The junior class of the Grizzly Gazette.

Gazette wins Pacemaker
Zoe Kisling | 5/7/08 | News

Anaheim, California: home to the happiest place on earth, Disneyland.  To most, it is where dreams come true- and to the Grizzly Gazette students from Granite Hills High School, that is exactly what happened.

On Saturday, April 29 at the National Scholastic Press Association/Journalism Education Association convention in the Anaheim Marriot hotel, the Grizzly Gazette has once again placed as NSPA Online Pacemaker Winners.

The first Web site announced in the awards ceremony room, the A-Blast, shed some doubt into some of the Gazette staff, since that paper was not considered a strong competitor.

As the announcer flashed online newspaper finalists across the screen, students began to sit at the edges of their seats, vulnerable for what was going to be announced next.

"Before they announced it, I was so nervous," News Editor Ebony Bailey said. “It was literally, the worst feeling ever."

When the second name was announced- The Grizzly Gazette- students displayed emotions ranging from tears to shouts of joy.

 “I screamed so loud when I heard the sound 'Por', I knew that was it right then," continued Bailey. “I eventually ended up in tears when going to accept the award, it was awesome."

The Grizzly Gazette was the only school where the whole staff rushed to the front to receive the award.

Once everyone returned to their seats, cell phones were pulled out, and a very important phone call was made to Principal Veryl Ann Duncan to share the great news.

“Well when I got the phone call I wanted to cry because when anything good happens to our students, I get so emotional," Duncan said. “For students from Granite Hills to compete at the national level is so outstanding, especially at such high set standards as these."

Last year, the Gazette received top three in the nation for the Online Pacemaker award.
"I hope that it does continue to get better and keep the legacy going strong at Granite Hills for years to comem," former editor-in-cheif, Lauren Rabaino said.

The 2008 Pacemaker Winners include The Feather, The Paly Voice, The Grizzly Gazette, and The A-Blast.

The Grizzly Gazette felt their competition was a bit more intimidating this year.
Hard work, dedication, and the willingness to work as one is what it takes to survive in this element, according to Bailey.

"If it wasn't for all of the hard work, dedication, pulling off all nighters, and suffering grades, the paper wouldn't be what it is," said Bailey.

Staff members from the Gazette aren't the only ones that are dedicated to this profession.
Michael Bloch, the Editor in Chief from the Paly Voice shared his classroom experiences with the Gazette.

“During the month of February when the competition was going on, we made sure in class each day to try and get a new spotlight picture and at least two stories per day. Throughout the month, we probably managed to get about 20 new front pages and over 50 stories, which most likely greatly helped our chances," said Bloch.

The convention was held from April 17, through April 20, with workshops being held on Friday and Saturday. The Grizzly Gazette brought in 26 journalism students and two adults chaperons to the convention.

When they arrived on Thursday, the anxious members of the Gazette walked on over to Disneyland, for a day full of fun, before Friday and Saturday -the days to buckle down and be serious about journalism.

The Marriot hotel filled with about 5,500 journalism students roaming the hallways on search of workshops of their choice. The workshops ranged from newswriting, to sports writing, and some featured key note speakers, many of which who were professionals in journalism, shared their inspiring stories.

“Attending the workshops really was a benefit," Bailey said. “I learned about how to make news 'happy news' and I also learned a lot about yearbooks."

Not only did attending the workshops allow the journalists to learn how to write, but it gave them the opportunity to meet other student journalists, who were just like themselves.

“I really liked meeting new people, especially the Paly Voice," Bailey said. “When talking with others I learned a lot, such as that we're the only online newspaper that redesigns our page every year."

Friday was the day to go into journalism mode. Workshops continued, but when 4:00 p.m. struck, the write offs began. Approximately 1,200 students from various states competed in various subjects including, newswriting, sports writing, feature writing, editorial writing, and cartooning. Bailey along with Beverly Congdon, Marissa Martinez, Jerica Fagan, Valerie Jasso, and Sabrina Ziegler all competed in the two hour competition.

Bailey received an honorable mention for her newswriting, and Valerie Jasso received an honorable mention for review writing, and Jerica Fagan was given an honorable mention for editorial cartooning.

On Saturday workshops continued 8:00 a.m. into the late afternoon, followed by the NSPA awards ceremony.

Pacemaker awards and best of show awards were given out ranging from yearbooks, to magazines, to broadcasts, and online papers.

"When students from Granite Hills High School attend conferences, such as the Pacemaker Journalism conference in Aneheim, it benefits all students on the campus," said Elissa Lombardi, chaperone of the trip.

"Whether they learn about the journalism students' experiences at the conferences from the morning announcements, a casual conversation in a classroom, or reading it out of an article on the Grizzly Gazette," continued Lombardi, "other students will be motivated and inspired to attend a conference or event that inspires them because they saw their peers have fun and be successful at the journalism conference."