunrise Mountain High School

Opinion writing / Pro – Con

1st Place – Vinh Tran and Cassie Valdez – Southwest Shadow – Southwest Career and Technical Academy

2nd Place – Samantha Hays and Deyan Vekic – Mountain Lion Messenger – Sierra Vista High School

3rd Place – Casey Li and Erinn Veach – The InvestiGator – Green Valley High School

Honorable Mention – Rachel Haunschild and Kate Oshin – West Tech Times – West Career and

Technical Academy

Best illustration

1st Place – Nicholas Horrilleno – The InvestiGator – Green Valley High School

2nd Place – Cristine Laxamana – Hillside Hotwire – Foothill High School

3rd Place –Kalana Em – Sunrise Mountain Echo – Sunrise Mountain High School

Honorable Mention – Nicholas Horrilleno – The InvestiGator – Green Valley High School

Best informational artwork

1st Place – Vivian Wu – LVA Accolades – Las Vegas Academy

2nd Place – Cristine Laxamana – Hillside Hotwire – Foothill High School

3rd Place – Dillon Concepcion – The Grizzly Growler – Spring Valley High School

Honorable Mention – Delany Fallico – Hillside Hotwire – Foothill High School

Best editorial cartoon

1st Place – Juliette Singer – LVA Accolades – Las Vegas Academy

2nd Place – Cristine Laxamana – Hillside Hotwire – Foothill High School

3rd Place – Isabelle Del Rosario – Southwest Shadow – Southwest Career and Technical Academy

Honorable Mention – Isabelle Del Rosario – Southwest Shadow – Southwest Career

and Technical Academy

Best sports news story

1st Place – Katherine Mohler – Mountain Lion Messenger – Sierra Vista High School

2nd Place – Donovan Souder – The Grizzly Growler – Spring Valley High School

3rd Place – Leticia Gonzalez – Sunrise Mountain Echo – Sunrise Mountain High School

Best sports feature

1st Place – Emerald Green – The Roar – Coronado High School

2nd Place – Miguel Navarro – Hillside Hotwire – Foothill High School

3rd Place – Amai Mims – The Grizzly Growler- Spring Valley High School

Honorable Mention – Erinn Veach – The InvestiGator – Green Valley High School

Best news story

1st Place – Deyan Vekic – Mountain Lion Messenger – Sierra Vista High School

2nd Place – Andrew Mendez – The Grizzly Growler – Spring Valley High School

3rd Place – Elly Davis – Hillside Hotwire – Foothill High School

Honorable Mention – John Blake, Kloe Dougherty, Jasper James and Juliette Singer – LVA Accolades

– Las Vegas Academy

Best news feature story

1st Place – Andrew Mendez – The Grizzly Growler – Spring Valley High School

2nd Place – Loreen Jantono – Mountain Lion Messenger – Sierra Vista High School

3rd Place – Juliette Singer – LVA Accolades – Las Vegas Academy

Honorable Mention – Shae Turner – Crusade Chronicle – Faith Lutheran High School

Best feature story

1st Place – Cosette Zielinski and Jackelyn Romo – Southwest Shadow – Southwest Career

and Technical Academy

2nd Place – Kaeli Britt – The InvestiGator – Green Valley High School

3rd Place – Kushtrim Muja – The Grizzly Growler – Spring Valley High School

Honorable Mention – Joanna Bieda – Maverick Pulse – Advanced Technologies Academy

Best entertainment story

1st Place – Olivia Fink – Maverick Pulse – Advanced Technologies Academy

2nd Place – Hannah Serquina – The InvestiGator – Green Valley High School

3rd Place – Vivian Wu – LVA Accolades – Las Vegas Academy

Honorable Mention – Kaya Thomas – Crusader Chronicle – Faith Lutheran High School

Best review

1st Place – Katherine Alexander – LVA Accolades- Las Vegas Academy

2nd Place – Nicole Burton – The Eagle’s Landing – College of Southern Nevada High School

3rd Place – Cierra McGinn– Mountain Lion Messenger – Sierra Vista High School

Best Page One design / standard format

1st Place – Angelica Marroquin – The Grizzly Growler – Spring Valley High School

2nd Place – Karen Virgen – Sunrise Mountain Echo – Sunrise Mountain High School

3rd Place – Morgan Allen – Silverado Star – Silverado High School

Best Page One design / reduced format

1st Place – John Blake and Meagan Shaffer – LVA Accolades – Las Vegas Academy

2nd Place – Kaylee Schwurack – Hillside Hotwire – Foothill High School

3rd Place – Sarah Fernandez – The InvestiGator – Green Valley High School

Honorable Mention – Miranda O’Donnell – The Eagle’s Landing – College of Southern

Nevada High School

Best sports page design / standard format

1st Place – Amai Mims – The Grizzly Growler – Spring Valley High School

2nd Place – Donovan Souder – The Grizzly Growler – Spring Valley High School

3rd Place – Karen Virgen – Sunrise Mountain Echo – Sunrise Mountain High School

Best sports page design / reduced format

1st Place – Elly Davis – Hillside Hotwire – Foothill High School

2nd Place – Erinn Veach – The InvestiGator – Green Valley High School

3rd Place – Kira Leal – The Eagle’s Landing – College of Southern Nevada High School

Best features, arts or entertainment page design / standard format

1st Place – Jubelyn Lumboy – Mountain Lion Messenger – Sierra Vista High School

2nd Place – Kushtrim Muja – The Grizzly Growler – Spring Valley High School

3rd Place – Morgan Allen – Silverado Star – Silverado High School

Honorable Mention – Nidian Navarrete – Sunrise Mountain Echo – Sunrise Mountain High School

Best features, arts or entertainment page design / reduced format

1st Place – Zack Jackson – Hillside Hotwire – Foothill High School

2nd Place – Kaeli Britt – The InvestiGator – Green Valley High School

3rd Place – Kira Leal – The Eagle’s Landing – College of Southern Nevada High School

Honorable Mention – Juliette Singer – LVA Accolades – Las Vegas Academy

Best copy editing

1st Place – Shila Sherafat – The InvestiGator – Green Valley High School

2nd Place – Sarah Fernandez – The InvestiGator – Green Valley High School

3rd Place – La Chine Wong – The Grizzly Growler – Spring Valley High School

Best headline

1st Place – Andrew Mendez – The Grizzly Growler – Spring Valley High School

2nd Place – Juliette Singer – LVA Accolades – Las Vegas Academy

3rd Place – Grace Fitzpatrick – The Meadows Sentinel – The Meadows School

Best advertisement

1st Place – Olivia Santos – Silverado Star – Silverado High School

2nd Place – Elly Davis – Hillside Hotwire – Foothill High School

3rd Place – Breanna Burns – The Eagle’s Landing – College of Southern Nevada High School

Honorable Mention – Cole Miele – Mountain Lion Messenger – Sierra Vista High School

Best sports photo

1st Place – Cherish Jones – Mountain Lion Messenger – Sierra Vista High School

2nd Place – Esmeralda Arias – Sunrise Mountain Echo – Sunrise Mountain High School

3rd Place – Ryan Kelleher – The Roar – Coronado High School

Honorable Mention – Leigh Quarles – Hillside Hotwire – Foothill High School

Best news photo

1st Place – Karen Pegueros – The Roar – Coronado High School

2nd Place – Erinn Veach – The InvestiGator – Green Valley High School

3rd Place – Jason Park – Maverick Pulse – Advanced Technologies Academy

Honorable Mention – Caitlin Gaddis – The Grizzly Growler – Spring Valley High School

Best feature photo

1st Place – Caitlin Gaddis – The Grizzly Growler – Spring Valley High School

2nd Place – Cherish Jones – Mountain Lion Messenger – Sierra Vista High School

3rd Place – Manon Ladeyn – Eye of the Tiger – Bonanza High School

Honorable Mention – Brynne Hilton – The InvestiGator – Green Valley High School

Best photo illustration

1st Place – Sarah Fernandez – The InvestiGator – Green Valley High School

2nd Place – Sarah Fernandez – The InvestiGator – Green Valley High School

3rd Place – Miguel Navarro – Hillside Hotwire – Foothill High School

Honorable Mention – Taylor Lane and Morgan Allen – Silverado Star – Silverado High Schoo

MOST VALUABLE STAFFER

Jason Park, ATECH

Monique Raven, Basic Academy

Alondrah Ramirez, Bonanza

Saveria Farino, Coronado

Breanna Burns, CSNHS

Trinity Goldsmith, Durango

Shae Turner, Faith Lutheran

Elly Davis, Foothill

Shila Sherafat, Green Valley

Juliette Singer, Las Vegas Academy

Jake Grosvenor, Palo Verde

Jubelyn Lumboy, Sierra Vista

Morgan Allen, Silverado

Andrew Mendez, Spring Valley

Karen Virgen, Sunrise Mountain

Minahil Tufail, The Meadows

Natalie Johnson, West CTA