Well done to Bayshore High’s Paw Print student journalism program.
Honored last September by the Quill & Scroll Honor Society’s Media Evaluation Awards, the Bruins did so again with five students being recognized in the annual Report for America Awards in Student Journalism.
The honorees included senior Annabella Stevens, first in photography for a wrestling photo of Bruin Thomas Mitchell; junior Autumn Faasse, second in profile writing (on Bayshore Principal Scott Cooper) and third in editorial writing on the link between book banning, reading, and SAT scores in Florida; senior Laura Cifuentes, third in features, “What’s Stopping You?” which was written in Spanish and English; freshman Hector Gutierrez Jr., third in news on morality of animal testing; and senior Elizabeth Sanchez, third in profile writing on Bayshore science teacher Ebenezer Yankyera, who’s from Africa.
Bayshore’s program is overseen by Jean Faulk, the 2024 Florida Scholastic Press Association Teacher of the Year, and mentored by Herald-Tribune court reporter Gabriela Szymanowska. Report for America’s mentor reporters serve students from all over the country.
· Pete Rutledge is 78 years young.
· Congrats to the John van Zandt Scholarship recipients, graduating seniors entering careers in construction, health care, manufacturing and such.
The winners include Cassie Calvert, Bradenton Christian, radiology, $5,000; Luka Mangus, Manatee High, electrician, $5,000; Alyssa Sparks (MHS), dental hygienist, $5,000; and Kylie Barkley (MHS), real estate, $500.
The scholarships were presented by the Center of Anna Maria Island.
· Salutes to Captain Ian Kogel, 30 years with the Manatee County Sheriff’s Office, Detective Gary Renninger (20), and Emergency Services team Sergeant Matthew Kiernan (20).
· Fellow Philly fan Rich Bokoski is 29. Again.
· Good luck to O’Neesha Shaw, new Manatee High cheerleading coach. A 2015 MHS alum and former Hurricane athlete, Shaw spent more than a decade with Manatee Wildcat cheerleading.
· Annette Ayres is 39. Again.
· Jan Chulock, too.
· And Janet Smith.
· Southeast High JROTC cadet Mayte Castro,headed to the University of West Florida, received the $2,000 Military Officer’s Association of America scholarship.
· Respect to Elizabeth Juliana Wigeri Van Edema, recipient of the SCF’s Spring 2025 Outstanding Graduate Award. A dual enrollment student who had a 4.0 GPA with her AA degree, she will major in biomedical sciences at USF.
· And happy trails to Jeannie Galindo, Lakewood Ranch High assistant principal, retiring after more than three decades in education.
Vin’s People runs Sundays. Email Vin Mannix at vinspeople@gmail.com. Or call 941-962-5944.
This article originally appeared on Sarasota Herald-Tribune: VIN’S PEOPLE: Bayshore High’s Paw Print student journalists honored by Report for America
Reporting by Vin Mannix / Sarasota Herald-Tribune
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