The National Scholastic Press Association, also known as the NSPA, recognized seniors Ellie Erlich, Emma Hirsch, Rana Khan and alumna Alyssa Sanchez (‘23) as first place winners for the Design of the Year award for the center spread “Microaggressions,” which was published on Dec. 17, 2022.

“It didn’t really surprise me that much that [the spread] ended up being first,”said 2022-2023 Managing Editor Kate Leverenz. “It’s a serious topic and the design is so good, the writing is so good, and personally, I haven’t seen a lot of stuff like that before.”

According to 2022-2023 Editor-in-Chief Rohan Mitra, winning Design of the Year is a great accomplishment and something to be proud of.

“I’m so proud of how hard everyone worked on the center spread, and I was so excited to find out that we are finalists,” said Mitra. “Knowing that we are the best in the country is such a big accomplishment.”

According to Michael Tarjan, assistant principal of student activities, the award recognizes not only the page editors’ and artist’s work, but the entire Torch team.

The Torch staff members’ work puts the school on the map nationally, Tarjan said.

“Any time our students can be recognized for standing out amongst their peers and other schools and programs, I think it’s a fantastic accomplishment,” Tarjan said.