The National Pacemaker Awards are awards for excellence in American student journalism, given annually since 1927. The awards are generally considered to be the highest national honors in their field, and are unofficially known as the "Pulitzer Prizes of student journalism".
The National Scholastic Press Association, headquartered in Minneapolis, Minnesota, administers the contest for high school programs, while the Associated Collegiate Press administers the college and university contests. Pacemakers are awarded annually at the JEA/NSPA National Conference (for high schools) and the ACP/CMA National College Media Convention (for colleges) in the following categories: Newspaper, Online, Yearbook/Magazine, and Broadcast.
Newspaper Pacemakers ACP, NSPA and the Newspaper Association of America Foundation have co-sponsored the Pacemaker competition since 1961. NSPA began the awards in 1927. The Pacemaker competition was discontinued in 1948–49, then resumed in 1961. The awards, which are considered by many to be the highest national honors for student journalism, are unique in their judging. Several issues from each newspaper's production schedule are randomly selected to be judged, ensuring that to be competitive for a Pacemaker, a publication must show consistent quality over an entire academic year.
Judges select Pacemaker Finalists and Pacemakers based on the following: coverage and content, quality of writing and reporting, leadership on the opinion page, evidence of in-depth reporting, design, photography, art and graphics.
Pacemakers are selected by the staff of a professional newspaper in the host city of the annual National College Media Convention, in the case of college papers, or the National High School Journalism Convention for high school publications. There are multiple awards in each category every year: in 2006, there were 26 high school winners.NSPA – Contest Winners
Online Pacemakers This contest replaces the NSPA/ACP Best of the Net competition, which began in 1996. Member publication Web sites are not automatically entered in the Pacemaker competition; staffs must submit a Pacemaker entry form.
Online Pacemaker entries are judged during the months of February and March, based upon the following criteria: design, navigation, writing/editing, graphics and interactivity.NSPA – Contests
Yearbook/Magazine Pacemakers Yearbook/Magazine Pacemakers are judged based upon the following criteria: writing/editing, design, content, concept, photography, art and graphics.
In conjunction with the Yearbook Pacemaker competition, ACP/NSPA will recognize with an award of excellence the best interactive (CD/DVD) yearbooks in a separate contest. Interactive entries must include a copy of the printed book.
Broadcast Pacemakers The NSPA awards Broadcast Pacemaker awards for student-produced television news programs at high schools.
An entry consists of a student-produced news program or segment of a longer news program, on VHS format video tape. For the purposes of this competition, student-produced means that the majority of the planning, writing, scripting, taping and editing of the program was done by students.
This contest is unique to the high school level, as no similar award is offered by the ACP to college broadcast programs.
Past winners The following is a partial list of college and high school newspapers which have been awarded a National Pacemaker Award by the Associated Collegiate Press or National Scholastic Press Association, respectively.
College newspapers The Advocate (Contra Costa College) (1990, 1994, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2011) The Auburn Plainsman (Auburn University) (1967, 1968, 1972, 1973, 1974, 1975, 1976, 1980, 1982, 1983, 1988, 1989, 1991, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2017) The Baker Orange (Baker University) (2004) The Ball State Daily News (2019) The Battalion (Texas A&M University) (2008, 2019, 2022) The Cavalier Daily (University of Virginia) (1999) Central Michigan Life (Central Michigan University) (1975, 1976, 1978, 1979, 1989, 1990, 2001, 2002, 2005, 2007, 2010, 2013, 2014) The Chimes (Biola University) (2011) College Heights Herald (Western Kentucky University) (1981, 1982, 1984, 1988, 1992, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2009, 2010) Collegiate Times (Virginia Tech) (2007) The Commonwealth Times (Virginia Commonwealth University) (2019, 2020) The Crimson White (University of Alabama) (1977, 2015) The Daily Barometer (Oregon State University) (2017) Daily Bruin (University of California, Los Angeles) (1990, 2004, 2011, 2014, 2016, 2019) The Daily Collegian (Pennsylvania State University) (1985, 2012, 2013) The Daily Eastern News (Eastern Illinois University) (1983) The Daily Egyptian (Southern Illinois University, Carbondale) (2002) The Daily Emerald (University of Oregon) (2016, 2009, 1997, 1938) The Daily Forty-Niner (California State University, Long Beach) (1979) The Daily Iowan (University of Iowa) (2000, 2001, 2006, 2008, 2013, 2020) The Daily Nebraskan (University of Nebraska–Lincoln) (2004, 2005, 2006, 2007) The Daily Northwestern (Northwestern University) (1994, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2005, 2008, 2010) The Daily Orange (Syracuse University) (2014, 2015, 2016) The Daily Pennsylvanian (University of Pennsylvania) (1997, 1998, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2017, 2018) The Daily Reveille (Louisiana State University) (2003) The Daily Tar Heel (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) (1996, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2005, 2008, 2013) The Daily Texan (The University of Texas at Austin) (1965, 1969, 1971, 1985) The Daily of the University of Washington (University of Washington) (2010) District (Savannah College of Art and Design) (2004, 2008) El Don (Santa Ana College) The Eastern Echo (Eastern Michigan University) (1997, 1998) The Et Cetera (Eastfield College) (2011, 2014, 2017) The Flat Hat (College of William and Mary) (2007) FSView & Florida Flambeau (Florida State University) (2006, 2012, 2014) The Gettysburgian (Gettysburg College) (2000) The Graphic (Pepperdine University) (1989, 2019, 2020) The GW Hatchet (The George Washington University) (2005, 2008, 2011) The Harvard Crimson (Harvard University) (2002, 2004, 2007, 2008, 2013, 2022) The Hoya (Georgetown University) (1930, 2008) Indiana Daily Student (Indiana University) (1973, 1980, 1987, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2008, 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2024, 2025) Iowa State Daily (Iowa State University) (2011, 2019) The Ithacan (Ithaca College) (1993, 1995, 2005, 2006, 2008) The Johns Hopkins News-Letter (Johns Hopkins University) (1995, 2003, 2005, 2007, 2015) The Kentucky Kernel (University of Kentucky) (2006, 2008, 2016) The Los Angeles Loyolan (Loyola Marymount University) (2007, 2011) The Lookout (Lansing Community College) (1992) The Maneater (University of Missouri) (1996, 1999, 2001, 2007) The Maroon (Loyola University New Orleans) (1983, 1986, 1998, 1999, 2006, 2015, 2021, 2022, 2024) Mars' Hill (Trinity Western University) (2008, 2010) The Mercury (University of Texas at Dallas) (2005, 2015, 2016) The Miami Hurricane (University of Miami) (1992, 2009) The Miscellany News (Vassar College) (1940, 1963) The Nevada Sagebrush (University of Nevada, Reno) (2008, 2009, 2011, 2015) The Northern Light (University of Alaska, Anchorage) (2009, 2011) Northern Star (Northern Illinois University) (2008) The Observer (Case Western Reserve University) (2000, 2004) The Oklahoma Daily (University of Oklahoma (1989, 1994, 1995, 2004) The Oracle (University of South Florida) (1967) The Orion (California State University, Chico) (1989, 1993, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2014) The Pendulum (Elon University) (2009) The Polaris (North Seattle Community College) (2006) The Red & Black (University of Georgia) (1935, 1937, 1941, 1972, 2010) The Reflector (University of Indianapolis) (2009) The Review (University of Delaware) (1993, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001) Richland Chronicle (Richland College) (2000, 2001, 2007) The Sentinel (Kennesaw State University) (2004) The Sentinel (North Idaho College) (1991, 1994, 2002, 2008, 2009, 2010) The Shorthorn (University of Texas at Arlington) (2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2020) The State Hornet (California State University, Sacramento) (2000, 2017, 2026) The State News (Michigan State University) (1963, 1966, 1967, 1970, 1986, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1995, 1998, 2003, 2006, 2008, 2009) Student Life (Washington University in St. Louis) (2005, 2009, 2011) The Tartan (Carnegie Mellon University) (1989, 1994, 1995, 1999, 2007) The Technique (Georgia Tech) (2004) The Temple News (Temple University) (2006) The Triangle (Drexel University) (2004) The Tulane Hullabaloo (Tulane University) (1979, 1980, 1989, 1993, 1994, 1996, 2002, 2005, 2013, 2022) The University Daily Kansan (University of Kansas) (1971, 1993, 1994, 1995, 2000, 2004, 2005) Vanderbilt Hustler (Vanderbilt University) (2002, 2003, 2005, 2006) The Vermont Cynic (University of Vermont) (2011) The Volante (University of South Dakota) (1993, 1998, 2003, 2006, 2008) Washington Square News (New York University)
College magazines The American River Review (American River College) (2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010) Alice (University of Alabama) (2016) Apricity Magazine (University of Texas at Austin) (2020) Ball Bearings (Ball State University) (2010, 2011) The Briar Cliff Review (Briar Cliff University) (1995, 2000) The Bridge (Bridgewater State College) (2006, 2011, 2012) Caltech Undergraduate Research Journal (California Institute of Technology) (2004, 2007) Cipher (Colorado College) (2012) The Collegian (South Dakota State University) Colonnades (Elon University) (2010) Currents (Pepperdine University) (2020) Emerge (University of Guelph-Humber) (2015) Flux (University of Oregon) (1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2007, 2009, 2010) Inside (Indiana University) (2011, 2012, 2013) Marr's Field Journal (The University of Alabama) (2009) Metrosphere (Metropolitan State College of Denver) (2011) The Point (Biola University) (2008) Rebel (East Carolina University) (1984, 1985, 1996, 1997, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2009, 2011) Reporter (Rochester Institute of Technology) (2011) Windhover (North Carolina State University) (1992, 1994, 1996, 1998, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2010, 2017)
College Online Pacemaker The Auburn Plainsman (Auburn University) (2004) The Badger Herald (University of Wisconsin–Madison) (2005, 2006) The Baylor Lariat (Baylor University) (2018, 2020, 2022, 2025) The Collegian (California State University, Fresno) (2007) CU Independent (University of Colorado Boulder) (2016) The Daily Tar Heel (University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill) (2005) El Don (Santa Ana College) Flux (University of Oregon) (2009, 2010) The Daily Collegian (Pennsylvania State University) (2008, 2013, 2017) The Daily Eastern News (Eastern Illinois University) (2008, 2009) The Daily Emerald (University of Oregon) (2025, 2023) The Daily Illini (University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign) (2010)ACP – Contest Winners The Daily Targum (Rutgers University) (2010)ACP – Contest Winners The Graphic (Pepperdine University) (2016, 2017, 2020) The GW Hatchet (The George Washington University) (2006, 2008, 2010) The Hoya (Georgetown University) (2003, 2005) Indiana Daily Student (Indiana University) (2000, 2001, 2002, 2004, 2010, 2020, 2021, 2022) Iowa State Daily (Iowa State University) (2006, 2009, 2011) The Maneater (University of Missouri) (2000, 2001, 2002, 2009, 2012) Mustang Daily/Mustang News (California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo) (2007, 2010, 2014) North by Northwestern (Northwestern University) (2008) Northern Star (Northern Illinois University) (2002, 2003)