Congratulations to the eight yearbook advisers who received JEA Rising Star honors in 2020. Among those were two Walsworth yearbook advisers. Congratulations to Patty Gomez, of Pine Crest School in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, and to Heather Rice, CJE, adviser at One School of the Arts in Longwood, Florida. Additional congratulations go to Gary Brady, the former principal at Hillsborough High School in Tampa, Florida. He was named the 2020 JEA Administrator of the Year.
The JEA Administrator of the Year award is presented to admins who have shown a dedication to journalism education. Brady is now a regional superintendent of Hillsborough County Public Schools. Hillsborough High yearbook adviser Joe Humphrey, MJE, called Brady, “one of those leaders who people want to be around. He is deserving of recognition for his positivity and passion.”
Rising Star Gomez started advising yearbook in 2018. Her Walsworth yearbook representative, Veronika Levine, CJE, told JEA that Gomez was “ready for more.” She explained in the official JEA release that Gomez had such a successful first year of advising at Pine Crest, she had an influx of students to the program. When Gomez took over the Crestian yearbook staff, it had functioned as a club for decades, but is now a hybrid club-plus-class model.
Rising Star Rice became a yearbook adviser in 2016. Before Rice took over the Lion’s Pride program, the yearbook was created by a group of parent volunteers. In a recommendation letter for the honor, Walsworth yearbook representative Tracy de la Feuilliez, CJE, said the first thing Rice asked about was getting involved with journalism organizations and winning awards. De la Feuilliez described Rice with the words “desire, passion and grit.”
Both Gomez and Rice contributed to the upcoming issue of Idea File magazine. Find our issue online or watch for your copy to read more from them.
Each year, JEA recognizes advisers with up to five years of experience who show promise as up-and-coming advisers. Nominations for the Rising Star Award can come from scholastic press associations, publishing companies, fellow teachers, students and parents. This year, JEA recognized eight advisers:
- Brit Crew, Creekview High School, Carrollton, Texas
- Patty Gomez, Pine Crest School, Fort Lauderdale, Florida
- Cody Terrance Harrell, CJE,East Lansing High School, East Lansing, Michigan
- Christina Levinson, Bear River High School, Grass Valley, California
- Tucker Love, Shawnee Mission South High School, Overland Park, Kansas
- Heather Rice, CJE, One School of the Arts, Longwood, Florida
- Julia Walker, Olathe West High School, Olathe, Kansas
- Shanon Woolf, McIntosh High School, Peachtree City, Georgia
NSPA plans to honor award recipients at the Fall JEA/NSPA National High School Journalism Convention, to be presented virtually Nov. 19-20, 2020.
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