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Media students excel in region
April 13, 2007
The Society of Professional Journalists recognized a number of PLU media students and student-run media organizations with regional Mark of Excellence Awards in March.
This year’s awardees bested competitors from schools many times larger than PLU. PLU’s region, Region 10, includes student chapters for the University of Washington, Washington State University, University of Oregon and several smaller schools.
PLU students were recognized in a range of media, from broadcast reporting and photography to editorial and feature writing in print and online. While the number of award winners this year doesn’t constitute the most PLU winners in the university’s history, it does represent a wide range of media organizations on campus.
“The greatest show of our strength in the last few years is that all the media has been recognized and there’s been more distribution of the awards,” said Cliff Rowe, communication professor and past advisor of the student chapter. “It’s a very tough competition and gotten tougher because a lot of the smaller schools have emerged.”
Student Laura Zaichkin and KCNS News @ 9 placed first in their respective categories, which automatically qualifies them for the national competition, said Joanne Lisosky, communication professor and current faculty advisor to the student chapter. National judging is currently underway, and the winners will be announced in mid-May.
Zaichkin won the general column writing category for her column, “Not much with the Damseling,” which ran in The Mast, while the KCNS staff placed first in the television newscast category.
The staff of The Mast placed second in the best all-around non-daily student newspaper category, just behind North Idaho College. The weekly field is highly competitive because most university newspapers fall in that category, but The Mast consistently receives high marks as a whole, Rowe said.
Individual students who were recognized include The Mast editor-in-chief Breanne Coats, who placed second in editorial writing; Brett Patterson, whose photograph of Roberto the Magnificent from last summer’s fruit festivals placed second in feature photography; Jessica Luppino, who placed second in online news reporting with her story titled, “Take a tour of Tacoma’s newly renovated Stadium High School,” and placed third in online feature reporting with her story titled, “A look at Wi-Fi- hotspots in the South Sound”; and Ingrid Stegemoeller placed third in in-depth reporting with her story titled, “AIDS: the 25-year fight,” which appeared in The Olympian.
“It’s across the spectrum,” Lisosky said. “It’s really exciting … a program this small excelling at this level.”
The Mark of Excellence Award certificates were handed out March 24 at the region’s spring conference held at Gonzaga University in Spokane, which Lisosky, Coats, Stegemoeller and Zaichkin attended.
Lisosky attributed the success of the PLU student chapter to the core group of students involved. In the last five years, the chapter has been named the “outstanding chapter” of the region three times, an honor that recognizes journalism, community service and the programs and projects offered at the university.
“It’s a really cool club,” Lisosky said. “We do have an incredibly active chapter.”
The SPJ club is responsible for coordinating the annual School of Art and Communication Week, last week’s event that brought local and international communication and art professionals to campus for a week of workshops and presentations.
Additionally, the members regularly participate in regional seminars and attend networking events with area professionals. Lisosky said the student chapter has strong ties the region’s professional chapter, which makes it easy for her to find a professional to speak in a class.
“There are so many reason why this is an active chapter: students see the value, it’s inexpensive and you get bang for your buck,” Lisosky said.
PLU students were recognized in a range of media, from broadcast reporting and photography to editorial and feature writing in print and online. While the number of award winners this year doesn’t constitute the most PLU winners in the university’s history, it does represent a wide range of media organizations on campus.
“The greatest show of our strength in the last few years is that all the media has been recognized and there’s been more distribution of the awards,” said Cliff Rowe, communication professor and past advisor of the student chapter. “It’s a very tough competition and gotten tougher because a lot of the smaller schools have emerged.”
Student Laura Zaichkin and KCNS News @ 9 placed first in their respective categories, which automatically qualifies them for the national competition, said Joanne Lisosky, communication professor and current faculty advisor to the student chapter. National judging is currently underway, and the winners will be announced in mid-May.
Zaichkin won the general column writing category for her column, “Not much with the Damseling,” which ran in The Mast, while the KCNS staff placed first in the television newscast category.
The staff of The Mast placed second in the best all-around non-daily student newspaper category, just behind North Idaho College. The weekly field is highly competitive because most university newspapers fall in that category, but The Mast consistently receives high marks as a whole, Rowe said.
Individual students who were recognized include The Mast editor-in-chief Breanne Coats, who placed second in editorial writing; Brett Patterson, whose photograph of Roberto the Magnificent from last summer’s fruit festivals placed second in feature photography; Jessica Luppino, who placed second in online news reporting with her story titled, “Take a tour of Tacoma’s newly renovated Stadium High School,” and placed third in online feature reporting with her story titled, “A look at Wi-Fi- hotspots in the South Sound”; and Ingrid Stegemoeller placed third in in-depth reporting with her story titled, “AIDS: the 25-year fight,” which appeared in The Olympian.
“It’s across the spectrum,” Lisosky said. “It’s really exciting … a program this small excelling at this level.”
The Mark of Excellence Award certificates were handed out March 24 at the region’s spring conference held at Gonzaga University in Spokane, which Lisosky, Coats, Stegemoeller and Zaichkin attended.
Lisosky attributed the success of the PLU student chapter to the core group of students involved. In the last five years, the chapter has been named the “outstanding chapter” of the region three times, an honor that recognizes journalism, community service and the programs and projects offered at the university.
“It’s a really cool club,” Lisosky said. “We do have an incredibly active chapter.”
The SPJ club is responsible for coordinating the annual School of Art and Communication Week, last week’s event that brought local and international communication and art professionals to campus for a week of workshops and presentations.
Additionally, the members regularly participate in regional seminars and attend networking events with area professionals. Lisosky said the student chapter has strong ties the region’s professional chapter, which makes it easy for her to find a professional to speak in a class.
“There are so many reason why this is an active chapter: students see the value, it’s inexpensive and you get bang for your buck,” Lisosky said.