By Collegiate Staff
The Collegiate staff won 21 awards – including best News Website honors – from the Michigan Community College Press Association at the annual conference hosted by Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant on April 6.
Led by Collegiate Editor-in-Chief Blace Carpenter – who was selected as the Janet Nellis Mendler Student Journalist of the Year – The Collegiate staff dominated the field in First Amendment reporting, humor column writing, sports feature writing and editorial writing, in addition to winning three of the four illustration categories.
“The Collegiate’s website stood out among its peers,” wrote news website category judge Brianna Guidroz, Content Manager at WNEM TV 5 News. “The website is a nice layout, is visually pleasing and user-friendly and is updated more frequently than any other of the entries.”
Jennifer Dukarski, a lawyer and shareholder based in Butzel Long’s Ann Arbor firm, was this year’s keynote speaker. She addressed the legal and ethical issues of artificial intelligence and the damage AI can cause in the workforce and people’s daily lives. However, she ended the speech by explaining how it can be used as a tool and how it will likely be implemented into people’s occupations and everyday activities in the future.
“…Whether you’re in a newsroom, in a PR firm or advertising…you are gonna use AI,” Durkarskis
The job market for journalism is competitive as new organizations have downsized in recent years. The MCCPA event allows student journalists to meet with industry professionals and recognizes the work these students put in to cover their campus communities. Collegiate Adviser and Grand Rapids Community College Adjunct Journalism Professor Jennifer Ackerman-Haywood said she is proud of her students and their accomplishments..
“The MCCPA competition is a great opportunity for GRCC’s journalism students to see how their work stacks up against student journalists at peer schools and learn from industry professionals,” said Collegiate Adviser Jennifer Ackerman-Haywood. “Several of our current and former staffers won multiple individual awards, and it was inspiring to see The Collegiate staff take home a few awards for team reporting, too. The top news website award is shared by every student who contributed to our website during the contest period – so they all own a piece of that success.”
Below is the complete list of The Collegiate’s MCCPA awards.
In-Depth Enterprise Reporting, Second Place Place
Stories by Blace Carpenter with contributions from Noli Brown, Payton Calati, Alexa Cheaney, Naima Contreras, Antonio Ewing, Koy Flores, Abby Haywood, Lillian Hernandez, Olivia Parker, Mya Maloley, Abigail Ramirez, Lindsey Soet, Jack Walker, and Kaliyah Witherspoon.
In-Depth Enterprise Reporting, Honorable Mention
“Report: Sharp rise in GRCC students thinking of harming self, others while counseling center critically understaffed” by Abby Haywood
Feature Story, Second Place
“LGBTQ+ Perspectives on Mental Health” by Megan Matthews
First Amendment Reporting, First Place
“GRCC drops Title IX investigation against photography professor following his resignation, The Collegiate threatened with cease and desist letter” by Blace Carpenter
Column, Serious, Second Place
“My experience as a man in the middle of two races” by Koy Flores
Column Serious, Honorable Mention
“Why I Joined The Collegiate, and Why I Stayed” by Brandon Smith
Column, Humor, First Place
“I stole David Sedaris’s chair at his book signing” by Brandon Smith
Critical Review, Second Place
“Solidarity for the Weird: A Spoiler-Free Review of ‘Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Mutant Mayhem’” by Brandon Smith
Sports News Story, Second Place
“What exactly is a Raider?” by James Herold with contributions from Payton Calati, Lillian Hernandez, Abby Haywood, Abigail Ramirez, Antonio Ewing Jr, Kaliyah Witherspoon, Jack Walker, Naima Contreras, Alexa Cheaney and Noli Brown.
Sports Feature Story, First Place
“Mohamed Tamour is poised to lead GRCC’s first soccer squad to Regionals” by Pierson VanGorp
Sports Feature Story, Second Place
“Brett Miller sets high standards for the GRCC men’s soccer team with near-perfect save record” by Lindsey Soet
Sports Column, Honorable Mention
“Why Caitlin Clark is the best women’s athlete since Serena Williams” by Pierson VanGorp
Editorial, First Place
“GRCC needs to focus on mental health” editorial opinion of The Collegiate Staff written by Sophie Deiters
Editorial, Third Place
“GRCC administrators need to send safety videos directly to students” editorial opinion of The Collegiate Staff written by Blace Carpenter
Original Cartoon, Honorable Mention
“Not what I was made for” by Abby Haywood
Original Cartoon, Entertainment, First Place
“Things I overhead on campus” comic by Abby Haywood, voiceover by Jamie Miller
Photo Essay or Digital Slideshow, Third Place
“Detroit Lions fans go through a wave of emotion as they watch the NFC Championship in downtown Grand Rapids” by Blace Carpenter
Informational Graphic, First Place
“Summer Enrollment Wrap-up” by Abby Haywood
Illustration, First Place
“Connection Issue” Collegiate Magazine Issue Cover, by Abby Haywood
News Website, First Place, The Collegiate Staff
Janet Nellis Mendler Student Journalist of the Year, Blace Carpenter
