During the State Student Journalism Competition Finals on March 16, PSPA recognized the following publications with the 2026 Clyde F. Lytle All-State Awards:

Literary Magazine: Jabberwocky (Strath Haven)
Newspaper: The Panther Press (Strath Haven)
Online News Publication: The Panther Press (Strath Haven)
Yearbook: Campus (Kiski Area)
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The Clyde F. Lytle All-State Award was named in 2012 for PSPA’s first president, Clyde F. Lytle, professor at The Keystone Normal School, now known as Kutztown University.  One of the buildings on the Kutztown campus is named for Dr. Lytle.  He became the first president of PSPA in December of 1925.  In addition to his work in education, he is known for his collection of inspirational verse "Leaves of Gold" which remains in print today.

The path to these annual All-State Awards begins with a critique submission. In addition to receiving feedback from experts, submitted publications automatically become part of a statewide contest. During the critique process, each publication is ranked gold, silver, or bronze according to critique rubric scoring. All publications earning an overall gold award are sent on to a new judge, and gold-ranked publications compete against other gold-ranked publications to determine the Clyde F. Lytle All-State winner.  Learn more about critique scoring here.

Samantha Corza, State College Area High School

The Pennsylvania School Press Association is proud to announce the 2026 Journalism Teacher of the Year, Samantha Corza of State College Area High School.

Ms. Corza is an educator who encourages a culture of growth and curiosity in her journalism classroom. She advises State High Publications, which includes award-winning print and digital content, daily live broadcasts, and a yearbook recognized at both the state and national levels. She also serves on the PSPA Board as membership director and coordinates the central Pennsylvania student journalism competition.

In their recommendation for Corza, student Ellory Potter wrote, “Her impacts reach every corner of our massive school… My life has been altered permanently by Ms. Samantha Corza, entirely for the better. She has taught me how to be resilient, responsible, hard-working, compassionate, and ethical in the field of journalism, and has done the same for so many others.”

Ms. Corza was recognized as the 2026 Teacher of the Year at the State Journalism Finals at Penn State on March 16, 2026. 

On Monday, March 16, student journalists from across the Commonwealth gathered at Penn State University for the annual PSPA Student Journalism Competition State Finals. We’re excited to share a selection of those results with you below, with additional winners to be announced as individual contests conclude. Please click each contest name to see the winning entry.

STUDENT JOURNALISM CONTEST RESULTS AS OF MARCH 17

1Y - Yearbook Caption Writing: Adrian Pacifico (Altoona Area)
2Y - Yearbook Copy Writing: Clara Eckhart (Danville Area)
3Y - Yearbook Sports Writing: Alexandra Myers (Conestoga)
4Y - Yearbook Spread Design: Angel Parada-Viera (Berwick Area)
5N - Newspaper News Writing: Lilyana Ellis (Neshaminy)
6N - Newspaper Feature Writing: Fiona Seale (Strath Haven)
7N - Newspaper Sports Writing: Ryan Hartman (Neshaminy)
8E - Editorial Cartoon: Mattie Baker (Altoona Area)
9E - Editorial Writing: Alice Ravert (Montoursville Area)
10L - Literary Magazine Poetry: Kailyn Magalich (Kiski Area)
11L - Literary Magazine Artwork: Eric Bernard (Dover Area)
12B - Broadcast Writing: Sara Brosius (McDowell)

Each winner in attendance received a certificate. Certificates for winners who were not in attendance to receive their awards in-person will be mailed to the winners' schools.

STUDENT JOURNALISM CONTEST DIGITAL SUBMISSIONS
Six contest categories remain, and students competing in those contests have until Monday, March 23 at noon to finalize their edits and submit their finished products for judging. Please visit this link for submission. Those contest categories are as follows:

13YP - Yearbook Photography
14NP - Newspaper Photography
15BF - Broadcast Feature Package
15BN - Broadcast News Package
16POD - Podcast

Each year, the Pennsylvania School Press Association (PSPA) invites senior student journalists to submit a comprehensive online portfolio for consideration as the Pennsylvania Student Journalist of the Year. The portfolios showcase the seniors' talents and accomplishments during their careers as high school journalists. The winner moves on to compete in the national Journalism Education Association Student Journalist of the Year competition. 

PSPA proudly announces Kaitlyn Ho, Editor-in-Chief of The Panther Press at Strath Haven High School, as the 2026 Pennsylvania Student Journalist of the Year. Of the multiple entries that PSPA received, Ho's submission stood out specifically because of her commitments to her staff’s well being, continued improvement of the school’s publications, and her high standards of accountability for ethical student journalism.

Ho notes in her portfolio, "The relationship between people and the news has never been more fraught. The only way to rebuild it is for us to prove we can be trusted, and it starts here, in schools. That is our responsibility as a student publication—the interactions students have with our paper, positive or negative, can define their relationship with news for the rest of their lives." 

In her required letters of recommendation, supporters for Ho wrote: 

• “Kaitlyn is a culture builder at Strath Haven because of the questions she asks and her eye toward serving and improving the community she lives in. In her time at Strath Haven, Kaitlyn consistently demonstrates professionalism and respect because she exudes that when interacting with people. Her perspective is valued not because she is a student editor, but because she brings unique insights to discussions that veteran educators might not always consider.”  Mr. Andrew Benzing - Principal, Strath Haven High School 
• “Kaitlyn believes at her core, and with an idealistic maturity beyond her years, that journalism can provide a 'voice for the voiceless.' As I watch her lead our newspaper this year as editor-in-chief, I see each interaction and decision driven by this perspective. When she leads the Editorial Board, every member knows their contribution is valued. When she runs a staff meeting, she spends just as much time interacting with individuals and coaching them on the value of their own stories than she does leading from the front of the room. And when she is pitching the stories to which she will commit her own time and curiosity, Kaitlyn always chooses work that will make a difference.”  Ms. Kate Plows - Adviser, The Panther Press 

Ho will move on to the Journalism Education Association’s contest where she will represent Pennsylvania. She will also be recognized at the Student Journalism State Finals at Penn State University on March 16, 2026. 

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Contact Information 
Meghan Adams  
PSPA Executive Board Member  
Co-Awards & Social Media Chair 
[email protected]

We're just one month away from Finals! Here's everything you need to know:
LINK: 2026 PSPA Student Journalism Contest Finals

The master document linked above is organized in Google Docs by tabs. All documents are contained within and can be accessed by following the steps below. While all documents are separated by tabs, all documents within may be downloaded or printed together.

• Accessing Tabs: Click the Show tabs & outlines icon (document symbol) in the top-left corner to open the navigation panel. Then, you can access individual pages by clicking the links in the Table of Contents, clicking the links in the tabs menu, or scrolling through each document and clicking the name of the next page to advance.
• Rubrics: While you can scroll through each of our 16 rubrics, you can also navigate directly to a particular rubric by opening the outline underneath the Rubrics tab. Simply click the three dots next to Rubrics, and select "Show outline."
  
  

Please share this link/doc with your students. If you have any questions regarding the contests, please contact Paul Fantaski (PSPA Contest Chair) at [email protected]. For any Penn State-related questions, please contact Emily Clevenger at [email protected].

Minor details about the day's itinerary are subject to change; however, any/all changes will be reflected in the Google Doc linked above, so be sure to refer to it for the most up-to-date information.

We can't wait to see you in Happy Valley!

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Nearly three dozen high school journalism and media advisers from across Pennsylvania spent a full day at Penn State’s Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications for the Pennsylvania School Press Association's inaugural Adviser Workshop, a hands-on professional development program created in partnership with Penn State's Bellisario College of Communications.

Held July 22 in the state-of-the-art Bellisario Media Center, the workshop brought advisers of student newspapers, yearbooks, broadcast programs and media-focused classes together for targeted sessions designed to strengthen scholastic journalism programs across the commonwealth.

Morning sessions introduced foundational topics central to student media today, including the First Amendment in schools, social media strategy for publications and essential design principles for print and digital storytelling.

In the afternoon, educators participated in a series of interactive breakout sessions such as Photojournalism for Everyone, Barebones Broadcast, Yearbook Design Essentials and Newspaper Staff Engagement. Each session emphasized practical tools advisers could immediately apply within their classrooms or newsrooms.

The day concluded with an adviser roundtable, where educators representing schools of all sizes shared challenges, best practices and program-building strategies. Participants praised the opportunity to connect with peers, noting the value of a statewide professional community for advisers.

Strong Response From Attendees
Thirty advisers registered for the workshop, with overwhelmingly positive feedback reported in post-event surveys. Attendees rated the workshop “excellent” overall and indicated they were “very likely” to recommend it to colleagues. Sessions focused on social media, student engagement and the First Amendment received especially strong responses.

Looking Ahead
Plans for next year’s Adviser Workshop are already in development, with details to be announced in early 2026.