There are many points of pride in the Shawnee Mission School District (SMSD), with students, staff, and entire school communities earning recognition at the state, regional, and national level. Here is a look at honors earned in the Shawnee Mission School District over the past few months:
National SkillsUSA Champ Logan Sommerla, a recent Shawnee Mission West graduate and Signature Program student, won the National SkillsUSA championship in culinary arts. He is the district’s second overall winner at this national competition in the last four years. The SMSD has had a student finish in the top three the past seven years. Sommerla also received national recognition last year as a member of the district’s first-ever barbecue team that won the national high school barbecue championship. SkillsUSA is a workforce development organization for students which empowers them to become skilled professionals, career-ready leaders and responsible community members.
Kansas Teacher of the Year Honors Audrey Gilroy, art teacher at Westridge Middle School, has been named a Region 3 finalist for the KTOY program. As a finalist, she is now in the running for Kansas Teacher of the Year, to be announced in September.
Shawnee Mission is also proud to share that the Kansas State Department of Education recognized Julia Orth, a third grade teacher at Nieman Elementary, as the district’s elementary-level nominee.
NJROTC Success The Shawnee Mission North Navy Junior Officers Training Corps (NJROTC) team. They recently won the Area 15 Championship and qualified for Nationals for the 21st consecutive year.
This year’s victory is especially impressive because it was the team’s first year competing in Area 15, where they faced 18 highly competitive programs. Under new rules, only the top team advances to Nationals, and the SMSD cadets rose to the challenge. They earned first place in five events and unseated a program that had held the championship for the past ten years.
Kind Kid Roni Smith, a third grader at Nieman Elementary School, was recently recognized as 102.1 BOB FM’s Kind Kid of the Month. Roni was nominated after showing kindness to a classmate earlier this year.
Hall of Fame Teacher Shawnee Mission West journalism sponsor, Amy Morgan, is being inducted into the Kansas Scholastic Press Association (KSPA) Hall of Fame this year. This honor recognizes her outstanding service to journalism education, her achievements in student media, and her lasting impact on the field. She was surprised by KSPA leadership as she was wrapping up the 2026 Shawnee Mission West yearbook. It was a fitting moment for someone so dedicated to student journalism.
NASA Honors Signature Program Engineering students JR Phimmachanh, Owen Andrews, and Sang Son earned national recognition as NASA HUNCH finalists. Through their senior capstone, the team designed an Artemis Lunar Sample Container, tackling a real-world engineering challenge connected to space exploration.
They’ve been invited to present their work at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, where they’ll share their design with students from across the country and receive feedback from NASA engineers, astronauts, and industry professionals.
CTE Scholars Four Shawnee Mission students have been named 2026 Kansas Career and Technical Education Scholars by the Kansas State Department of Education (KSDE). This recognition honors excellence in technical skills, leadership, and community engagement.
Congratulations to William Mills from Shawnee Mission Northwest, Carson Hull from Shawnee Mission East, Charles Peterman from Shawnee Mission South, and Sang Son from Shawnee Mission Northwest.
Student Journalist of the Year Shawnee Mission Northwest senior Sofia Ball was named the Kansas High School Journalist of the Year by the Kansas Scholastic Press Association (KSPA). This honor, officially known as the Susan Massy Award, carries special meaning for the SMSD. It is named after retired Shawnee Mission Northwest journalism adviser Susan Massy, who was Sofia’s teacher when she was a freshman.
Sofia is the fifth Shawnee Mission Northwest student ever to receive this distinction and the first since 2004. Districtwide, Sofia becomes the 15th Shawnee Mission student to earn this recognition since 1996.
With this award, Sofia will represent Kansas at the national level as the state’s nominee for National High School Journalist of the Year.
Animation Awards In March, students earned top honors at the eMagine Media Festival, a regional competition in digital storytelling and animation.
First-place Pixel Awards went to Ava Winfield from Shawnee Mission East and Jax Szerwinski from Shawnee Mission Northwest. Additional top honors included a second-place finish for Silas McCune from Shawnee Mission North, as well as a second-place award for Animated Story. This award was earned by a collaborative team of Rosa Vieyra Hernandez, Alexa Reed, and Tyler Owens from Shawnee Mission South, Jax Szerwinski from Shawnee Mission Northwest, and McCune.
Nuestra Latina Awards Kim Urenda, a counselor at Shawnee Mission West High school, was named the 2026 STEM, Education, and Skilled Award recipient at the Nuestra Latina Awards presented by the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Kansas City. This honor recognizes Latina leaders whose work is uplifting, inspiring, and transforming their communities. She was recognized during the annual awards ceremony held on March 26.
All Star High Schools Shawnee Mission Northwest, Shawnee Mission South, and Shawnee Mission West have all been named 2026 All Star High Schools. This honor highlights schools that go above and beyond to support students with college and job applications, financial aid, and exploring all postsecondary pathways.
Civics Bee Several Shawnee Mission students participated in the National Civics Bee Regional Event, hosted by the Overland Park Chamber of Commerce.
Emeline Wilinski earned first place and Noah Phelps took second. Both students attend Indian Hills Middle school.
With their top finishes, Emeline and Noah advanced to the state competition.
Film Festival Honorees A team of three students in Shawnee Mission South High School’s radio and broadcasting program took third place in the Kansas 24-hour film festival. The rules of the festival required the students to write, film, edit and produce a three-minute film in just 24 hours based on only a prompt.
Shawnee Mission South Seniors Maia Chhatriwala, Elli Kirsch, and Alice Flanery all were recognized. This is the second year Shawnee Mission South has entered the competition and placed in the competition.
Spelling Bee Champ Jiya Bhavsar, seventh grader at Indian Hills Middle School, was declared co-champion at the Johnson County Spelling Bee. Bhavsar competed through 56 rounds of spelling and secured the title by correctly spelling the word ben trovato. Bhavsar advanced to the Sunflower State Spelling Bee.
Battle of the Brains Indian Woods Middle School was named a finalist in the Burns and McDonnell Battle of the Brains competition. They were in the running to win $50,000 for STEM initiatives and an opportunity to work with Burns and McDonnell on a new Science City exhibit.
Horizon Award Each year, the state of Kansas honors a select group of teachers for their outstanding work as first-year teachers. Jordan Dombrowski, language arts teacher at Shawnee Mission East was officially announced as a Horizons winner through a surprise call with the Commissioner of Education, Dr. Randy Watson. The 32 state honorees were honored at a Kansas Exemplary Educators Network conference in February.
Battle of the Books A team of students from Westridge Middle School are the reigning champions in the district middle school Battle of the Books. This is a district-wide competition where readers from all Shawnee Mission middle schools put their memory and comprehensive reading skills to the test by reading multiple books, selected by their school librarians. When the competition takes place, students answer trivia questions about those books. This Westridge Middle School team claimed the title for this school year – and the glittery bookend trophy – after a triple tiebreaker.
Changemaker Award The Latinx Education Collaborative selected Tatiana Breceño as a recipient of the 2025 Impacto Changemaker Awards. She is a math teacher at Shawnee Mission Northwest High School. This recognition honors an outstanding teacher whose excellence and care leaves a lasting mark on their students and community. The Collaborative shared that her work reflects the very best of their values: impact, authenticity, community, personal growth, and integrity.
Shawnee Mission School District is the third largest school district in Kansas. The district serves students in Pre-Kindergarten through 12th grade in 34 elementary schools, five middle schools, five high schools, and several educational centers. It has been consistently ranked among the finest school districts nationwide for its high student performance. The district’s objective is that each student will have a personalized learning plan that will prepare them for college and careers, with the interpersonal skills they need for life success. The district serves a diverse student population from 14 cities within northeast Johnson County, Kansas, which is 10 miles from downtown Kansas City, Missouri. For more information, visit www.smsd.org.
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