For immediate release

Contacts:
Lauren Rochester, SPJ Awards Coordinator, 317-927-8000 ext. 210, lrochester@spj.org
Abby Henkel, SPJ Communications Manager, 317-927-8000 ext. 215, ahenkel@spj.org

INDIANAPOLIS – The Society of Professional Journalists is pleased to announce the Region 12 Mark of Excellence Award winners for the 2011 calendar year. The Mark of Excellence Awards honor the best collegiate journalism in the U.S.

SPJ Region 12 includes Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Tennessee. This year, the contest received more than 4,000 entries across SPJ’s 12 regions.

The honorees were awarded certificates on date during the Region 12 SPJ Spring Conference held at the Crowne Plaza in Lafayette, La. First-place regional winners will advance to the national round of judging. National winners will be announced in late April.

The winners are listed below. For additional information on the Mark of Excellence awards, please contact Awards Coordinator Lauren Rochester at lrochester@spj.org.

REGION 12 WINNERS

Four-year colleges

Feature Photography
• First Place: Back to school – by Gareth Patterson, University of Arkansas
• Second Place: Amy Grant – by Whitney Jarreld, Lipscomb University
• Third Place: Round and round they go – by Chaney Mitchell, Harding University

General News Photography
• First Place: Jazz Festival weekend – by Chris Leh, Louisiana State University
• Second Place: Warped Tour – by Allyce Andrew, University of Louisiana at Lafayette
• Third Place: High fashion – by Emily Slack, Louisiana State University

Photo Illustration
• First Place: Knile Davis: Strength to carry on – by Gareth Patterson and Erik Northfell, University of Arkansas
• Second Place: The man behind the name, the year that everything changed – by Gareth Patterson and Erik Northfell, University of Arkansas
• Third Place: No award*

Sports Photography
• First Place: Winning smiles – by Brianna Paciorka, Louisiana State University
• Second Place: Swamp Bowl IV gets down and dirty – by Rande Robinson, Southeastern Louisiana University
• Third Place: Lions soundly defeat Savannah State in first home game, 63-6 – by Tony Romian, Southeastern Louisiana University

Editorial Cartooning
• First Place: Landis Anderson, Grambling State University
• Second Place: No award*
• Third Place: No award*

Non-Fiction Magazine Article
• First Place: Sherri's world – by Jason Torrente, University of Arkansas
• Second Place: Raw talent – by Brianna Piche, Louisiana State University
• Third Place: No award*

Best All-Around Daily Student Newspaper
• First Place: The Daily Reveille, Louisiana State University
• Second Place: The Daily Helmsman, University of Memphis
• Third Place: The Arkansas Traveler, University of Arkansas

Best All-Around Non-Daily Student Newspaper
• First Place: The Tech Talk, Louisiana Tech University
• Second Place: The Gramblinite, Grambling State University
• Third Place: The Loyola Maroon, Loyola University New Orleans

Breaking News Reporting
• First Place: Razorback football player dies – by Jimmy Carter, University of Arkansas
• Second Place: Friends of Paul Warren reflect on life, legacy – by Hunter Patterson and Emily Snell, Lipscomb University
• Third Place: Grad student alleges sexual abuse by Vet School staff member – by Brian Sebille, Louisiana State University

Editorial Writing
• First Place: Daily Reveille Editorial Staff, Louisiana State University
• Second Place: Jordain Carney, Saba Naseem and Mattie Quinn, University of Arkansas
• Third Place: No award*

Feature Writing
• First Place: Students frighten patrons at 13th Gate Haunted House – by Joey Groner, Louisiana State University
• Second Place: Baking power – by Elizabeth Rose, University of Louisiana at Lafayette
• Third Place: New Park Lane boutique to open near River Ranch – by Tiffany Segura, University of Louisiana at Lafayette

General Column Writing
• First Place: Imani Jackson, Grambling State University
• Second Place: Parker Cramer, Louisiana State University
• Third Place: Saba Naseem, University of Arkansas

General News Reporting
• First Place: Making sense of program cuts – by Patrick Boyd, Louisiana Tech University
• Second Place: Loyola tenured faculty stabilize at 75 percent – by Masako Hirsch, Loyola University New Orleans
• Third Place: Missing $85,000; Investigation probes UL parking staffer – by Elizabeth Rose, University of Louisiana at Lafayette

In-Depth Reporting
• First Place: Series on sexuality – by Precious Esie, Carl Harrison, Leslie Gamboni and Jamie Futral, Loyola University New Orleans
• Second Place: Breast Cancer 101 – by Kristen Fox, University of Louisiana at Lafayette
• Third Place: Students, professors reflect on first-hand experiences of terrorist attack – by Clayton Crockett, Louisiana State University

Sports Column Writing
• First Place: Anna Claire Thomas, Louisiana Tech University
• Second Place: Marshall Hughes, Harding University
• Third Place: No award*

Sports Writing
• First Place: Knile Davis: Strength to carry on – by Jimmy Carter, University of Arkansas
• Second Place: Defensive end Sam Montgomery holds on to his brother's memory – by Mark Clement, Louisiana State University
• Third Place: Lifelong fighter finds success in kickboxing – by Camara Thomas, Loyola University New Orleans

Best Independent Online Student Publication
• First Place: The Fountain (www.myfountainonline.com), University of Central Arkansas
• Second Place: No award*
• Third Place: No award*

Online Feature Reporting
• First Place: Lessons from the land: An organic farm teaches by example – by Sarah Cumming, Sewanee
• Second Place: Grief centers help children cope with loss – by Emily Snell, Lipscomb University
• Third Place: Packed pound: overcrowded Fayetteville Animal Shelter anticipates new policy – by Brady Tackett, University of Arkansas

Online Sports Reporting
• First Place: Staal becomes model after hanging up jersey – by Ashlan Williams, Lipscomb University
• Second Place: No award*
• Third Place: No award*

Best All-Around Radio Newscast
• First Place: Louisiana Focus, University of Louisiana at Lafayette
• Second Place: No award*
• Third Place: No award*

Radio Feature Reporting
• First Place: A rural road to recovery – by Michelle N. La Vone, University of Tennessee
• Second Place: The negative effects of texting – by Kelli Volk, Tennessee State University
• Third Place: Roemer obstacles – by Nicholas Monteleone, University of Louisiana at Lafayette

Radio In-depth Reporting
• First Place: Game over: Sports injuries & the college athlete – by Khadijah Williams, Tennessee State University
• Second Place: Anti-Cash Bill – by Nicholas Monteleone, University of Louisiana at Lafayette
• Third Place: Master plan – by Zane Hill, University of Louisiana at Lafayette

Radio Sports Reporting
• First Place: WTST sports report – by Khadijah Williams, Tennessee State University
• Second Place: Radio sportscast – by Brian Sahlin, Tennessee State University
• Third Place: No award*

Best All-Around Television Newscast
• First Place: Tiger Television – by Louisiana State University
• Second Place: Northshore News – by Southeastern Louisiana University
• Third Place: No award*

Television Feature Reporting
• First Place: Twitter’s birthday – by Scott Cardinale, Southeastern Louisiana University
• Second Place: UATV looking back – by Judy Luna and Tony Cosgrove, University of Arkansas
• Third Place: Arkansas Canoe Club president Tom Burroughs – by Tony Cosgrove, University of Arkansas

Television General News Reporting
• First Place: Oil spill – by Gabe Giffen, Louisiana State University
• Second Place: Joplin tornado – by Dylan Roberts, University of Arkansas
• Third Place: Faces Lab – by Troy Gaulden, Louisiana State University

Television Breaking News Reporting
• First Place: Occupy Little Rock – by Raven Ambers, University of Central Arkansas
• Second Place: Jordan Jefferson – by Matt McCain, Ryan Brumley and Sarah Plumb, Louisiana State University
• Third Place: No award*

Television Feature Photography
• First Place: Arkansas Canoe Club president Tom Burroughs – by Tony Cosgrove, University of Arkansas
• Second Place: BBQ Competition: UATV follows Team Panhead – by Tony Cosgrove, University of Arkansas
• Third Place: No award*

Television News Photography
• First Place: Church expansion troubles – by Nick Elliott and Rachel Eastridge, Southeastern Louisiana University
• Second Place: No award*
• Third Place: No award*

Television Sports Reporting
• First Place: Iconic fans – by Mo Isom, Louisiana State University
• Second Place: Jonathan Pace – by Trey Mongrue, Southeastern Louisiana University
• Third Place: Obstacles unherd: Caleb Inman – by Marshall Hughes and Amy Mare, Harding University

Television Sports Photography
• First Place: SEC championship game – by Troy Gaulden, Louisiana State University
• Second Place: Adonson Shallow – by Hunter Robinson, Southeastern Louisiana University
• Third Place: No award*


* Mark of Excellence Awards honor the best in student journalism. Judges are not required to select first, second or third place winners.

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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