Loveland, Ohio – The Loveland High School yearbook, run and created by students in Loveland’s publications class, earned a gold medal at the Columbia Scholastic Press Association and the All-American title from the National Scholastic Press Association. Both awards employ a panel of media professionals who perused, analyzed and judged all 256 pages of the 2016-2017 “Lohian”.

The Columbia Scholastic Press Association, owned by Columbia University in New York, gave the yearbook a gold medal. The association judges magazines, newspapers, online media and yearbooks from across America and judges on a point-based system ranking gold as the highest quality.

Additionally, the National Scholastic Press Association, a non-profit educational association, offers journalistic education to American (and foreign) students along with written critiques by professional journalists and media experts. It is associated with the University of Minnesota’s Journalism and Mass Media school.

“The highest rating given to any publication in the critique service is the All-American. To acquire this award, the students had to earn four Marks of Distinction and score at least 450 points out of 500. This book earned four marks of distinction in coverage,  design, photography, and writing and editing. Only about five percent of all entries received the All-American Award,” claimed publications teacher, Mrs. Rhonda Overbeeke.

Students design the yearbook following a given set of rules and collect 15-20 high-quality photos, generally taken outside of class. For a sports page, the most work-intensive yearbook page, students are asked to cover at least five to six different games for the specific sport. Students work together to select the highest quality photos, interview peers and staff, collaborate with editors, design their page in a cohesive and aesthetically pleasing manner and create an appealing yearbook. Each page generally takes a minimum of twenty to twenty-five hours to complete.

“It is truly amazing that we were able to win these awards,” said LHS Student and Yearbook Sports Editor Lauren Parker. “Everyone worked so hard editing, taking photos, and making sure that all the little details were as close to perfect as possible. I am so proud of everyone on the crew.”

“We are so proud of the publication this staff produced, and the high level of collaboration that went into the success of the publication,” said LHS Principal Peggy Johnson. “Our yearbook students pushed themselves to be the best of the best, and they achieved it. The yearbook was outstanding, and certainly deserving of the accolades it has received.”

Editors Sam Faingold, Katherine Vuyk and Lauren Parker attended a yearbook camp the summer of 2016 in order to hone their skills and prepare for the coming year’s award-winning publication. In addition, photography and media professionals gave advice and lectures to the class. Armed with their media knowledge, photo and section editors helped guide their peers to create a stand-out yearbook.

“I would attribute the success to working as a team […] Most importantly, the staff members made a commitment to creating the best book they could,” finished Overbeeke.

The 2018-2019 Loveland Yearbook is available for purchase online through Josten’s.

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