Foothill wins big in Review-Journal’s High School Journalism Awards

Foothill High School took top honors for best high school newspaper, one of 21 awards the Henderson school received in the Las Vegas Review-Journal’s 46th High School Journalism Awards.

Judges called the school’s paper, the Hillside Hotwire, the “standard for high school journalism in Southern Nevada.”

“Amazing photography and layouts really make every page splash, and the writing is top-notch. I hope Foothill’s students know how lucky they are to have a journalism team that produces such great keepsakes,” the judges wrote in the comments.

Right behind Foothill were Sunrise Mountain High School and Bonanza High School, whose newspapers placed second and third, respectively. Sunrise Mountain took home 12 awards and Bonanza High School received six.

Las Vegas Academy of the Arts won best news website, which was praised by judges for its clean presentation and variety of topics. The school landed a total of six awards.

“We continue to see outstanding work from high school journalists across the valley, and we’re very pleased to recognize the very best reporting, photography, design and video work each year,” Review-Journal Executive Editor Glenn Cook said. “The commitment from these schools and their student newsrooms is fantastic. The students they cover are winners, too.”

The competition was judged by the Review-Journal’s newsroom.

Multimedia awards

Spring Valley High School, which received nine awards, won best digital video story for a piece by Cooper Turner and Angel Callejas. It also earned the award for best student-produced newscast.

“Students were passionate and described the process of putting on a show in detail. I left feeling informed. Fantastic job,” the judges wrote of the video story.

The Meadows School took home one first place award for on-air talent for the “Sideline Reporter,” by Brianna Langberg.

Silverado High School student Saliye Demarchena won both best illustration and best editorial cartoon for “Dear couples: Please stop making out in the hallway.” The school won six awards total.

“The point is clear, the artistry is excellent. The use of the Sun with the awkward expression is one of the additional ‘Easter eggs’ (surprise bonuses) that readers love and makes the cartoon more memorable, giving it a lasting impact,” judges wrote.

Individual stories

Sierra Vista High School student Penelope Marquez won best opinion writing for a piece titled, “Trump’s Denial of the ‘American Dream.’ ” The school won three awards total.

Spring Valley High School got first place for both news feature and feature story.

The judges called Malik Khan’s piece, “Star Student Balances Muslim Beliefs with American Norms” a “standout entry.”

“Kudos for picking an interesting subject and going the extra mile for relevant interviews,” they wrote.

The best entertainment story went to Tearlynn Bell of Sunrise Mountain High School for an article titled, “Lipstick and labels: The demonization of hyperfemininity.”

Foothill stands out

Foothill earned nine first-place awards, four second-place awards and eight third-place awards.

Foothill junior Paige Ackerman won most valuable staffer for her work as the Hillside Hotwire’s editor-in-chief. Among her several awards were two first-place wins in photography.

“She has a gift for writing some great stories and finding the human element in the story. In addition to the many hours that she spent in the journalism room editing and creating/fixing layouts, she also volunteered to take photos at after school events, which is amazing,” the newspaper’s adviser, Bill Tobler, wrote.

Contact Katie Futterman at kfutterman@reviewjournal.com. Follow @ktfutts on X and @katiefutterman.bsky.social.