MINNESOTA HIGH SCHOOL PRESS

2025 Gold Medallion Winners

Oct. 7, 2025

Minnesota High School Press Association has announced winners of its Gold Medallion Awards for 2024-25.

The awards recognize the academic year’s top individual work in seven categories — broadcast, literary arts magazine, newspaper/newsmagazine, online, photojournalism, social media and yearbook.

They were presented at the Minnesota High School Journalism Convention, Oct. 7, at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities.

Past Gold Medallion Winners

2024 • 2023 

First Place
Nick Zylstra
The Flash
Eastview High School
Legislative Session

Second Place
Abby Ward
The Flash
Eastview High School
Earth Day

Third Place
Caleb Gustafson, Jaxson Reyes, Madi Ruchie, Hanna Wiese
The Pony Express
Stillwater Area High School
Spring FFA Plant Sale

Fourth Place
Ava Bentdahl, Rylee Van Houten, Elsie Welch
The Pony Express
Stillwater Area High School Stillwater
Spring Pops Concert

Fifth Place
Kaiden Verness, Layton Yost
Tiger Vision
Albert Lea High School
CSPAN Awards

First Place
Lily Blumb, Briel Green
The Flash
Eastview High School
Treyson Green

Second Place
Lindsay Mello
The Flash
Eastview High School
Sexual Assault Awareness

Third Place
Liam Hart
Zephyrus
Edina High School
The Making of Edina POPs

Fourth Place
Julia Moudry
Noise News
Spectrum High School
Looking Back with Staff

Fifth Place
Matt Larson, Mack Morrow
The Pony Express
Stillwater Area High School
Casey Mork Leads Lacrosse Team

First Place
Roman Farley, Annika Kim, Iris Luther-Suhr
Iris: Art + Lit
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Missing Piece

Second Place
Nime Snyder
Iris: Art + Lit
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Roe v. Wade Animal Allegory

Third Place
Makayla Baltazar, Danika Jensen, Taylor Johnson, Claire Stockwell
Imagine
Albert Lea High School
Imagine Elemental

Fourth Place
Bishesta Amaya, Caroline Choi, Aevyn Nguyen, Maggie Xu
Voices
Eastview High School
Fitting In

Fifth Place
Grace Parks
Aurora
Cannon Falls Schools
The Aurora

First Place
Humza Jameel
Iris: Art + Lit
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Wallowing, Wallowing, Wallowing, Love

Second Place
Franny Wagner
Iris: Art + Lit
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Untitled

Third Place
Thomas Coyle, Grace Parks
Aurora
Cannon Falls Schools
Pages 71-72

Fourth Place
Ella Nielson, Grace Parks
Aurora
Cannon Falls Schools
Pages 107-108

First Place
Abigail Tilton
Iris: Art + Lit
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Who’s Counting?

Second Place
Grace Parks
Aurora
Cannon Falls Schools
Night Watching

Third Place
Francis Hanna
Iris: Art + Lit
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
The Fly

Fourth Place
Grace Parks
Aurora
Cannon Falls Schools
Pages 7-8

First Place
Amanda Hsu, Georgia Ross, Annie Zhang
The Rubicon
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Hidden Racism

Second Place
Maggie O’Brien
The Pony Express
Stillwater Area High School
AI Takes Over

Third Place
Karsyn Zumbush
The Hoofprint
Buffalo High School
The Culture of Turning 18

Fourth Place
Tarun Gopalakrishnan
The Spectrum
The Blake School
Rising Star Izzy Daniel

Fifth Place
Iris Libson, Leon Situ
Zephyrus
Edina High School
Senior Edition

First Place
Kat Mulgrew
Knight Errant
Benilde-St.Margaret’s School The
Presidential Sledgehammer

Second Place
Jenny Sandvik
The Heights Herald
Columbia Heights High School
When 15 Minutes of Fame Goes Wrong

Third Place
Lilah Iwanin
Zephyrus
Edina High School
Pictured: Students Enjoying Long Weekend

Fourth Place
Annika Kim
The Rubicon
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Reaffirm Commitment to Diversity to Uphold Values

Fifth Place
Ben Aviles, Vida Wolstencroft
The Spectrum
The Blake School
Trump Brings the American Public in Quest for Emotional Development

First Place
Karissa Cheng
Zephyrus
Edina High School
Our New Voices Defend Democracy

Second Place
Staff
Knight Errant
Benilde-St.Margaret’s School
The Case for Civics Engagement

Third Place
Huxley Westemeier
The Rubicon
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Dire Wolves, Dodos, and Woolly Mammoths Oh My!

Fourth Place
Cara Erickson
The Lantern
Cannon Falls Schools
Bookmarking a Problem

Fifth Place
Senetneb Theba
The Rubicon
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Lamar’s Super Bowl LIX Halftime Show

First Place
Madi Ruchie
The Pony Express
Stillwater Area High School
LGBTQ Books Restricted at Elementary Schools

Second Place
Amy Fick
The Lantern
Cannon Falls Schools
Never Forget, Always Remember

Third Place
Greyson Sale
The Rubicon
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Postcard Writing Event to Encourage Voter Participation

Fourth Place
Sonia Kharbanda
The Rubicon
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Class of ’04 Alumni Tim Sheehy May Shape the Senate

Fifth Place
Tessa Lenoch
The Quill
Robbinsdale Cooper High School
Concerns About ICE Have Impact on Students, Staff

First Place
Yoni Zacks
The Spectrum
The Blake School
Dean Phillips and Kelly Morrison Mark Historical Send-Off

Second Place
Neveah Kinney
The Pony Express
Stillwater Area High School
Eva and Miranda Stafne Create FoodTruck Business

Third Place
Brynja Lockman
Knight Errant
Benilde-St. Margaret’s School
How We Cover the 2024 Election

Fourth Place
Lynn-Clara Tun
Zephyrus
Edina High School
Edina Seniors Chart Their Futures in the Military

Fifth Place
Mariah Washington
The Quill
Robbinsdale Cooper High School
Cooper Graduate Enjoying Success as Podcaster

First Place
Kae Bee
Ahlahasa
Albert Lea High School
From Local Pools To State Finals

Second Place
Lilah Johnson
The Spectrum
The Blake School
Rising Star Izzy Daniel

Third Place
Mariah Washington
The Quill
Robbinsdale Cooper High School
Esports Team Debuts at Cooper

Fourth Place
Lynn-Clara Tun
Zephyrus
Edina High School
Edina Girls’ Hockey Falls 4–5 in Double Overtime Championship Rematch

Fifth Place
Cana Schimelpfenig
The Talon
Minnehaha Academy
Minnehaha Athletic Field Gets Renewal

First Place
Yassin Mokbel, Lani Ngonethong, Zimo Xie
The Rubicon
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Celebrating 50 Years of Southeast Asians in America

Second Place
Charlotte Feller
Knight Errant
Benilde-St. Margaret’s School
Student Vocabularies are Dropping

Third Place
Nabeeha Qadri
The Rubicon
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Caleb Colton Performs Despite Executive Order

Fourth Place
Charlotte Feller
Knight Errant
Benilde-St. Margaret’s School
Junior High Plans to Remove Eight-Period Days

Fifth Place
Brekkyn Ayres, Isla Harrison, Lillian Olund, Lizzie Tipton, Lola Winchell
The Lantern
Cannon Falls Schools
History of Fashion at Cannon Falls Schools

First Place
Thomas Chen
The Rubicon
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Tacos El Kevin Delivers Bold Flavors and Authentic Atmosphere

Second Place
Nabeeha Qadri
The Rubicon
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Caleb Colton Performs Despite Executive Order

Third Place
Brekkyn Ayres, Isla Harrison, Lillian Olund, Lizzie Tipton, Lola Winchell
The Lantern
Cannon Falls Schools
History of Fashion at Cannon Falls Schools

Fourth Place
Ven Estrada, Rainer McCallum
The Hoofprint
Buffalo High School
The 5

Fifth Place
Ven Estrada, Rainer McCallum
The Hoofprint
Buffalo High School
Herdle

First Place
Lucy Loes
Knight Errant
Benilde-St. Margaret’s School
The Pop-up Protest meets every Monday

Second Place
Mariah Washington
Knight Errant
Benilde-St. Margaret’s School
Student Council organizes the appearance of Thirst Project reps.

Third Place
Rose Vang-Lohnes
The Quill
Robbinsdale Cooper High School
Ms. Olson guides students through the stages of a cooking assignment.

Fourth Place
Sophia Rowland
Ibid
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Band director Ryan Larson conducts the jazz band during the Revue concert.

Fifth Place
Ted Salmen
Whigrean
Edina High School
The Edina High School Marching Band perform in the Minnesota State Fair parade.

First Place
Lani Ngonethong
The Rubicon
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Stage Manager Coda Wilson rests on top of a ladder overlooking the interactions of the people of Grover’s Corner.

Second Place
Caroline Mowery
Whigrean
Edina High School
Edina Green Machine team make final adjustments to their robot.

Third Place
Via Campbell
Ibid
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Elliot Cooper and Josh Melchert listen to advice from science teacher Christine Schwichtenberg.

Fourth Place
Ted Salmen
Whigrean
Edina High School
Elizabeth Teskey and fellow cast members apply final makeup touches just before curtain call.

Fifth Place
Robin Jarman
The Quill
Robbinsdale Cooper High School
Ms. Mielke works with students in her International Baccalaureate (IB) Art HL class.

First Place
Daniel Fenske
Whigrean
Edina High School
Andreas Engle keeps his eyes on the ball while under pressure from Buffalo.

Second Place
Ezra Victor
The Antler
Minnehaha Academy
Senior Leah DiNardo hurls backward in the air on the balance beam.

Third Place
Natalie Johnson
Whigrean
Edina High School
Outside hitter Simon Fullerton approaches toward a pass set.

Fourth Place
Mack Morrow
Pony Express
Stillwater Area High School
Players comfort each other as they process the loss to Anover.

Fifth Place
Maddee Anderson
Ahlahasa
Albert Lea High School
The Tigers lost the football game to the New Ulm Eagles: 27-7.

First Place
Ritaj Younus
The Heights Herald
Columbia Heights High School
Former President Trump and current Vice President Harris .

Second Place
Eh Thaw
Ahlahasa
Albert Lea High School
I spent most of my life inside my head.

Third Place
Greta Christiansen
The Antler
Minnehaha Academy
Montage features varsity volleyball players.

Fourth Place
Helen Frost
Ibid
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Thomas Chen and Clare Ryan Bradley work on their English papers during class.

Fifth Place
Avery Schaffer
The Lantern
Cannon Falls Schools
Torch artist Avery Schaffer shows her rendition of singer Tate McRae.

First Place
Staff
The Spectrum
The Blake School
Instagram @blakespectrum

Second Place
Mariam Malik, Murphy Miltner, Audrey Peltier
The Rubicon
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Instagram @therubiconspa

Third Place
Isabelle Clausman, Elizabeth Gabler
Zephyrus
Edina High School
Instagram @edinazephyrus

Fourth Place
Aubry Conway
The Lantern
Cannon Falls Schools
Facebook CFHS Lantern

Fifth Place
Olivia Campbell
Ibid
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Instagram @ibidspa

First Place
Makenzie Reineck
Valor
St. Michael Albertville High School
Instagram @stma_yearbook

Second Place
Claire Chen, George Rerat, Valerie Schmitt
Zephyrus
Edina High School
Instagram @edinazephyrus

Third Place
Blake Kehoe, Finley Tooley
Whigrean
Edina High School
Instagram @ehswhigrean

Fourth Place
Staff
Tatanka
Buffalo High School
Instagram @tatankayearbook

Fifth Place
Aubry Conway
The Lantern
Cannon Falls Schools
Facebook CFHS Lantern

First Place
Leif Carlson, Lucas Lawrence
Tatanka
Buffalo High School
Running It Back

Second Place
Ava Geiman, Josie Nygard, Gracie Vankuyk
Valor
St. Michael Albertville High School
Rolling Around

Third Place
Paige Zweber
Whigrean
Edina High School
Smells Like Teen Spirit

Fourth Place
Madysen Coulson, Allison Dressler, Anna Volkenant
Valor
St. Michael Albertville High School
Just the Beginning

Fifth Place
Sevastian Miller, Issac Santis
Spartan
Orono High School
Chasing Goals with Pride & Passion

First Place
Maya Matelski
Whigrean
Edina High School
Tune In

Second Place
Gemma Lees
Whigrean
Edina High School
Colorful Class Time

Third Place
Emily Tadych
Tatanka
Buffalo High School
Under the Spotlight

Fourth Place
Dalinda Gravely
Tatanka
Buffalo High School
Singing in Unity

Fifth Place
Makaela Binder
The Antler
Minnehaha Academy
What’s Your Favorite Thing To Teach?

First Place
Lina Abid
Ibid
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Girl Power

Second Place
Gemma Lees
Whigrean
Edina High School
Run Like the Wind

Third Place
Maya Matelski
Whigrean
Edina High School
Life Goes in Cycles

Fourth Place
Emmerson Breyer, Evalynn Mehr, Parker Youngquist
Tatanka
Buffalo High School
Success Through Support

Fifth Place
Makaela Binder
The Antler
Minnehaha Academy
Skiing on Just a Sprinkle of Snow

First Place
Tallulah Dogwill
Ibid
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
June Dalton: Crafting Coffee and Connections

Second Place
Ariella Kim
Ibid
St. Paul Academy and Summit
School Life is More Than X, Y, or Z

Third Place
Leif Carlson
Tatanka
Buffalo High School
Can We Go Thrift Shopping?

Fourth Place
Cece Roberts
Valor
St. Michael Albertville High School
Frenger U-Knights Against Cancer

Fifth Place
Kenzee Levisee
Valor
St. Michael Albertville High School
Hidden Talent

First Place
Staff
Whigrean
Edina High School
Over the Top!

Second Place
Staff
Tatanka
Buffalo High School
A Matter of Time

Third Place
Ava Geiman, Josie Nygard
Valor
St. Michael Albertville High School
Just Roll With It

Fourth Place
Sophia Bietz, Hadley Dobish, Helen Frost
Ibid
St. Paul Academy and Summit School
Leave Your Mark

Fifth Place
Makaela Binder, Greta Christiansen, Olivia Hughes, Alexandra Radulescu, Caroline Sonstegard
The Antler
Minnehaha Academy
Perspectives