Branford Buzz Wins Connecticut Press Award

Staff reports

The staff of The Branford Buzz was recognized recently by the Connecticut Press Club for its writing and news coverage of Branford High School’s cell phone restriction policy.

The Buzz, and its student journalists, were awarded an honorable mention for a High School News Story as part of the 2022 Connecticut Press Club Awards for the article “Cellphones Silenced at BHS: Classroom Ban Starts Monday,” which was published in May 2022.

At the time of the publication last school year, Branford High School had just instituted a new cell phone policy which forbid their use in classrooms. The article garnered region wide notice and was picked up by several news organizations including The Patch and CT Insider from Hearst Media.

The article was written by Adam Albrecht (class of 2023) with contributions from several members of Mr. Miller’s Digital Journalism class last spring, including graduating seniors (class of 2022) Mariela Esperti, Macey Girard, Nicole Pagliario, Vanessa Fusco, Lauren Dombrowski, Rory Jacobsen, Jacinda McMenamin, Dylan Torre, Elisio Madera and Kyle Givner; current seniors Jack Fitzpatrick, Mike Farricielli and Aryana Wilson also contributed.

“I am proud of the students involved in The Buzz who were honored in this way for their work,” said Miller, who is faculty advisor to the publication. “It is rewarding to be recognized by the Connecticut Press Club, and I think it is a testament to all the students who have been involved with The Buzz the last few years. Our goal has always been to be a reliable, accurate and independent source of news and information for the BHS community.”

Miller said the story was a collaborative effort by students in the Digital Journalism class who contributed photographs, interviewed students and teachers, and wrote social media posts to promote the article.

The Branford Buzz is an online publication that has been publishing news and information from the Branford High School community since 1938. In its earliest form, it was called The Hornet. It then became The Hornet Herald and then The Sting. Over the years, the publication has evolved from a paper publication to an all digital platform. Before Miller became advisor, it was led by longtime English teacher Suzanne Butler, who retired in 2012.

The Connecticut Press Club, which was founded in the 1970s, is a professional organization for people who work in the communication’s industry in the Nutmeg State. Each year the organization honors exemplary work in a variety of categories, including writing, graphic design, editing, broadcast journalism, and editorial writing.

Several other high school news publications and broadcasts from the state were honored, most of them from Fairfield County.

For a full list of the award winners from the Connecticut Press Club, please click here.