RCHS yearbook wins Gold
Some of the Black and Gold team (from left to right): Kailey Serna, Reghan Semmer, Elise Brandon and Evelyn Oliver in front of Pulitzer Hall at Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism in New York in March.
Black and Gold, Rock Canyon High School’s (RCHS) 2025 yearbook, won the venerable Gold Crown Award at the Columbia Scholastic Press Association’s (CSPA) spring convention at Columbia University in New York. Crown Awards recognize overall excellence in either print or digital student publications from around the world, chosen by a panel of judges. This is the third time in RCHS history that the yearbook has won the Gold.
“Walking away with the Gold Crown was indescribable,” said editor-in-chief and junior Reghan Semmer. “When they announced our name, it took us a second for it to sink in.”
The other editor-in-chief, Zoe Swant, a junior who lives in The Village at Castle Pines, said, “People don’t really understand how hard we work. This award is a big deal.”
The CSPA judges yearbooks on theme development (branding), graphic design, photography, concept and content.
“They are essentially running a business, producing a product for sale and doing it at such a high level,” said student media adviser Kristi Rathbun. She added that the yearbook is 100% done by students, not prepackaged and involves a vast range of skills. “I am really proud of the work that they do and the time they put into it; it’s real journalism and they are preserving memories.”
Congratulations to the Black and Gold journalism team!
For more information, visit rockcanyonjags.com and search “student media.” For more on CSPA, visit precollege.sps.columbia.edu and search “CSPA Crown Awards.”
A sampling from the 2025 Black and Gold showcasing the detail and journalistic skills the students put into the award-winning yearbook.
By Hollen Wheeler; photos courtesy of RCHS student media
