Mark your calendars for the 2019 GSPA Fall Conference, which will be held on Thursday, Sept. 19, at The Classic Center in downtown Athens, Georgia.

The new venue will better accommodate the growth in attendance and provide space for a keynote speaker and presentation of summer contest awards in front of all attendees. Furthermore, there will be a scheduled lunch break, which will give attendees the opportunity to explore some of the best local eateries in Athens.

GSPA is now accepting entries for yearbooks & literary magazines produced in the 2018-19 academic year. All entries for first-round consideration must be be submitted by June 30, 2019.

The following is an article written by GSPA Student Advisory Board member Isabelle Manders. The story was published in the Marietta High School Accipiter Pitchfork in March, where she serves editor-in-chief.

The average age that kids are joining social media is 12.6, according to a Common Sense Media Census report. However, the age limit to join most social media platforms is 13.

Jennifer Ortman, adviser at Mountain View High School, has been recognized as the 2019 Georgia high school media Adviser of the Year by the Georgia Scholastic Press Association.

The 2019 Achievement Award recognized achievements ranging from successful, brand-new publications to outstanding high school leadership. Read more about the award recipients for Turnaround, Start-up, Freedom of the Press, Community Service, Administrators of the Year and First Year Adviser.

GSPA recognized the many outstanding scholastic journalism achievements of its member schools April 9, 2019, at the UGA Georgia Center in Athens. View the winners!

Alyssa Freyman, Editor-in-Chief of The Bird Feed at South Forsyth High School in Cumming, Georgia, has been named the 2019 Georgia Champion Journalist. The award recognizes the top high school senior journalist in the state. Valeria Garcia-Pozo, Senior Copy Editor at Clarke Central High School’s Odyssey Media Group, was the runner-up in the competition.

Congratulations to the 2019 First Amendment Essay Contest winners!

First place- Natalie Schliekelman, Clarke Central High School; Second place- Isabelle Manders, Marietta High School; Third place- Katherine Haas, South Forsyth High School

The deadline for General Excellence and Individual Awards contest entries for broadcasts, newspapers, newsmagazines and news websites is 11:59 p.m. on March 4.

Nominations for Achievement Awards, which are open to all publications types, must also be received by 11:59 p.m. on March 4.

When GSPA Student Advisory Board member Azariah Chester's cousin died of cancer, she found a way to give back to the organization that brought her cousin so much happiness.

Thank you to all who filled out the Advisers’ Workshop interest survey.

The free workshop, which will be hosted at Mercer University, has tentatively been scheduled for Monday, June 3, through Wednesday, June 5, 2019.

This will be a great opportunity to hone skills and network with advisers from around the state. We will share more details in the coming months.

#StudentPressFreedom day is coming next week, and there are different ways you can engage your staffs in the movement.

The Student Press Law Center suggests publishing an editorial to creating a social media campaign centered around student press freedoms and their importance. See more of ideas here.

Tag GSPA in your tweets and instagram posts, and we will share them.

Each year, GSPA recognizes the top senior student journalist in the state with the Georgia Champion Journalist Award. The winner receives a $100 prize and represents the state in the Journalism Education Association's National Journalist of the Year competition.

GSPA also awards the Georgia Junior Champion Journalist Award, a contest open to juniors only.

Completed entries for both contests are due by 11:59 p.m. on Sunday, Feb. 3. There is no fee to enter.

For a list of requirements and how to enter, please visit www.ugagspa.org/spring-competitions.

Dick Yarbrough recalls giving his first-ever career speech at the thirty-fifth GSPA Annual Convention held on May 4, 1962. Share your GSPA reflection in celebration of the organization’s 90th anniversary by emailing gspa@uga.edu.

GSPA is now accepting entries for the 2019 First Amendment Essay Competition. The deadline for entries is Jan. 25, 2019.