The Accolade

After 31 years in education, AVID and business teacher Lori Larsen retires to pursue dream of fixing up house in South Carolina

Lori Larsen is the only Sunny Hills teacher who will retire at the end of the 2019-2020 school year next week. Larsen was instrumental in setting up on campus the Advancement Via Individual Determination program, which started in 2006.

May 19, 2020

For 14 years, Lori Larsen has encouraged her students to pursue their dreams of getting admitted into a four-year college through the Advancement Via Individual Determination [AVID] program. And after the spring semester is over, Larsen has decided to follow her own dreams -- retiring as a teacher a...

Spread of COVID-19 in New York ends senior publications editors’ ‘dream’ trip to the Big Apple to accept newspaper, yearbook awards

A screenshot of the March 6 announcement from the Columbia Scholastic Press Association about its decision to cancel its national journalism convention and March 20 awards ceremony at Columbia University in New York. The Accolade and Helios student publications had been named Crown winners last October -- the only Orange County journalism programs to have earned such a distinction -- for work produced in the 2018-2019 school year.

Nevya Patel

May 5, 2020

Senior Michelle Buckley said it would have been “one of the best moments of my senior year.” Another senior, Kaylee Kim, called it a “reward for all of my passion and hard work for the last three years.” Buckley and Kim aren’t describing their prom or graduation or Grad Nite -- all tr...

Columbia Scholastic Press Association taps 2018-2019 Helios yearbook with top Gold Crown award; The Accolade newspaper wins Silver Crown

A screenshot of the online video awards presentation by the Columbia Scholastic Press Association recognizes the 2018-2019 Sunny Hills yearbook with its highest honor, a Gold Crown.

Lira Jeong

April 23, 2020

The Helios staff that produced the 2018-2019 yearbook has been awarded a Gold Crown — the highest honor — from the Columbia Scholastic Press Association, while the 2018-2019 Accolade received a Silver Crown. “We were all ecstatic about winning the Gold Crown because we put a lot into that book, and w...

April 14: COVID-19, I’m not going to let you ruin the rest of my senior year

Art by Accolade assistant graphics editor Karen Lee

Michelle Buckley

April 14, 2020

LIVING UNDER THE CORONAVIRUS CRISIS This is part of a series of columns from The Accolade staff about their various experiences during the school closure because of the coronavirus pandemic. If you would like to submit some of your experiences, please email us at [email protected] Dear COVID-...

Columbia Scholastic Press Association names Accolade, Helios Crown award finalists — only Orange County publications to receive such a national honor

The Columbia Scholastic Press Association recognized Helios's 2018-2019 yearbook Nov. 1, including this Sports section spread.
Image posted with permission from Helios

Hope Li and Krishna Thaker

November 15, 2019

The Accolade newspaper and Helios yearbook have been named a finalist for a national award sponsored by the Columbia Scholastic Press Association [CSPA]. Through a live Twitter feed video on Halloween, the CSPA posted a slide recognizing The Accolade for a Silver or Gold Crown award. By the time t...