LAS CRUCES—After spending eight continuous hours writing, directing and producing a complete video news magazine, a team of Centennial High School (CHS) students was awarded first place in the Crazy 8s Broadcast News Magazine category at the 2017 Student Television Network (STN) International Convention, March 28-31 in Anaheim, CA.
“It’s astonishing to see the work these students were able to produce in just eight hours,” said LCPS Superintendent Dr. Greg Ewing. “The talent and professionalism that went into the video is apparent, and I’d like to congratulate the entire team on a job well done.”
The annual convention is one of the largest international competitions for high school and middle school broadcasting, film and media programs, and drew in more than 3,000 participants from approximately 200 high schools throughout the world, according to LCPS-TV Operations Manager Bill Fox. Fox also mentioned that the Crazy 8s Broadcast News Magazine category is the convention’s most-competitive category.
“The entire team put in so much hard work this year and it really paid off,” said CHS Media Teacher Melissa Prentice “We recognized that many of the student-produced news programs had a similar look and feel, so we really focused on what we could do to set ourselves apart.”
As part of the competition, the team of high school students had just eight hours to write, film, edit and finalize an original news magazine show — a video newscast which generally covers a small number of in-depth topics—about the topic of social justice. Once complete, the news magazine shows were then judged by a panel of experts, based on the criteria of: camera/direction, lighting, audio/sound, camera presence/talent, storytelling/content, integrity/courage, segue/transition, creativity, closeness to topic, and followed directions.
Students from several other LCPS schools also earned recognition at the convention including: CHS student Luis Bojorquez who won fifth place in the Multimedia Journalist category; Las Cruces High School students Simon Miller and Peter Martin who won fourth place in the Radio Host category; Sierra Middle School students Marley Gbogbo and Natalia Molinar who won fifth place in the Middle School Convention Recap category; Mesa Middle School students Kenneth Andrews, Ruben Garcia who won fourth place in the Middle School Nat Package; and Sierra Middle School students Chris Favela, Michael Le, Moriah Misquez, Maxine Pardo-Avila and Ella Hutchinson who won fifth place in the Middle Public Service Announcement category.
Members of the winning CHS team were also recognized by the Superintendent and Board of Education at an LCPS School Board meeting, Tuesday, April 18.
STN is a nonprofit started by a group of teachers who wanted to support and encourage scholastic broadcasting and to provide a forum for teachers to share ideas, ask questions, and learn from professionals in the industry. Over the past 18 years, STN has expanded to include film, media and other forms of communication taught in high schools and middle schools, according to STN’s website.