On Friday, Oct. 5, 38 members from the staffs of the Blueprint, Fusion and Woof TV traveled to Daytona State College for the District 3 fall workshop of the Florida Scholastic Press Association.

Beginning in the in the News Journal Center, journalists won awards in several categories. Out of the eight categories that the staffs competed in, all received awards. Three won an Honorable Mention, three won an Excellent award, and two won an All-Florida award.  The Excellent award is given to entries that went above and beyond the judges expectations, and the All-Florida award is given to the entries that were among of the best in the state.

Senior Bryson Turner returned with four awards: two Excellent and two All-Florida. He is highly competitive when it comes to these contests, because he is very passionate in what he participates in. Turner was not expecting to win the All-Florida title, as he had never participated in the short story category before.

“The fact that I got an All-Florida for my short story was an amazing. This was the first time I’d submitted any type of narrative work into a contest; I was more surprised at myself more than anything,” Turner said.

Keynote speaker from the Orlando Sentinel, Tess Sheets, spoke to the group about her career in journalism and the importance of keeping the struggling print industry alive. Afterwards, the schools went to the main campus of Daytona State College, where all of the workshop sessions were held. Students had the option of choosing from a selection of workshops in three sessions.

Approximately 45 minutes each, the sessions were meant to help students learn more about a particular aspect of journalism, such as photography and interviewing, depending on what they are interested in.

“I was able to learn about different types of design things that go well with a certain occasion or event, which will help me piece together my work more efficiently and make it of a better quality,” sophomore Zoey Young said.

FSPA also hosts a statewide convention during spring, which is held over the course of multiple days, spanning from April 11-13. The workshops offered will be similar to those in the fall, but more extensive. However, students will also have the opportunity to earn the Best of the Best award, which is not offered during the fall workshops. Members of all three staffs plan to attend.