Winners from eight schools attended the Spring 2025 High School Awards Luncheon in Omaha.
Students from 16 schools won state awards in the contest that includes writing, visual, broadcast or video, and yearbook categories. The contest was open to high school students across the state. It was judged by communications professionals, with constructive feedback provided on each entry.
Gretna East High School accumulated the most points based on contest results and received the Sweepstakes Award. Millard North High School in Omaha was runner up for the Sweepstakes Award. Millard South High School placed third. All three schools received awards.
With 347 entries in the contest, many of the categories were very competitive. Winners were recognized during NPW’s spring convention luncheon April 12 in Omaha.
Schools with winning entries are Adams Central Jr/Sr High School (Hastings), Bellevue East High School, Bellevue West High School, Dorchester Public School, Elkhorn North High School, Gretna East High School, Gretna High School, Harvard Public School, Marian High School (Omaha), Millard North High School (Omaha), Millard South High School (Omaha), Plattsmouth High School, Ralston High School and Westside High School (Omaha).
Click here to see the full list of winners.
Entries for the 2026 contest will be accepted beginning late this year. The deadline to submit entries will be announced later. Find out more about the contest and how to enter.
5 Reasons to Enter the High School Contest
- The statewide contest is open to both male and female students across the state. Students compete with other outstanding communicators in their quest for excellence.
- There are 23 categories in the areas of news, electronic media and yearbook. See the complete list.
- Entries are judged by professionals who provide feedback on each entry.
- All winners receive certificates and are recognized at NPW’s spring conference luncheon. The school receiving the sweepstakes award receives a trophy and $100 for its journalism department.
- First-place winners in each category advance to the National Federation of Press Women’s national contest. This is the ONLY national competition for high school journalists. All national winners receive a certificate.
Watch for information on the 2026 contest. All 2025 contest entries must have been published, e-published, broadcast or issued between Feb. 1, 2024, and Jan. 31, 2025. The state entry fee for the contest is $5 per entry with entries submitted electronically. The entry deadline is noon on Feb. 19, 2024.
Find out more about the high school contest online at the NFPW website. Additional details about the contest, including the category descriptions and entry information, are included here. Enter the Nebraska contest
For more information on the state contest, contact Sherry Thompson by email.
The NFPW contest is endorsed by the National Association of Secondary School Principals. Dow Jones announces first-place winners and promotes the competition in its publication distributed to journalism advisers across the nation, giving students and their teachers/advisers local and nationwide recognition.
2024 Winners
Congratulations to the winners of the 2024 Nebraska Press Women High School Communications Contest. Westside High School in Omaha won the sweepstakes award. Millard South was runner-up, while Gretna East placed third in the sweepstakes contest. Students from 16 schools won individual awards in the areas of news, opinion and column writing, photography, graphic and page design, video production, radio and television broadcasting, and yearbook writing, photography and layout. There are 23 categories in all.
Entries were judged by communications professionals, with constructive feedback provided on each entry.
First-place entries in the state contest advance to the National Federation of Press Women contest. Nebraska students won 17 awards in the 2024 contest. See the list of national winners from Nebraska. Visit the NFPW website to see a list of all national winners and find links to first-place entries.
2023 Winners
Westside High School in Omaha accumulated the most points based on contest results and received the Sweepstakes Award. Marian High School, also in Omaha, placed as runner up for the Sweepstakes Award. Bellevue West High School placed third. All three schools received awards. The 280 entries in the contest were the most in recent years. The contest, which is open to high school students across the state, includes categories in the areas of writing, visual, broadcast or video, and yearbook. All first-place entries advanced to national competition. See the complete list of 2023 NPW winners. Nebraska students won 17 awards in the national contest. See a list of winners.
