The Pirates’ Hook was named an All-North Carolina newspaper in the North Carolina Scholastic Media Association’s (NCSMA) annual student media contest for the 2021-2022 school year.
All-North Carolina is NCSMA’s highest rating. Recipients “demonstrate excellence in all areas of journalism, combining effective writing and design with broad and diverse coverage,” according to its website.
It’s the first time The Hook has been recognized as an All-North Carolina publication since 2011 and the seventh time in school history.
Riverside student journalists also won the following individual awards:
First Place
Eden Mae Richman – “Student talent shined bright in Little Shop of Horrors” (review, p3)
Jaden Butler – “More females are tackling male sports than ever before” (sports article)
Isaac Janiak Stein – “Censorship in education: The importance of critical analysis in our classrooms” (general/editorial column)
Emmer Rice, Eden Mae Richman and Giovanni Varela Benitez – “The ideal caseload for counselors is 250. At Riverside it’s 367/El número de casos ideal para consejeros es 250. En Riverside es 367” (editorial, p2)
Abigail Martinez – Don Javier, episode 2: An interview with Destino Success adviser Allison Swaim (podcast)
Second Place
Jaden Butler – “Will Super Bowl XXIII be deja-vu?” (sports column)
Elena Paces-Wiles – “Meet CLAUDE, the multitalented service dog” (personality profile)
Third Place
Elizabeth Williams – “Adiministrators, SROs create new traffic routes” (news story)
Piper Winton – “If sports are a healthy outlet for students, why do so many quit playing? “ (feature story)
Emmer Rice, Jada Love and Taliyah Cooper – March 2022 front page design (p1)
Emmer Rice, Jada Love, Taliyah Cooper and Genesiss Smith-Lopez – May 2022 inside page design (p4-5)
Honorable Mention
Genesis Smith-Lopez and Mijalen Poole – “How to students at Riverside feel about the dress code?” (feature story/podcast)
Dulce Flores, Jackie Larios Dominguez and Donna Diaz – “Bilingual classmates help newcomers learn/Compañeros bilingües ayudan a los recien legados” (news story, p6-7)
Piper Winton – “Riverside soccer improves athletes’ mental health during COVID-19 pandemic”
The awards were announced during the North Carolina Scholastic Media Institute, a 3-day summer camp for high school journalists. Full contest results are available at the North Carolina Scholastic Media Association’s website.
