MADISON –St. Joseph High School took home a record 61 awards from the 2015 Mississippi Scholastic Press Association Convention on the campus of the University of Mississippi – including four statewide honors and 22 first-place awards – for student work on the newspaper and yearbook. Last year, St. Joseph took home 33 awards.
Journalism teacher Terry Cassreino, a longtime Mississippi journalist, was named yearbook adviser of the year. The Bear Facts, the student newspaper, was named best high school newspaper for the third straight year. And The Shield, the school’s yearbook, took third place among high school yearbooks.
“These awards show what hard work and dedication can produce,” St. Joe principal Keith Barnes said. “Our talented students have worked hard on the newspaper, the yearbook and our streaming Internet sports radio station – and their efforts show.
“Our journalism students and our student media program are examples of what we do best at St. Joe,” Barnes said. “Mr. Cassreino is a dedicated, experienced teacher who has guided a group of talented, hardworking, determined students – helping them perform to their maximum ability.”
Junior Jack Hall received the Orley Hood Sports Writer of the Year award for the second straight year. Hall is serving as a U.S. Senate page this semester.
Junior Joseph “JoJo” Katool Jr. was named Broadcast Staffer of the Year for his work calling varsity football games live on Bruin Sports Radio, St. Joe’s streaming Internet radio station.
Junior Noah Greene was named Newspaper Staffer of the Year for his leadership role in guiding the publication of The Bear Facts. Greene serves as managing editor of the newspaper; he also is a member of the St. Joseph Speech and Debate Team and will serve this year as lieutenant governor at Mississippi Youth & Government Youth Legislature.
The journalism awards capped a full day Thursday, March 26, for more than 500 high school students from 32 schools across the state who attended the MSPA annual convention. St. Joseph took a delegation of 12 students to this year’s event.
Cassreino, in his fourth year at St. Joseph and third leading the journalism program, was named Yearbook Adviser of the Year – one year after being named Newspaper Adviser of the Year. Cassreino began teaching in 2011 after more than 27 years as a media consultant and an award-winning political reporter, political columnist and editor at Mississippi newspapers. See the full list of winners on www.mississippicatholic.com.
At the annual Mississippi Junior Classical League convention, 33 of St. Joe’s finest Latin scholars journeyed to Millsaps College in Jackson on Friday, March 20, to attend the annual Mississippi Junior Classical League convention for a day of classical competition, academic tests, triumphal processions, and Latin cheers.
There they joined over 250 Latin students from ten different schools. St. Joseph students earned 23 awards in mythology, vocabulary, Latin mottoes, phrases and abbreviations, grammar and reading, history, classical omnibus, videos, maps and charts.