CONTACT:
Heather Porter, Programs Coordinator, 317-927-8000 ext. 204
Beth King, Communications Manager, 317-927-8000 ext. 211

INDIANAPOLIS -- The Society of Professional Journalists is pleased to announce the Region 11 Mark of Excellence Award winners for the 2007 calendar year. This year, collegiate journalists submitted more than 3,400 entries in 39 categories across SPJ’s 12 regions.

The honorees were awarded certificates on April 12 during the Spring Conference held at the University of Arizona in Tucson. First-place regional winners advance to the national round of judging, which is currently taking place. National winners will be announced in mid May.

For additional information on the Mark of Excellence Awards, please contact Heather Porter at 317-927-8000 ext. 204.

The Society of Professional Journalists works to improve and protect journalism. The organization is the nation’s most broad-based journalism organization, dedicated to encouraging the free practice of journalism and stimulating high standards of ethical behavior.

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.

2007 Region 11 Winners:

Breaking News Reporting
• First Place: Sonu Munshi, Arizona State University, “Sheriff opens K-9’s hot-car death”
• Second Place: Carolyn Carver, Arizona State University, “4 arrested in death of runaway”
• Third Place: Katrina Garcia, Fresno State University, “Student held in shooting death”

General News Reporting
• First Place: Ryan Kost, Arizona State University, “State tries to treat hospital violence”
• Second Place: Liz Weeker, Santa Clara University, “Cutting housing costs-for a price”
• Third Place: Anthony Presce & Julia Erlandson, University of California, Los Angeles, “A Closer Look: Admissions”

In-Depth Reporting
• First Place: Jeremy Herb, Santa Clara University, “Santa Clara’s Underground Coke Scene”
• Second Place: Robert Faturechi, University of California, Los Angeles, “Donations Influence Admissions”
• Third Place: Jonathan J. Cooper, Arizona State University, “Nursing Arrears”

Feature Writing
• First Place: Brent Ruffner, Arizona State University, “Straddling two worlds”
• Second Place: Richard Nieva, Santa Clara University, “Where’s the Hip-Hop?”
• Third Place: Eric Graf, Arizona State University, Classical piano sets home for Arizona school superintendent’s life, work”

Sports Writing
• First Place: Christopher Drexel, Arizona State University, “New Coach New Era”
• Second Place: Nina Conrad, University of Arizona, “No pain, no gain”
• Third Place: Kyle Odegard, Arizona State University, “Stuck in neutral”

Editorial Writing
• First Place: Connor Mendenhall, University of Arizona
• Second Place: The Santa Clara Editorial Board, Santa Clara University
• Third Place: Heather Mack & Ian Thomas, San Francisco State University

Editorial Cartooning
• First Place: David Stoll, Northern Arizona University, “Current Events Satire”
• Second Place: Katy Erker, Santa Clara University, “Allow Yourself to be Erked”
• Third Place: no award

General Column Writing
• First Place: Ray Ceo, Jr., Arizona State University
• Second Place: Katie Powers, Santa Clara University
• Third Place: Alex Lau, University of California, Berkeley

Sports Column Writing
• First Place: Michael Schwartz, University of Arizona
• Second Place: Lance Madden, University of Arizona
• Third Place: Steven Dunst, University of California, Los Angeles

Best All-Around Daily Student Newspaper (published at least 4 times per week)
• First Place: Staff, University of California, Los Angeles, “Daily Bruin”
• Second Place: Staff, University of Arizona, “Arizona Daily Wildcat”
• Third Place: no award

Best All-Around Non-Daily Student Newspaper (published less than 4 times per week)
• First Place: Staff, San Francisco State University, “Golden Gate [X]Press”
• Second Place: Staff, California State University, Chico, “The Orion”
• Third Place: no award

Magazine Non-Fiction Article
• First Place: Edwin Okong’o, University of California, Berkeley, “The Day I Became a Man”
• Second Place: James Kindle, Arizona State University, “The New Border Fencer?”
• Third Place: Meghann Farnsworth, University of California, Berkeley, “She Was My J-School”

Best Student Magazine
• First Place: Staff, University of California, Berkeley, “J-Spam Magazine”
• Second Place: Staff, Arizona State University, “State Press Magazine”
• Third Place: Staff, San Francisco State University, “[X]Press Magazine”

Breaking News Photography
• First Place: Juan Villa & Andrew Riggs, California State University, Fresno, “Students held in shooting death”
• Second Place: Sophie Asmar, Santa Clara University, “Shaken, not stirred: A 5.6 magnitude quake”
• Third Place: no award

General News Photography
• First Place: Deanna Dent, Arizona State University, “Autism on the rise”
• Second Place: Justin Maxon, San Francisco State University, “The price of democracy”
• Third Place: John Hernandez, San Francisco State University, “A different stand on Sept. 11”

Feature Photography
•First Place: Shane Bauer, University of California, Berkeley, “Scorched Earth: Rebellion and Refuge in Darfur”
• Second Place: Paul Quitoriano, San Francisco State University, “Feeling the Burn”
• Third Place: Stephen Lam, San Francisco State University, “Where’s the Game At?”

Photo Illustration
•First Place: Kenneth Robinson, Emily Jaffe, Yu Jiang Tham & Edward Truong, University of California, Los Angeles, “Dollar Tree”
• Second Place: Jake Lacey, University of Arizona, “Test Banks”
• Third Place: Ashley Ako, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, “Weekend to end all weekends”

Sports Photography
• First Place: Michael Chen, University of California, Los Angeles, “Photo of Jason Leopoldo”
• Second Place: Morgan Bellinger, Arizona State University, “Territorial Cup Victory”
• Third Place: Scott Fong, San Francisco State University, “Red Hot”

Radio News Reporting
• First Place: Thea Chroman, Mills College, “The Drop Out Dilemma: The Teachers Burn Out”
• Second Place: Sandya Dirks, Mills College, “The Drop Out Dilemma: The Students, Why Failing?”
• Third Place: Martha Castandea, Arizona State University, “Pit Bull Attack”

Radio Feature
• First Place: Carolyn Carver, Arizona State University, “Girl Scout Prison Program”
• Second Place: Carolyn Carver, Arizona State University, “Guatemalan Adoptions”
• Third Place: Dara DiGerolamo, California State University, Northridge, “Roller Derby”

Radio In-Depth Reporting
• First Place: Sandhya Dirks, Thea Chroman & Hallee Berg, Mills College, “The Drop Out Dilemma”
• Second Place: Kenya Young, California State University, Northridge, “Autism: A Three Park Series”
• Third Place: no award

Radio Sports Reporting
• First Place: David Lopez, California State University, Northridge, “El Camino Football Team”
• Second Place: George Panossian, California State University, Northridge, “UCLA/USC Basketball Preview”
• Third Place: no award

Radio Newscast
• First Place: KCSN-FM Staff, California State University, Northridge, “The Evening Update”
• Second Place: no award
• Third Place: no award

Television Breaking News Reporting
• First Place: Erika Taillole, Arizona State University, “Memorial Union Fire”
• Second Place: Peter Martinez, California State University, Fullerton, “Suicide at Cal State Fullerton”
• Third Place: Michelle Kyung Ashworth, Arizona State University, “Obama Live”

Television General News Reporting
• First Place: Elias Johnson, Arizona State University, “Bayou Rebirth”
• Second Place: Amanda Goodman, Arizona State University, “Tent City”
• Third Place: Michael Wolfe, University of Southern California, “May Day Immigration Rally”

Television Feature
• First Place: Anne McCloy, Arizona State University, “Shrimp Farm”
• Second Place: Hailey Frances, Arizona State University, “Tombstone Walk Down”
• Third Place: Jeff Skryzpek, Arizona State University, “Revival of Records”

Television In-Depth Reporting
• First Place: Cronkite NewsWatch, Arizona State University, “MU Fire Coverage”
• Second Place: Ashley McNamee, Arizona State University, “Polygamous Custody Battle”
• Third Place: Amanda Goodman, Arizona State University, “Busiest Border Crossing”

Television Sports Reporting
• First Place: Evan Doherty, Arizona State University, “Practice Squads”
• Second Place: Molly O’Brien, Arizona State University, “Rattlers Tryouts”
• Third Place: Natalie Varty, Arizona State University, “Hamilton High Football

Television News Photography
• First Place: Nikki Rowley, Arizona State University, “Phoenix Graffiti”
• Second Place: Eric Miller, Arizona State University, “Bayou Rebirth”
• Third Place: Eric Miller, Arizona State University, “Tent City”

Television Feature Photography
• First Place: Nikki Rowley, Arizona State University, “Revival of Records”
• Second Place: Anne McCloy, Arizona State University, “Shrimp Farm”
• Third Place: no award

Television Sports Photography
• First Place: Chelsea Sherier & Veronica Andrews, University of La Verne, “Vertical Minds”
• Second Place: Zachary Strier, Arizona State University, “Sundogs Hockey”
• Third Place: Nikki Rowley, Arizona State University, “Teen Racer”

Television Newscast
• First Place: Staff, Arizona State University, “Cronkite NewsWatch 2007”
• Second Place: Staff, University of Southern California, “Annenberg TV News”
• Third Place: Staff, Loyola Marymount University, “In the Know”

Online News Reporting
• First Place: MCO 598 Online Media, Arizona State University, “Parking: (Not) My Space”
• Second Place: Ruth Tennen, Stanford University, “A Tiny Piece of Genetic Material Makes a Big Splash in Cancer Research”
• Third Place: Jordan Jurkowitz & Katarina Kovacevic, Arizona State University, “The New (and improved) Glendale”

Online Feature Reporting
• First Place: Chris Sheppard, Arizona State University, “Baghdad or Bust”
• Second Place: JMC 425 Online Media, Arizona State University, “First Fridays”
• Third Place: Sonia Tydingco & Evan Mew, San Francisco State University, “WWII Vet Finds Harmony”

Online In-Depth Reporting
• First Place: JMC 494 Advanced Online Media, Arizona State University, “Galapagos”
• Second Place: Ruth Tennen, Stanford University, “Ask-A-Geneticist”
• Third Place: JMC 494 Advanced Online Media, Arizona State University, “The Business of Death”

Online Sports Reporting
• First Place: Ryan Kost & Deanna Dent, Arizona State University, “Anatomy of a Fighter”
• Second Place: Christopher Drexel, University of California, Berkeley, “New Coach, New Era”
• Third Place: Si Robins, Arizona State University, “Hoop Dreams”

Online Opinion & Commentary
• First Place: Cassandra Nicholson, Arizona State University, “Intellitainment”
• Second Place: Ryan Kost, Arizona State University, “Telling Stories: A Writer’s Blog”
• Third Place: Darin Trimillos, Arizona State University, “West Coast Bias”

Best Affiliated Web site
• First Place: Staff, San Francisco State University, “Golden Gate Xpress Online”
• Second Place: Staff, California State University, Fresno, “The Collegian Online”
• Third Place: Staff, Arizona State University, “Web Devil”

Best All-Around Independent Online Student Publication
• First Place: Staff, Arizona State University, “The Cronkite Zine: Spring & Fall 2007”
• Second Place: no award
• Third Place: no award

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