Academics

Students garner nine top finishes in regional journalism competition

Penn State faculty, staff and students attended the SPJ Region 1 Mark of Excellence Awards ceremony in Philadelphia. Credit: Penn State. Creative Commons

UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State students earned nine first-place finishes, including Best All-Round Television Newscast, in the 2017 Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ) Region 1 Mark of Excellence Awards competition.

The awards recognize the best work in college journalism in the region and include categories for newspapers, magazines, art/graphics, radio, television, online and videography. The winners advance for consideration in the national competition.

Winning entries:

  •  General News Reporting: “My prison is Panama” – Emily Kohlman
  •  Breaking News Photography: “Busted” – Alex Yuan
  •  General News Photography: “Taking a bite out of the competition” – Antonella Crescimbeni
  • Photo Illustration: “False eyelashes” – Kyle Naylor
  • Sports Photography: “Little League World Series champions” – Linsey Fagan
  • Television Sports Reporting: “Triple threat: Meet Charlee Harris” – Erin Kate Dolan
  • Best All-Around Television Newscast: “Centre County Report: Nov. 17, 2017” – Staff of “Centre County Report”
  • Online Sports Reporting: “Boys of summer” – Jack Dougherty
  • Online/Digital Feature Videography: “Salvaged wood reborn” – Shuyao Chen

School divisions for the competition were based on enrollment, which includes both graduate and undergraduate students. Penn State competed in the large school division against other programs with at least 10,000 students. Region 1 includes Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Central and Eastern Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont.

National winners will be notified in the late spring and will be recognized during the Excellence in Journalism conference Sept. 27-29 in Baltimore.

Last Updated June 2, 2021