WCS Media Students Win State Awards

Published March 21, 2023

WCS high school TV/Film programs won eight first-place awards at the 2023 Tennessee High School Press Association (THSPA) competition.

The winners were announced March 6 at Lipscomb University. Brentwood and Independence high schools tied for first place in the Best Newscast category.

The Independence High News Crew producer is Grayson Oliver. Other members of the crew include Brenae Bryant, Charlie Newman, Samantha Sprinkel, Sophia Fitzhugh, Aiden Martinez, Jakob Litton and Casey Lynch. Their teacher is Matt Balzer.

"I am so proud of the entire news crew," said Balzer. "To put together a professional news broadcast each week is a difficult task, and they pull it off. This award is an acknowledgment of everything they have worked for, and I am excited for them."

The Brentwood High students who make up the news crew include Aubree Mullican, James Gill, Avery Allen, Makai Payne, Brett Michaelson, Ryan Czarneski and Aaron Goldstein. Their teacher is Sloan Ashworth.

That wasn't the only first place award for the Bruins. Brentwood High's Isabella Supinksi, Kyle Jordan and Sydney Loyd also won the Best News Package category.

From Franklin High, Anna Raye Jones won first place for the second consecutive year in the Best Videographer category. Her teacher is Keri Thompson. Her classmates, Blais Cameron and Emmaline Warden, tied for first place for Best Public Service Announcement (PSA). 

"I am so proud of all our finalists this year," said Thompson. "Anna Raye has a natural gift of filming and editing. She works tremendously hard and does an excellent job of capturing and telling the stories of our school. Blais and Emmaline are two dedicated and passionate seniors. They had this creative idea about a helmet safety PSA and immediately went to production. It was effective, well-edited and had a unique split screen format."

Ravenwood High's Jack Foster tied with Franklin High for Best PSA. His teachers are Megan Sanchez and Chelsea Kite.

"RHS TV is proud of our student leaders for their creativity and passion in this field," Sanchez said. "These students have grown the program exponentially and set the bar very high for future students."

Page High's Hayley Zehnder won first place in the Best Commercial category, and Lincoln Campbell won first place for Best Sports Video. Their teacher is David Holt.

"I'm very proud of our THSPA winners and the entire PHS Studios crew," said Holt. "They've worked hard this year, and it's wonderful to see their efforts recognized and rewarded. The future of the broadcasting industry looks bright."

The students who were recognized at the competition are all listed below.