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After 29 years of teaching and 25 years on the KSPA executive board, Mill Valley High School Kathy Habiger was named to the KSPA Hall of Fame at a school pep assembly Friday, April 11.

In 1995, KSPA became the first state organization to create a Scholastic Journalism Hall of Fame in order to honor its own excellent members. Today, 40 names have been added to the permanent Hall of Fame plaque that hangs in the KSPA office in KU’s William Allen White School of Journalism.

The KSPA Hall of Fame was begun as a way of honoring members and friends of high school journalism in Kansas who have contributed to the profession both at the state and national levels. The nominee will be judged on the following criteria: 1) Noteworthy service to KSPA and to the education of student journalists; 2) Outstanding personal achievement in student journalism; 3) Contribution to the field of student journalism. 

Habiger started the journalism program at Mill Valley when it opened in 2000. and her students have earned nearly every state and national award, including NSPA Pacemakers, KSPA All-Kansas awards, NSPA Hall of Fame honor and 13 KSPA state contest sweepstakes titles. Habiger is currently the KSPA board secretary and served as president from 2016-2018 and as a board member for 25 years. During 2024-2025 Habiger helped lead KSPA through a year without a permanent executive director, volunteering countless hours to keep the organization running smoothly. Habiger’s list of individual honors is impressive: JEA Medal of Merit, JEA Distinguished Yearbook Adviser, NSPA Pioneer Award, KSPA Jackie Engel Award and CSPA Distinguished Newspaper.

Words of nomination

Shawnee Mission West adviser Amy Morgan said:

I know Kathy is committed to teaching high school journalism, and her passion is apparent to everyone who knows her. She is energetic and enthusiastic, and her attitude is contagious. She sets high expectations for herself and her students, which is a key factor in the success of Mill Valley publications. She is a positive role model for students, colleagues and publications advisers. She teaches her students to be better people in addition to being good journalists. Her students learn about responsibility and accountability, about working together, and about doing things the right way.

Blue Valley Northwest adviser Jim McCrossen said:

I know Kathy has held just about every position on the KSPA board, and has worked tirelessly on behalf of KSPA through challenging times. She has worked through two different years with an interim director or no director, which has kept KSPA going to provide important services to students and advisers.

If I had to describe Kathy in one word, it would be cheerleader. She is a cheerleader for her students at Mill Valley High School. She leads her students in singing their school’s fight song before regional and state competitions–and her students have won state more years than not. She is a cheerleader for the work her students do, defending their rights to consistently publish journalistically-sound material that is also award winning. She is a cheerleader for Kansas City serving as a local co-chair for the NSPAJEA Kansas City convention years ago; and, she is a cheerleader for KSPA.

I have also had the pleasure of teaching at workshops both in Kansas and Indiana with Kathy. Whatever she teaches and wherever she teaches it, she does it with gusto. She is perpetual motion. She moves around the classroom getting students fired up to learn. Students love Kathy, and they love learning from her because it often doesn’t feel like learning–to them, it’s just having fun. 

Lawrence High School and KSPA president-elect Barb Tholen said:

I’ve always known Kathy as the high-spirited adviser whose students walked into KSPA events with the enthusiasm of the crowd at a Friday night football game. Her students win lots of awards — Pacemakers galore spread among the yearbook, newspaper and website. And Mill Valley has kicked our butts in the state contest more years than I’d like to admit.

But this year I’ve marveled at her. How do I describe her abilities? Or her work ethic? Or her drive? Or her ability to break down work into tasks? It’s almost superhuman.

She’s been our KSPA superhero this year — absent the cape — bounding between Mill Valley and KU weekly to work with the KSPA staff. During that time, she ensured the KSPA assistant knew what to do. She’s kept the KSPA website updated. She spotted issues that needed to be fixed and then fixed them. She helped hire a new student assistant for KSPA. She sat in on interviews for the new KSPA director (including my own).

And Kathy has kept her own student publications running. She doesn’t seem to miss a beat, although I know it’s been a strain. As far as superheroes go, she’s a bit like Clark Kent. She hasn’t sought praise for that work. If we’re finally able to pay her for any of her many hours of work on behalf of KSPA, it might have to involve shoving a wad of cash in her pocket.

She’s done all this work because of her deep love of KSPA. She knows how important KSPA has been and will continue to be for journalism advisers and students across Kansas. I’d love to see her name etched on the Hall of Fame plaque this year. For the record, it was Kathy who picked up the plaque from the engraver last year, but I think we could handle that for her this time around.

Varsity Yearbooks sale representative Barry MacCallum said:

What truly sets Kathy apart is her ability to inspire students to pursue journalism as a career. Many of her former students have gone on to work in professional media, a testament to the strong foundation they built under Kathy’s guidance. Her mentorship extends beyond the classroom, as she has provided invaluable support to new advisers entering the field, ensuring the continued success of journalism programs across the state.

Furthermore, Kathy has made significant contributions to the field through her authorship of articles in state and national publications, participation in national judging panels, and innovative approaches to journalism education. Her leadership in adviser programs and dedication to professional development have solidified her reputation as a leader in the field — and also as the person who always knows where the best post-conference happy hour is happening.

For these reasons and others, I wholeheartedly endorse Kathy for induction into the KSPA Hall of Fame. Her remarkable career, relentless passion and hilarious spirit make her a truly deserving candidate for this prestigious honor. Plus, let’s be honest — this honor deserves her just as much as she deserves it.

KSPA congratulates Kathy Habiger on her well-deserved induction into the KSPA Hall of Fame.