Sarah Kirksey is in her 12th year of advising scholastic journalism and her 10th year at Ladue Horton Watkins High School in St. Louis, Missouri. Kirksey advises the Panorama Newsmagazine, Rambler Yearbook, Melodrama Literary Magazine, ID Feature Magazine, LadueToday.com and teaches intro to journalistic writing, design and media courses. Kirksey graduated from Kent State University with a masters in Journalism Education and is a certified Master Journalism Educator through JEA. Kirksey has been named a Distinguished Adviser by the Columbia Scholastic Press Association, a Rising Star and a Special Recognition Adviser by the Journalism Education Association, and in 2025 she was named the Missouri Journalism Teacher of the Year, the Ladue School District Teacher of the Year, and a Semi-Finalist for the Missouri Teacher of the Year. In her free time, Kirksey enjoys hanging out with her husband, Marc, chasing her two children, Jack and Lyla, and playing with her German Shorthair Pointers, Kaia and Noli. She is also an avid Survivor fan and amateur runner and baker.