The Cactus Canyon Junior High School yearbook class, under the direction of teacher Jason Davis, continues to rack up local and national awards.

The school, 801 W. Southern Ave. in Apache Junction, is in the Apache Junction Unified School District.

The Oro yearbook at CCJHS received an All-American rating with five marks of distinction from the National Scholastic Press Association. Oro got more than 90% in the categories of essentials, design, writing, photography and coverage, according to a release.

The Oro yearbook is a journalistic publication made entirely by students, according to sites.google.com/goaj.org/oro/home.

“The curriculum teaches students to be working journalists who document the story of the year through photography, writing and design. The book and students who make it have earned much recognition, but the mission of the program is serve the student body and community by telling the stories no one else covers,” according to the website.

Five students placed in the top 10 in the NSPA individual awards, which are national awards for design, story and photo of the year. Cactus Canyon’s six finalists were more than any other school in the country, the release states.

The five students placing in the top 10 in the NSPA individual awards are:

• Isabella Stewart: third in story, honorable mention in design;
• Natalee Anforth: fourth in photo;
• Makayla Leath: honorable mention in story;
• Summer Mittendorf: honorable mention in photo; and
• Ragan Stoltz: honorable mention in photo.

Go to studentpress.org/nspa/2021-junior-high-middle-school.

In addition, Oro received first place honors in the middle school Best of Show contest at the Fall National High School Journalism Convention. It’s the second consecutive convention Oro earned the first-place prize, the release states.

CCJH students earned 27 awards in the Arizona Interscholastic Association Fall Contest, including 10 superior awards. See a slideshow at docs.google.com/presentation/d/1SwQBMXMVmm0pWSInkU1LTpeBT09agqA38bBRIb4UDt8/edit?fbclid=IwAR03IMO1D6_trEnCXBMJmbVQMQhY71KRjtTlVP0f-y0HIvFQWz3cGz3c1ds#slide=id.p3