Mississippi Scholastic Press Association

Sports Editor Mariane Powell (left) talks to advisor Carl Smith at the Miss Scholastic Press Association during its annual conference in early April. 

The Vision again was named as one of the best high school newspapers in the state by the Miss Scholastic Press Association during its annual conference in early April. 

The newspaper won Best Online Presence and was named as a finalist for News Publication of the Year, Best News and Feature Writing, Best Sports Writing and Best Opinion Writing. 

Co-Editor-in-Chief Iris Xue’s article “Do MSMS math classes offer equal opportunities for all students to excel?” won Best Depth Reporting, and Michelle Yang’s article “Blue Waves swim team sets new records for school podium placements at state meet” won Best Sports Story. 

Vision staff members collected individual best-of awards in Best Feature Story, Best News Photo and Best Infographic, and two finalist nominations in Best Reviews, Best Editorial Cartoons and Best Sports Story. Podcast Editor Ray Taylor won the Beth Fitts UM Scholarship, worth $1,000, for their work in journalism. 

Finally, Journalism teacher Carl Smith was named a Newspaper Advisor of the Year finalist.

Smith attributed the newspaper’s successes to the dedication of its staff. 

“If you have a core group of people who truly care about their product, then success should always follow,” Smith said. “I’m proud of all our award-winning students. I come to expect success in the traditional writing categories, but I’m especially proud of our podcast and photo honors since this is the first year of my tenure we’ve entered in these categories.” 

Taylor said they were happy their podcast section was recognized and was especially proud of junior staff members’ contributions.

“Looking back, I did not expect to be in the position I am in with the workload that I have,” Taylor said. “The outcome of the workload is something I’m proud of, and I’m especially proud of the juniors who have picked up [podcast work]. One of the podcasts [Adair Gaines’ and Isabella Givens’ DoorDash Review] was nominated but didn’t win [Best Entertainment/Culture Segment], and I think it should have. It was a great podcast.”

Taylor also said they were shocked but overjoyed with receiving the Beth Fitts UM Scholarship.

“I knew before the MSPA convention that I had gotten the scholarship,” Taylor said. “I got an email, and they were asking me to accept the award. I think I may have almost cried if we’re being honest. I did not expect to win any kind of journalism scholarships or anything, even though there were so many of them. There are a lot of people going into journalism, so I didn’t think I would stand out. I did, and I’m very grateful for that.”

Co-Editor-in-Chief Sebastian Harvey said he’s proud of everyone’s hard work this year and he has high hopes for the publication’s future.

“Honestly, I never worry too much about winning,” Harvey said. “For me, the important thing for us is to judge ourselves by our own standards, and I feel like the awards we bring in just demonstrate the commitment of the entire group throughout the year. I think there’s a lot of room for our writers to focus on content that’s more pertinent and investigative. All of us have our own angles and experiences, and I just wish we could explore it a little more in our writing. Hopefully, the future editors can encourage that angle a little more next year.”