The Express Newspaper, SJHHS’s student publication, put itself on the national radar as one of the top 10 broadsheet publications of its size last Friday at the JEA/NSPA National Journalism Convention in San Diego, California.

“Even though it was spring break, my students got themselves up and out of bed at 4:00a.m. to catch a train down to San Diego for the convention,” said Bill Kaiser, adviser to the publication.

The students entered their 12 page, April 16 edition in the Best-of-Show contest, attended five learning sessions about topics ranging from social media to investigative reporting, and competed in individual write-offs against student from around the nation before going home.

 Chetana Piravi, a sophomore, received honorable mention in the category of First Year Photography with a picture of a flash mob performance on campus last fall.

 Senior, Shane Battis, won a rating of excellent in News Editing/Headline Writing.

 “It’s a real testimony to the dedication and enthusiasm they have about their newspaper and each other’s company,” said Kaiser. “I mean, who does that? Who goes on an academic competition on the last Friday of spring break?”

 According to JEA, one of the event sponsors, at total of 1,112 students participated in write-offs from all four corners of the country.

 In an effort to gain an edge on other papers from around the country The Express showcased school events in advance and provided in-depth analysis.

 “I wanted to do something a little different with the front page,” said Brittany Christensen, Editor-in-Chief and three year veteran of the class. “We chose to showcase an event on page-one that hadn’t happened yet this year, but that we had pictures of from the past,” referring a story about the Every 15 Minutes program that helps raise awareness of the dangers of drunk driving.

 The paper used QR codes extensively to direct readers to an online photo gallery showing the accident scene and a video created by the Mane Event TV production class.

 It also used the same technology to direct readers to a news analysis about growth and the new La Pata Road, complete with 3-D animation showing how the road will look.

 Another page-one story featured details about the upcoming stadium graduation, the first of its kind, to be held at Stallion Stadium on June 24.

 The gamble paid off.

 “I have to believe linking content to our website made the difference in the minds of judges,” Kaiser said.