National Scholastic Press Association
National Scholastic Press Association (NSPA) is a nonprofit group founded in 1921 to support high school and secondary school publications in the United States. It operates on a membership basis and each year hosts national journalism conventions for high school students.
NSPA is widely respected in high school journalism and is often compared to the Pulitzer Prize for its prestige. It is based in Minneapolis, Minnesota, and has been a 501(c)(3) nonprofit since 1964. The Executive Director is Laura Widmer.
NSPA evaluates student publications in five areas: Concept & Essentials; Content; Writing and Editing; Photography, Art and Graphics; and Layout. Judges account for differences among literary, feature, and specialty magazines and score accordingly. For example, if a literary magazine has no photography, the artwork and graphics are still considered in the score.
Awards include Marks of Distinction for exceptional merit. To earn the All-American Award, a magazine must receive at least four Marks of Distinction and score 450 points out of a possible 500. About five percent of entries win the All-American Award.
There are also many other awards given each year in various categories.
This page was last edited on 3 February 2026, at 08:24 (CET).