FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contacts:
Lauren Rochester, SPJ Director of Awards, 317.927.8000 ext. 210, awards@spj.org
Christine DiGangi, SPJ Communications Coordinator, 317.927.8000 ext. 205, cdigangi@spj.org

INDIANAPOLIS — The Society of Professional Journalists gladly recognizes the 2012 Mark of Excellence Awards winners from Region 7. The MOE Awards honor the best of collegiate journalism from a calendar year.

SPJ’s Region 7 comprises Iowa, Kansas, Missouri and Nebraska. Honorees received award certificates the weekend of April 26 at the Regions 5 & 7 Spring Conference in St. Louis. First-place winners will move on to the national MOE competition among category winners from the 12 SPJ regions.

National winners will be notified in the late spring and will be recognized at Excellence in Journalism 2013 (EIJ13) in Southern California, Aug. 24 to 26. The awards are judged by professionals with at least three years of journalism experience.

The awards honor the best in student journalism. As such, judges were directed to choose only those entries which they felt were outstanding work worthy of such an honor. If the judges determined that none of the entries rose to the level of excellence, no award was given. Any category not listed has no winner.

School divisions are based on student enrollment, which includes both graduate and undergraduate enrollment: Large schools have more than 10,000 students, medium have 9,999 to 5,001 students, and small have fewer than 5,000 students.

See the list below for details on the Region 7 winners, and direct any MOE Awards questions to Director of Awards Lauren Rochester: awards@spj.org and 317.927.8000 ext. 210. Note: The list reflects the spelling and titles submitted in the award-entry process.

NEWSPAPER
Breaking News Reporting (Large)
First Place: “Oxygen tanks explode, two students lose home” by Staff, The Muleskinner, University of Central Missouri
Second Place: “Faculty-Chancellor Dispute” by Kavahn Mansouri, The Montage, St. Louis Community College - Meramec

General News Reporting (Large)
First Place: “Bob Filner Misses the Boat on the Port” by Brad Racino, inewsource, University of Missouri
Second Place: “Meramec Fight under National Spotlight” by Kavahn Mansouri & Kurt Oberreither, The Montage, St. Louis Community College - Meramec
Third Place: “Burglaries on the rise in Lawrence” by Rachel Salyer, University Daily Kansan, University of Kansas

General News Reporting (Medium)
First Place: “Medical accreditation programs plan to merge” by Ashley Jost, Truman State Index, Truman State University
Second Place: “Fraternity Temporarily Erased from Campus” by Matt Entringer, Creightonian, Creighton University

General News Reporting (Small)
First Place: “Saggin': Freedom of Expression or Indecent Exposure?” by Marcus McDaniel, The Florissant Valley Forum, St. Louis Community College- Florissant Valley

In-Depth Reporting (Large)
First Place: “Columbia's blight debate” by Hannah Cushman & Madeline O'Leary, Columbia Missourian, University of Missouri
Second Place: “Question of health care reform enters Supreme Court” by Katelynn McCollough, Iowa State Daily, Iowa State University
Third Place: “389 Webster students default on loans since 2008” by Daniel Bauman, The Journal, Webster University

In-Depth Reporting (Small)
First Place: “Student Debt” by Sara Bell, Shawn Deegan, Jordan Dolbin & Jenna Stanbrough, The Baker Orange, Baker University
Second Place: “MCC logo changed due to copyright” by Kimberly Sloan, Muscatine Community College Calumet, Muscatine Community College

Feature Writing (Large)
First Place: “Money, murder and prison: The rise and fall of a drug boss” by Christopher Hong & Ian Cummings, The Kansas City Star's 913 edition, University of Kansas
Second Place: “Finding their Breath” by Faiz Siddiqui, Lincoln Journal Star, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Third Place: “Different, but really the same” by Hannah Wise, Kansas City Star 913, University of Kansas

Feature Writing (Medium)
First Place: “Hope in the face of death” by Ashley Jost, Truman State Index, Truman State University

Feature Writing (Small)
First Place: “Crew's Biggest Supporter, 101-year-old” byMeagan Flynn, The Times-Delphic, Drake University

Sports Writing (Large)
First Place: “Renowned Olympic historian John Lucas can no longer recall his life's mission” by Sarah Bricker, The Columbia Missourian, University of Missouri
Second Place: “Tim Miles balances tenderness, toughness, goofiness as Husker coach” by Andrew Ward, Daily Nebraskan, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Third Place: “KU's Dixon ready for Olympic debut: Jayhawk competes Friday on US women's 4x400 relay” by Mike Vernon, The Topeka Capital-Journal, University of Kansas

Sports Writing (Medium)
First Place: “Building a Dynasty: An interview with Creighton's architect" by Jacob Padilla, Creightonian, Creighton University

Sports Writing (Small)
First Place: “Houser reflects on career with Baker soccer” by Shawn Deegan, The Baker Orange, Baker University

Editorial Writing (Medium)
First Place: Editorial Board, The Campus Ledger, Johnson County Community College
Second Place: Evan Holland, Creightonian, Creighton University

Editorial Writing (Small)
First Place: Editorials by Staff, The Baker Orange, Baker University

General Column Writing (Large)
First Place: Darrington Clark, The Collegian, Kansas State University
Second Place: Jakki Thompson, The Collegian, Kansas State University

General Column Writing (Medium)
First Place: Mackenzie Clark, The Campus Ledger, Johnson County Community College
Second Place: Ashley Jost, Truman State Index, Truman State University
Third Place: Jon Parton, The Campus Ledger, Johnson County Community College

General Column Writing (Small)
First Place: Holly Shanks, The Florissant Valley Forum, St. Louis Community College- Florissant Valley

Sports Column Writing (Large)
First Place: Mike Vernon, University Daily Kansan, University of Kansas
Second Place: Josh Sellmeyer, The Journal/websterjournal.com, Webster University

Best All-Around Daily Student Newspaper
First Place: Iowa State Daily, Iowa State University
Second Place: The Collegian, Kansas State University

Best All-Around Non Daily Student Newspaper (Large)
First Place: The Standard, Missouri State University

Best All-Around Non Daily Student Newspaper (Medium)
First Place: The Campus Ledger, Johnson County Community College
Second Place: Creightonian, Creighton University

Best All-Around Non Daily Student Newspaper (Small)
First Place: The Baker Orange, Baker University

MAGAZINE
Non-Fiction Magazine Article
First Place: “Not for Sale” by Caitlin Carter, Amanda Dahling, Matt Veto & Darren Orf, Vox Magazine, University of Missouri
Second Place: “Uncovering Sikhism” by Olivia Young, Drake Magazine, Drake University
Third Place: “Remembering the Sharp End” by Kaitlin Steinber, Abigail Geiger, Amanda Dahling & Matt Veto, Vox Magazine, University of Missouri

Best Student Magazine
First Place: Drake Magazine, Drake University
Second Place: Ethos, Iowa State University
Third Place: OneWorld Magazine, Saint Louis University

ART/GRAPHICS
Breaking News Photography (Large)
First Place: “Warrior Dash” by Anna Reed, Omaha World-Herald, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Second Place: “Oxygen tanks explode, two students lose home” by Andrew Mather, The Muleskinner, University of Central Missouri

General News Photography (Large)
First Place: “Battle of the bartenders” by Steph Anderson, The Standard, Missouri State University
Second Place: “Grieving” by Andrew Dickinson, Omaha World-Herald, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

General News Photography (Small)
First Place: “Homecoming royalty” by Tera Lyons, The Baker Orange, Baker University
Second Place: “Uncovering Sikhism Photo” by Carter Osgood, Drake Magazine, Drake University
Third Place: “The "Hart" of Think Like a Man Promotes Movie in St. Louis” by Bradley J. Rayford, The Florissant Valley Forum, St. Louis Community College- Florissant Valley

Feature Photography (Large)
First Place: “The Mandate” by Brittany Ruess, The Journal, Webster University
Second Place: “Color Me Rad” by Anna Reed, Omaha World-Herald, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Third Place: “431” by Brittany Ruess, The Journal, Webster University

Feature Photography (Medium)
First Place: “Playing with fire” by Hannah Hunsinger, The Campus Ledger, Johnson County Community College
Second Place: “A view into Campus Kickoff” by Kelly Daniels, The Campus Ledger, Johnson County Community College

Feature Photography (Small)
First Place: “On The Dark Side” by Ben Curtis, Drake Magazine, Drake University

Photo Illustration (Large)
First Place: “Swimmer heads to Olympic Trials” by Steph Anderson, The Standard, Missouri State University
Second Place: “Love in the Stacks” by Kait McKinney, Ethos, Iowa State University

Photo Illustration (Medium)
First Place: “Gay marriage” by Hannah Hunsinger, The Campus Ledger, Johnson County Community College
Second Place: “The many faces of Creighton” by Matt Entringer, Creightonian, Creighton University

Photo Illustration (Small)
First Place: “Overcoming Obstacles” by Tera Lyons, The Baker Orange, Baker University
Second Place: “BTID” by Tera Lyons, The Baker Orange, Baker University

Sports Photography (Large)
First Place: “This is supposed to be an exhibition!” by Steph Anderson, The Standard, Missouri State University
Second Place: “Husker baseball loses final game in series” by Anna Reed, Omaha World-Herald, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Third Place: “The Gorloks' Golden Goal” by Josh Sellmeyer, The Journal/websterjournal.com, Webster University

Sports Photography (Small)
First Place: “Football vs. Graceland” by Tera Lyons, The Baker Orange, Baker University
Second Place: “Men's Soccer vs. Texas-Brownsville” by Tera Lyons, The Baker Orange, Baker University

RADIO
Radio News Reporting
First Place: “Literacy Center tackles illiteracy in Omaha with spelling bee” by Lindsey Peterson, KVNO News, University of Nebraska-Omaha
Second Place: “Missouri lawmakers respond to Obama's health care mandate” by Paige Hornor, Missouri Digital News, University of Missouri
Third Place: “Elections on the Syllabus” by Mollie Pointer, KJHK 90.7 FM, University of Kansas

Radio Sports Reporting
First Place: “Second chance, first opportunity through basketball” by Matt Veto, KBIA Radio 91.3 FM, University of Missouri
Second Place: “Chiefs and Royals (Kansas City)” by Mark Allen, ECAVRadio.com, Johnson County Community College

Radio Feature
First Place: “The PBR book club” by Claire McInerny, KJHK 90.7, University of Kansas
Second Place: “Voting without knowing” by Lindsey Berning, KRNU FM, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Third Place: “Riding With the Bike Brigade” by Lee Jian Chung & Scarlett Robertson & Harum Helmy, KBIA Radio 91.3 FM, University of Missouri

Radio In-Depth Reporting
First Place: “Numerous health problems disproportionately impact LGBT Missourians” by Lukas Udstuen & Rehman Tungekar, KBIA Radio 91.3 FM, University of Missouri
Second Place: “Do political debates matter?” by Lanny Holstein, KRNU FM, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Third Place: “Election preview series” by Lanny Holstein, KRNU FM, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Best All-Around Radio Newscast
First Place: “2012 KRNU Election Night Coverage” by Staff, 90.3 KRNU (Campus radio station), University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Second Place: “KBIA Radio Newscast” by Staff, KBIA Radio 91.3 FM, University of Missouri

TELEVISION
Television Breaking News Reporting
First Place: “Stranded Workers Head Home” by Joe Chiodo, KOMU-TV 8, University of Missouri
Second Place: “Policy Changes for Brown and Gold Club” by Koki Sabates & Elizabeth Seidel, JCAV-TV Student Video, Johnson County Community College

Television General News Reporting
First Place: “Fight Over Land at the Lake” by Jennifer Long, KOMU-TV, University of Missouri
Second Place: “Marilyn Coffey's "Marcella"” by Lindsey Peterson, NET 2 / The Omaha News, University of Nebraska-Omaha
Third Place: “Young Centralia Brothers Grow Egg Business With Their Own Hands” by Mengti Xu. KOMU 8 News, University of Missouri

Television Feature Reporting
First Place: “The Man Who They Say Caused The Flood” by Jennifer Long, KOMU-TV, University of Missouri
Second Place: “The 12th Man” by Jake Schlegel, KOMU-TV, University of Missouri

Television In-Depth Reporting
First Place: “Urban Farming: Farm to Table” by Amy Follmer, Jordan Renzelman, Matt Lepley & Elizabeth Seidel, KCPT Public TV, Johnson County Community College
Second Place: “Target 8 Investigation: Mo. Humane Society Director Salary Raises Questions” by Meghann E. Mollerus, KOMU 8 News, University of Missouri
Third Place: “A Bridge Divided: Columbia and Boone County to Fix Old Bridge” by Jennifer Long, KOMU-TV, University of Missouri

Television Sports Reporting
First Place: “Centralia's Friday Night Lights Culture” by Ari Alexander, KOMU-TV 8, University of Missouri

Television News Photography
First Place: “Young Centralia Brothers Grow Egg Business With Their Own Hands” by Mengti Xu, KOMU 8 News, University of Missouri

Television Feature Photography
First Place: “Kansas City Renaissance Festival” by Zoe Allen & Paula Smith, JCAV-TV Student Video, Johnson County Community College
Second Place: “Kansas City Zoo Expansion” by Zoe Allen, JCAV-TV Student Video, Johnson County Community College

ONLINE
Online News Reporting (Large)
First Place: “VoxMagazine.com: Against the Odds” by Charles Minshew, Anne Allen, Liz Pierson & Sini Stephen, VoxMagazine.com, University of Missouri

Online News Reporting (Small)
First Place: “Election 2012” by Staff, The Baker Orange, Baker University

Online Feature Reporting (Large)
First Place: “The Morning After” by Elizabeth Zabel, Urbino Project 2012, Iowa State University
Second Place: “Ames Crossing Guards” by Zhenru Zhang, Ethos, Iowa State University
Third Place: “The Gamer” by Yue Wu, Ethos, Iowa State University

Online Feature Reporting (Small)
First Place: “Culture Shock” by Staff, The Baker Orange, Baker University

Online In-Depth Reporting (Large)
First Place: “UNL's Innovation Campus celebrates initial construction phase” by Emily Younger, NewsNetNebraska, University of Nebraska-Lincoln
Second Place: “Almost American: A Young Immigrant’s Struggle to Succeed” by Isaac Gwin, Policalfiber.com, University of Kansas

Online In-Depth Reporting (Medium)
First Place: “Samuel's Story” by Sara Gentzler, Creightonian, Creighton University

Online Sports Reporting (Large)
First Place: “The Rules of the Game: Bill Self, Kansas, and basketball history” by Jayson Jenks, grantland.com, University of Kansas
Second Place: “Where are they Now: Matt and Yvette Pearce” by Danny Spewak, PowerMizzou.com/Rivals.com, University of Missouri

Online Sports Reporting (Small)
First Place: “She's the 'Enigma' of Roller Derby” by Tera Lyons & Xiomara Nunez, The Baker Orange, Baker University
Second Place: “BU men's basketball makes postseason run” by Staff, The Baker Orange, Baker University

Best Independent Online Student Publication (Large)
First Place: NewsNetNebraska, University of Nebraska-Lincoln

Founded in 1909 as Sigma Delta Chi, SPJ promotes the free flow of information vital to a well-informed citizenry; works to inspire and educate the next generation of journalists; and protects First Amendment guarantees of freedom of speech and press. For more information about SPJ, please visit www.spj.org.

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