Alabama Scholastic Press Association Recognizes Outstanding High School Journalists and Advisers

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. – The Alabama Scholastic Press Association named the first-ever J.B. Stevenson Scholarship Award recipient to the 2002 Alabama High School Journalist of the Year at its recent state convention.

Tiffany Summerville of Clay-Chalkville High School received the award. Summerville will study communication at The University of Alabama in the upcoming fall semester.

Dr. George Theodore, principal of Montevallo High School, was named Alabama Administrator of the Year for 2002.

Becky Mantooth, adviser of The Hoover Voice newsmagazine at Hoover High School, was named the Susie DeMent Adviser of the Year for 2002.

The convention, held earlier this year on the UA campus, hosted approximately 350 students and advisers from high schools across the state.

ASPA coordinates the Alabama High School Journalist of the Year Competition, in cooperation with the National High School Journalist of the Year competition. ASPA also coordinates the J.B. Stevenson Scholarship, a $2,500 scholarship for a print journalism student. The Alabama Press Association Foundation funds the scholarship. This was the first year the scholarship was awarded. Summerville was presented the award by John Stevenson, editor of the Randolph Leader newspaper. Stevenson’s son is the scholarship’s namesake.

Awards were also presented in individual, overall and on-site competitions.

The following high school newspapers were named All-Alabama in the overall awards:

• The Central Times — Central High School (Tuscaloosa)
• Keyhole — Central High School (Phenix City)
• Trojan Myths — Charles Henderson High School
• Spotlight — Montevallo High School
• The Pacesetter — Pelham High School
• The Crimson Crier — Sparkman High School
• Paw Print — Theodore High School
• Tribe-Une — Thompson High School

All-Alabama high school literary magazines:

• The Artisan — Briarwood Christian School
• Epiphany — Catholic High School
• Earthwinds — Jackson (Miss.) Preparatory School

All-Alabama newsmagazines:

• Hoover Voice — Hoover High School

All-Alabama Yearbooks:

• Pantheron — Brookwood High School
• Falconer — Central High School
• Lion — Prattville High School
• Iliad — Saint James School
• The Cadet — UMS-Wright Preparatory School

All-Alabama Broadcast:

• WBUC News — Hoover High School

The Alabama Scholastic Press Association, sponsored by The University of Alabama, is the high school journalism outreach program for Alabama’s high school publications and broadcast media. ASPA seeks to empower high school newspaper, yearbook, newsmagazine, literary magazine and broadcast staffs around Alabama.

ASPA hosts a three-day journalism camp on campus each July, holds a two-day convention on campus each March, and presents a series of journalism workshops in various Alabama cities each September. Each of these activities features nationally recognized workshop speakers.

State convention delegates participate in an on-site competition with categories ranging from news writing to graphic design. They may attend any of the more than 50 sessions in newspaper, literary magazine, yearbook, broadcast, marketing, advising, photography and desktop publishing.

ASPA also coordinates an annual critique of publications and broadcasts and offers individual contests and on-site competitions. The association stands ready to assist high school journalists and advisers.