Each year, the Indiana High School Press Association holds a state convention for schools across Indiana. This event is hosted at Franklin College in Franklin, Ind. 

During the convention, a keynote speech is given followed by awards and various recognitions. 

This year’s convention welcomed Chicago Sports Radio host and former Chicago Tribune columnist David Haugh to give the annual keynote speech. Afterwards, both Hoosier Star awards and the IHSPA Adviser of the Year awards were announced. 

Executive director of the IHSPA Ryan Gunterman read letters of recommendation from colleagues of this year’s Indiana Adviser of the Year. Though the letters remained anonymous, they discussed how this adviser made significant progress for their program to allow students to use preferred names and pronouns in the yearbook’s index. 

From that mark, it became apparent to students at SHS that they knew who the 2023 IHSPA Adviser of the Year was: Anchor adviser Sam Hanley. 

“I’m honored and blessed,” Hanley said. “There are just a ton of deserving and qualified and frankly, advisers who are better than I am.”

Hanley’s recognition was nothing short of deserved, colleagues say. Co-Editors-in-Chief of the Anchor Olivia Graphman and Rin Diki, The Journal adviser Mike Klopfenstein and Principal Brian Knight sent in letters of recommendation to nominate him for this award. 

“The bottom line is he’s deserving,” Klopfenstein said. “He’s been a fantastic adviser for such a long time and … this is a guy who helps out kids not just out of school, but all over the state, hopefully all over the country.”