 | Ayaan Shah, Pennsylvania Journalist of the Year, was recently featured on an episode of The Journalism Salute podcast. Ayaan talked about his journalism interests. He shared the story of covering Joe Biden's appearance in his town and one interview from that experience that stood out. He also told the story of another highlight, covering governor Josh Shapiro's press conference at his school. Ayaan explained the work he did as editor-in-chief of his school newspaper, The Stinger and what it was like to be a teaching assistant for a journalism class. He also had tips for student journalists. To listen, click the link below. https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/ayaan-shah-pennsylvania-student-journalist-of-the-year/id1526063503?i=1000712187585 |
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 We are excited to invite you to our first ever Adviser Workshop, hosted in partnership with Penn State University's Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications!
Join us at Penn State’s University Park campus on Tuesday, July 22, to learn how to elevate your skills and empower your students. This one-day, in-person event is designed specifically for student media advisers and educators. Whether you're new to advising or a veteran looking to refresh your skills, the workshop offers practical sessions, networking opportunities and hands-on learning led by industry professionals and experienced advisers. Event Date: Tuesday, July 22, 2025 Location: Bellisario Media Center, Penn State University Park Registration Deadline: July 7, 2025 More Info & Registration: bellisario.psu.edu/adviser-workshop We hope you'll join us for a day of collaboration, insight and inspiration. Space is limited, so we encourage you to register early! If you have any questions, contact our Workshop Chair, Cyndi Hyatt at [email protected].  Pennsylvania School Press Association's 2025 Student Journalism Competition Finals took place on Tuesday, April 1 at Penn State University's main campus. Students who previously qualified at regional events participated in a press conference with representatives of the Penn State Blue Band, who discussed what it was like to be a part of the Penn State legacy. Students then competed in writing, design, photography, blog, podcast, and video categories based on the themes of the conference. In the afternoon, students put their knowledge to the test in a fast-paced, quiz bowl-style trivia showdown. After hosting the trivia contest, Penn State’s Amy Kristin Sanders, the John and Ann Curley Chair in First Amendment at Penn State, delivered a lecture on the key legal principles every high school journalist should understand, including First Amendment protections, censorship and more. The following publications were recognized as the Clyde F. Lytle All-State Awards: Literary Magazine: Penncrest High School | Gryphon Literary Magazine Yearbook: Kiski Area High School | Campus Newspaper: Souderton Area High School | The Arrowhead Website: Strath Haven High School | The Panther Press The 2025 Pennsylvania Student Journalist of the Year, Ayaan Shah of Emmaus High School shared remarks about his path in journalism, and the 2025 Journalism Teacher of the Year, Ms. Shelby Ramirez, accepted a certificate of recognition. The following students earned first place ranking in their their categories at the 2025 Student Journalism Competitions. 1Y | Yearbook Caption Writing | Anne Yingling | State College Area HS 2Y | Yearbook Copy Writing | Lorelei Talley | Central York HS 3Y | Yearbook Sports | Josh Merkel | Palmerton Area HS 4Y | Yearbook Spread Design | Lainey Tuszynski | Freedom Area HS 5N | Newspaper News Writing | Calla Reynolds | Freedom Area HS 6N | Newspaper Feature Writing | Evelynn Lin| Strath Haven HS 7N | Newspaper Sports Writing | Howard Kim | Conestoga HS 8E | Editorial Cartoon | Mary Wolters | Conestoga HS 9E | Editorial Writing | Editorial Writing | Morgan Downing | Southern Lehigh HS 10L | Literary Magazine Poetry | JJ Nichols | Danville Area HS 11L | Literary Magazine Artwork | Jackson Kim | Neshaminy HS 12B | Broadcast News Writing | Rowan Chetty | Conestoga HS 13YP | Yearbook Photography | Sara Poore | Kiski Area 14NP | Newspaper Photography | Christopher Denkovich | Freedom Area HS 15BF | Broadcast Feature | Ella Malloy, Julianne Fontano, Bryn Urban | Penn Trafford 15BN | Broadcast News | Josh Vinton | Franklin Regional 17POD | Podcast | Lillian McCulloch| Montoursville Area HS PSPA is grateful to our hosts at Penn State University and the Donald P. Bellisario College of Communications for the organizational and on-site support.  Shelby Ramirez, Emmaus High School
The Pennsylvania School Press Association is proud to announce the 2025 Journalism Teacher of the Year, Shelby Ramirez of Emmaus High school. The awards committee unanimously voted for Ms. Ramirez after reviewing this year’s nominees. Ms. Ramirez, an adviser of The Stinger since 2022, is a steadfast advocate for student media voices. She creates an atmosphere where her students are always willing to work–even during the most stressful and chaotic of times during The Stinger’s production weeks. Ayaan Shah, Editor-in-Chief of The Stinger, notes in his nomination, “...Ms. Ramirez fosters an environment where creativity and collaboration thrive. She recognizes the strengths of every student and ensures that each of us feels valued, heard, and capable of producing our best work.” Ms. Ramirez will be recognized as the 2025 Journalism Teacher of the Year at the State Journalism Finals at Penn State Main Campus on April 1, 2025.  Ayaan Shah, Emmaus High School
Each year, the Pennsylvania School Press Association (PSPA) invites senior student journalists to submit an online portfolio showcasing their talents and accomplishments during their career as a high school journalist. The Pennsylvania scholarship winner moves on to the national JEA Journalist of the Year competition. PSPA proudly announces Mr. Ayaan Shah, Editor-in-Chief of The Stinger at Emmaus High School as the 2025 Pennsylvania Student Journalist of the Year. Of the nine entries that we received, Shah’s rose to the top, specifically because of his commitment to diversity, dedication to the preservation of freedom of the press for student journalists, and his outstanding leadership with The Stinger staff. Ayaan’s dedication to journalism both in and outside of Emmaus High School is evident in his acceptance to the prestigious Asian American Journalists Association’s JCamp, and his work with professional media outlets such as The Juggernaut, The Philadelphia Inquirer, and the Lehigh Valley Press. As shown in his required letters of recommendation, supporters for Mr. Shah wrote: “His dedication to the truth, justice, and the highest standard of perfection are unreplicated in my decade-long career as an educator… Ayaan has been instrumental in amplifying voices from underrepresented communities, addressing real-world issues, and exploring their impact on our local community.” Shelby Ramirez - Adviser, The Stinger “As a journalist, and most importantly as a person, Ayaan embodies all the characteristics of a journalist of the year. Take a glance at his work samples and one can glean the thoroughness, attention to detail, and a keen ability to draw quality quotes from sources. But he’s also a competent, sensitive and serious leader to his peers, demonstrating excellence in all he does.” -Arelis R. Hernandez - National Reporter, The Washington Post On behalf of PSPA, we couldn’t be more pleased to recognize Mr. Ayaan Shah as our 2025 Pennsylvania Student Journalist of the Year. Mr. Shah will be recognized at the Student Journalism State Finals at Penn State University on April 1, 2025. We wish him the best of luck as he now proceeds to the National level of competition.  PSPA sponsored a Scholastic Journalism Week Trivia Contest the week of February 24-28, 2025. The questions were open from 12:01 a.m. until midnight each day. Students had the chance to enter once per day. Correct answers were be entered into a random drawings each day to win PSPA T-shirts. Themes and winners are as follows:
Calling student designers! PSPA has opened the Fall 2024 Journalism T-shirt Design Contest. Use your design skills to create a journalism-themed design for the PSPA Merchandise Store. Design themes can include any type of student publication (newspaper, yearbook, broadcast, literary magazine), laws or regulations related to student publications, or positive messages about student journalism in general. Designs must meet the criteria outlined on the attached poster and must include the official PSPA logo. Submit your designs here by December 31. We can't wait to see your designs!  It's contest season! Download the flyer below for everything you need to know about PSPA's Fall Regional Student Journalism Contests. If you have any questions, please contact PSPA Contest Chair, Paul Fantaski, at [email protected].  On Monday, April 29, PSPA Board President Aaron Fitzpatrick, Board Member Cyndi Hyatt, and 2024 Pennsylvania Student Journalist of the Year Ben Shapiro offered testimony in support of the Student Journalism Protection Act at an informational meeting of the Pennsylvania House Education Committtee. Fitzpatrick's remarks follow below. Please watch the linked video for remarks by Hyatt and Shapiro. Learn more at the New Voices website. Chairman Schweyer, Chairman Topper, and members of the House Education Committee: Thank you once again for inviting us here today to speak about the Student Journalism Protection Act.
My name is Aaron Fitzpatrick. I am a master journalism educator, the president of the Pennsylvania School Press Association, 2018 Pennsylvania Journalism Teacher of the Year, and a New Voices legislation advocate. As a teacher at Freedom Area High School in Beaver County, I’ve advised the newspaper and yearbook for the past 12 years, and the broadcast program for the past nine. In that time, while my students and I have been fortunate to have had the support of our school board and administration, particularly during my tenure serving on the PSPA Board of Directors, I’ve met many advisers and students across the state who, unfortunately, haven’t been so lucky. I’m here today for them and on behalf of the student journalists and advisers who struggle each day to choose between telling the stories their school communities deserve to hear and avoiding possible conflict with school officials to avoid unpleasant confrontation or even to protect their advisers’ jobs. The work these student journalists and advisers do is among the most heavily scrutinized in our entire education system. While a typical student’s work is viewed and evaluated by a single teacher, student journalists’ work is published, distributed to their district communities, and viewed by their classmates, teachers, parents, administrators, school board members, and beyond. To say that this is a weighty responsibility is quite the understatement, yet it’s a responsibility they take very seriously. These students aren’t just our future professional journalists; they’re our engineers, healthcare professionals, creatives, teachers, and business owners. These students develop writing, editing, photography, marketing, design, teamwork, collaboration, and communication skills, all while keeping their communities informed, so long as they have the support to do so. In the seven years since I first began advocating for this legislation, I’ve spoken with a number of legislators, journalists, and media organizations to explain why we need the Student Journalism Protection Act. One of the most common questions we get from those conversations is if we have examples we can share of students being censored and if we can share the article or work in question. Unfortunately, while I’d argue even one such example would be too many, I tell them we have a number of examples from across our state, some we learned about through word-of-mouth; others through surveys we’ve conducted, and a couple that have even made national news, ironically due to the censorship itself. Still, I remind them, this bill is as much for those who HAVE faced censorship as it is for all of those who have gone out of their way to self-censor to avoid conflict, and student journalists and advisers to come who, without House Bill 1309 to protect them in their roles, may decide not to get involved in the first place. And we NEED them to be involved and tell these stories. By “we,” I don’t mean journalism advisers. Our communities need them—especially now when our students cover so many areas that our shrinking local and regional media outlets are unable to cover. School board meetings, policy changes, sporting events, student life, and most things that take place within district walls would go unreported if it weren’t for these incredible individuals. To truly support these students in their important work, we also need to support and protect their advisers. Being a journalism adviser isn’t for the faint of heart. Any adviser can attest that it’s a demanding role that requires countless hours outside of what is contractually expected, and at a time when teacher shortages are at an all-time high, it’s more important than ever to support and protect these tireless, hardworking individuals any way we can. House Bill 1309 can do just that. So, on behalf of Pennsylvania’s current student journalists and advisers and all those yet to come, I’m asking you to support the Student Journalism Protection Act. Thank you, again, for allowing us this time to testify for HB 1309. |
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