Aspiring Young Journalist Awards
2023 entry window has closed
Awarded to an outstanding eighth-grade student journalist. To be considered, students must submit a portfolio of their work. The winner is announced at State Convnetion and receives a plaque and $100 dollars.
Emerging Young Journalist Award
2023 entry window has closed
FSPA and the Tampa Bay Times Fund are proud to honor freshmen and sophomores who show promise in journalism the Emerging Young Journalist Award. To be considered, students must submit a portfolio of their work. The winner is announced at State Convention and receives a plaque and a scholarship to the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communication’s Summer Journalism Institute.
Journalist of the Year Awards
2023 entry window has closed
Open to juniors and seniors, Journalist of the Year awards recognize students in various disciplines.
- Artist of the Year
- Broadcast Journalist of the Year
- Designer of the Year
- Sports Journalist of the Year
- Tom Pierce Photojournalist of the Year
- Web/Multimedia Journalist of the Year
- Writer of the Year
Only one student may enter per media program per school. To be considered, students must submit a portfolio of their work. The winners of each category will be announced at the State Convention and receive a plaque and $200 dollars.
Todd C. Smith Student Journalist of the Year
2023 entry window has closed
Outstanding seniors must submit a digital portfolio for consideration for this award. The winner will be announced in the spring and compete in the Journalism Education Association’s National High School Journalist of the Year competition. The top three portfolios will be recognized at the Spring Convention with a plaque, with third place receiving $400, second place receiving $600, and first place receiving $1000.
Originally established in 1990, the award was renamed in 2002 in honor of Todd Carper Smith. Smith participated in FSPA in high school, and after college wrote for the Tallahassee Democrat, St. Petersburg Times, the San Francisco Chronicle and the Tampa Tribune. He was killed by Shining Path guerrillas while working for the Tribune on a story in Peru. While his tragic death ended his own journalistic pursuit of truth, it continues to inspire others.
Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School Courage in Journalism Award
2023 entry window has closed
First awarded in 2018 to all the media programs at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School recognizing the student journalists’ fearless reporting of the mass shooting that took place on their campus February 14, 2018. Nominations for the award are encouraged to recognize scholastic journalism students or staffs that courageously produce quality journalism no matter the situation. The winner is announced at the State Convention.
Sunshine Standout
2023 entry window has closed
Sunshine Standout awards are presented to the best of the best media programs in the state of Florida. A committee of scholastic journalism educators and professional journalists choose the winners from all the programs that submitted for an evaluation. Winners are announced at the State Convention and receive a plaque.
