Best House Ad

B

First Place

Kacie Goode, Lindsey Wilson College

What a clever idea! I really like the word find idea!

Second Place

Emily Lindeau, Northern Kentucky University

Very easy to read. Nice layout.

 

Design

Judged by Jeff Breaux, Vanderbilt Student Communications

Feature Page Layout

A

First Place

Spring 2011 Staff, Western Kentucky University

Great, clean design with very mature use of white space. Very polished layout. Great job not trying to do too much with all of the elements on the page. Great photos and good font choice.

Second Place

Andy Burress, University of Kentucky

Very nice illustration and placement on page. Nice, simple text treatment. Could possibly place text into two columns to make a little easier to read since the column is running almost 3/4 of the page. Nice use of colors.

Third Place

Andy Burress, University of Kentucky

Nice job carrying off the campaign-style art! Good use of color. Not too sure about the eyes in the illustration. Nice work making sure the other items on the page don’t compete with the main art or headline.

 

Honorable Mention

Baylee Pulliam, University of Louisville

Nice job organizing a lot of elements into a very clean and fun page. Good, subtle use of spot color.

Feature Page Layout

B

First Place

Riah Lawry, Asbury College

Very nice layout. Very organized and fun.

Second Place

Jane Brannen, Asbury College

Very clean layout and nice organization. Good use of fonts and art.

Third Place

Anna Leon, Asbury College

Good, clean layout. Nice use of fonts and art. Try the menu with a light gray background to give the page a little more variety.

Honorable Mention

Erika Graham, Asbury College

Nice photo treatment and clean layout. Not sure if the cutout photo credit works.

Front Page Layout

A

First Place

Becca Clemons, University of Kentucky

Very nice front page! Great photo and nice text treatment. Very nice spacing and use of white space. This page has very nice breathing room. Good job!

Second Place

Spring 2011 Herald Staff, Western Kentucky University

Very well put together front page. Nice spacing and use of white space.

 

Third Place

Alex Lovan, University of Kentucky

Good clean design and nice spacing. “Sister act” headline could stand out a little more. Possibly a heavier version of this font or a slightly larger size. Possibly even in color or a light shade of gray.

Honorable Mention

Whitney Leggett, Eastern Kentucky University

Nice front pages. Good, clean design. Be careful with spacing. A few elements do not line up and do not stay within their columns.

Fall 2011 Herald Staff, Western Kentucky University

Nice page. Try to do a little more with your headline treatment on the “International Tuition” story. Plenty of space but a pretty basic treatment.

Front Page Layout

B

First Place

Jane Brannen, Asbury College

Very Nice! Great color choice and use of art. Very fun!

Second Place

FrontpagelayoutBAU01-not on entry, Asbury College

Very pretty cover. Great choice of art and colors!

Third Place

Tyler Hoff, Asbury College

Nice design. Good photo and text treatment.

Honorable Mention

Sally Jagielski, Transylvania University

Nice page. Be careful with the use of too many fonts.

 

 

 

Informational Graphic

A

First Place

Spring 2011 Herald Staff, Western Kentucky University

Nice, fun layout with a good mix of elements to make the graphic very informative. Good job on the cutout and nice work on the headline and fonts used in the graphic.

Second Place

Emily Lindeau, Northern Kentucky University

Very nice layout and use of color. The graphic is very informative without going overboard. Could use a little more dominate headline font to make really pop.

Third Place

Alex Lovan, University of Kentucky

Nice, clean layout and great use of fonts to illustrate point and info. Try a little different approach to the colors used to make the graphic more interesting. Be careful on the rule lines around your boxes in the bar graph. This area could be a little more cleaned up.

Honorable Mention

Chris Phillips, Murray State University

Nice, clean work. Fun graphic. Could use a little more variations of grey to distinguish between the different days on the route.

Informational Graphic

B

First Place

Katelynn Ralston, Victoria Sullivan, Transylvania University

Nice graphic with helpful info. Fun treatment of fonts and graphics.

Second Place

Jane Brannen, Asbury College

Nice use of art and text treatments.

Third Place

Kacie Goode, Lindsey Wilson College

Nice, clean layout. Good use of color and organization of elements.

Overall Layout

A

First Place

Fall 2011 Herald Staff, Western Kentucky University

Very nice issue! Great photos, fonts and use of color and white space throughout issue. Strong spacing between elements.

Second Place

Staff, University of Kentucky

Very nice paper! Good, clean design. Try a little more unique treatment of “CYMBALIC GESTURE” headline on front page. Try a rule line between editorial and advertising and a pica of white space on both sides of the line. The pages need a little more breathing room for your editorial elements.

Third Place

Whitney Leggett, Adam Turner, Jaclyn May, Courtney Leggett and Ryan Alves, Eastern Kentucky University

Very nice papers! Clean layout.

Honorable Mention

Northerner Staff, Northern Kentucky University

Clean layout and nice use of art. The “Search Firm” story really brings this issue together. Great work!

Staff, University of Kentucky

Nice paper. A little too busy on page 2. Try having your rule line continue instead of stopping for the sudoku. Black boxes on headers on page 4 and 5 are too dark. Try a light gray with a darker gray text.

Overall Layout

B

First Place

Staff, Asbury College

Very fun and organized layout! Great cover and excellent use of fonts, art and white space throughout issue.

Second Place

Staff, Asbury College

Another great issue. Not quite as fun as 1st place winner but still very consistent and clean design.

Third Place

Staff, Asbury College

Great job once again! Nice use of color and art in this issue. Clean design. A little too much white space in this issue. Work out the headlines a little better to not leave too much free space.

Honorable Mention

Staff, Transylvania University

Nice layout. Watch spacing in issue (especially page 3). Also, keep an eye on the trapped white space.

Staff, Transylvania University

Nice layout. Keep an eye on spacing and too many fonts. Rule lines are not always pulled to line up with other elements on page.

Special Section

A

First Place

Spring 2011 Herald Staff, Western Kentucky University

Very clean layout. Nice cover and great use of white space and fonts throughout the issue.

Second Place

Staff, University of Kentucky

Nice front page design and clean layout throughout. Try to find a way to carry through some element(s) from the cover throughout the issue–possibly the folio font. Great spacing and use of headline fonts and light grays.

Third Place

Staff, University of Kentucky

Nice cover and consistent use of elements for folios throughout issue. Be careful for trapped white space on page 7.

Honorable Mention

Elizabeth Johnson & Staff, Murray State University

Very nice cover. However, the cover concept was not carried throughout the issue. Try to find some way to carry the look/concept throught the entire issue.

Staff, University of Kentucky

Nice cover for a fashion issue. Good, clean design throughout. A little too much going on with the ads and editorial. Try a little more white space between ads to give the page some room to breathe.

Sports Page Layout

A

First Place

Jody Beamer and Alex Lovan, University of Kentucky

Very fun, unique design. Great use of art, color and graphics to create a very professional looking page. GREAT JOB!

Second Place

Andy Burress, University of Kentucky

Very clean and nice section. Nice front page and very good spacing and white space throughout section.

Third Place

Andy Burress, University of Kentucky

Nice layout with good energy in dominant photo. Nice job of picking up the blue for your “4″. Good spacing and clean layout. Be careful of your trapped white space on the bottom center.

Honorable Mention

Alex Lovan, University of Kentucky

Nice job organizing multiple elements for a fun and clean design. Good use of light grays. Try to eliminate the trapped white space by the two photos on the bottom left of the page.

Sports Page Layout

B

First Place

Spring 2011 Herald Staff, Western Kentucky University

Very fun and clean page! Good dominant photo and text treatments!

Second Place

Erika Graham, Susannah Bretz, Asbury College

Very nice layout. Good photos and consistent color. Be careful at bottom with spacing on blue boxes. Blue color might work better as a soft blue or light gray.

Third Place

Erika Graham, Susannah Bretz, Asbury College

Fun page! Be careful with spacing around headline at top of page. Not enough breathing room for headline.

Honorable Mention

Sally Jagielski, Transylvania University

Nice page. Impact is a little too bold for a headline font on this feature. Try a thinner font and possible a shade of gray. Keep an eye on your rule lines they are not starting and stopping in correct places.

Student created art

A

First Place

Annie Erskine, Western Kentucky University

Very Nice Art. This shows a very professional use of software and understanding of shading. Great job!

Second Place

Not included on entry-story by John Minor, Northern Kentucky University

No entry info. (Student-CreatedArtFNKU01)    Great job with text treatment!

Third Place

Chris Phillips, Murray State University

Very nice art for page.

Honorable Mention

Erin Jackel, Murray State University

Nice art! Good use of color and shading. A little too much empty space in upper right corner. Try to spend a little more time with text treatment in graphic and possibly use some in the text treatment.

Chris Phillips, Murray State University

Nice, clean art and fun layout!

Student created art

B

First Place

Jane Brannen, Asbury College

Great page! Nice use of art, color and headline treatment. Very fun!

Second Place

Jane Brannen, Asbury College

Nice art and clean layout. Good use of colors and text treatments.

Third Place

Jennifer Godbey, Somerset Community College

Fun art. Nice effects and use of color.

Editing

Judged by Chris Carroll, Vanderbilt Student Communications

Best Feature Headline

A

First Place

Adam Turner, Eastern Kentucky University

Perfect pun headline. Works on many levels. Fun, tightly-written sub-head is icing on the cake.

Second Place

Shelisa Melendez, University of Kentucky

Perfect blend of regional spelling, cultural allusion and literal meaning.

Third Place

Charlotte Kyle, Murray State University

Clever juxtaposition of cliche against the literal context of the story.

Honorable Mention

Baylee Pulliam, University of Louisville

Terrific play on a pop culture phrase. It’s creative, appropriate and it fits the story.

Becca Clemons, University of Kentucky

Imaginative re-purposing of a common phrase.

Best Feature Headline

B

First Place

LeeAnn Cain, Lindsey Wilson College

Headline directly conveys what the story is about in a playful manner without resorting to semantic tricks that require context or interpretation. Serves both print readers and supports online search. Good job.

Second Place

Nicolas Schrager, Lindsey Wilson College

“Heat” and “passion” can be connected in many contexts and work well here to literally convey the work of a blacksmith. This works because of the subhead that tells the reader the craftsman is a blacksmith, rather than leaving him guessing. Strong display design over photo of fire.

Third Place

Hillary Fisher, Asbury College

Nice use of alliteration and analogy, however without additional context (deck/subhead), it’s a label head. Suggest either placing this as a display head over the photo along with a smaller descriptive head above the story, or adding a subhead, e.g., “natural plumage returns as hairstyle trend.”

Honorable Mention

Kristen Snyder, Georgetown College

Clever turn of a common phrase adds interest to this head and prompts curiosity to read the story.

Best News Headline

A

First Place

Becca Clemons, University of Kentucky

Beautifully executed play on pop-culture reference that applies perfectly to a breaking news story. Excellent!

Second Place

Jonathan Lintner, Western Kentucky University

Creative use of twist on fraternity name with pop culture reference that applies perfectly to the story subject.

 

Third Place

Baylee Pulliam, University of Louisville

Great application of literary allusion to national higher ed story with campus implications.

Honorable Mention

Baylee Pulliam, University of Louisville

Creative, contemporary twist on an old idiom that applies perfectly to the story.

Aaron Smith, University of Kentucky

Strong application of common phrase with contextual sub-head.

Best News Headline

B

First Place

LeeAnn Cain, Lindsey Wilson College

Not sure all readers (men) will get the “double pink line” reference to pregnancy tests, however, this is a clever headline that plants a mental image in readers’ minds of the balancing act pregnant students must perform. It works because of the subhead that makes that image clear.

Second Place

LeeAnn Cain, Lindsey Wilson College

Direct head that relies on shared cultural meme (storm chasers) to invoke curiosity about the story’s subject.

Third Place

Jake Hawkins, Transylvania University

I’m guessing that the “bubble” referenced in the first deck is the campus community “bubble,” which may be the common terminology on campus. For those of us not on campus, the second line of the head prompts real interest in a curiosity about the story.

Honorable Mention

LeeAnn Cain, Lindsey Wilson College

Clearly grabs attention and conveys the focus of the story. Might consider dropping the extra deck (“Conflict with jobs…”) and rely on the sub-head “Finishing college…” to do the job with fewer words.

James Huddleston, Transylvania University

Rare case when a short, compelling quote works in a headline and captures the essence of the subject.

Best Sports Headline

A

First Place

Zach Greenwell, Western Kentucky University

Expert reworking of an idiom to describe how a star recruit was landed. Creative and compelling.

Second Place

Tanner Hesterberg, Morehead State University

Subject’s name and achievement made for a potentially attention-grabbing headline. You split the uprights with this one.

Third Place

Nick Craddock, University of Kentucky

Masterful utilization of a well-known pop culture reference. Fits the story perfectly.

Honorable Mention

Becca Clemons, University of Kentucky

Great use of double-meaning of phrase to illustrate the story.

Tanner Hesterberg, Morehead State University

Great word play. Fun and fitting.

Best Sports Headline

B

First Place

Abby Ferguson, Transylvania University

Nice juxtaposition of “treading a shoeless adventure.” Fun word play while clueing the reader to the subject of the story.

Second Place

John Overby, Lindsey Wilson College

Great use of implementing a play on the subject’s name into the display head. Also strong design helps with bike performing a “rainbow” arc.

Third Place

Brooke Crum, Lindsey Wilson College

Strong main and sub-head, but it begged for something a little more creative. What a great opportunity: a walk-on race walker.

Features

Judged by Sandy Smith, formerly Nashville Tennessean

Feature story

A

First Place

Becca Clemons, University of Kentucky

The lead really grabs the reader – especially the kicker “and he didn’t even get to say goodbye.”     It’s a creative angle on a big story — UK beating UNC — and one that holds in its creativity through. The writer structured this article like an obituary and has shown a deft hand at maintaining that feeling throughout without pushing it too hard. Nice idea, nicely executed.

Second Place

Emily Patton, Western Kentucky University

Excellent job in asking some difficult questions for this piece. Opening the article with the mother’s raw emotion was powerful. It’s clear that this took quite a bit of time to pull this together. Many writers would have spoken to the parents and, having a powerful story, stopped. You pushed it to next level by talking to his friends and brother. Also, not sure if this was you or the photographer, but the additional level of information provided in the captions was outstanding.

Third Place

Martha Groppo, University of Kentucky

Nice to provide some context on why drawing the human form is so important to the quality of the art program. This was a “grown-up” way to approach this topic. Incorporating so many voices—from professors to students to models—added a depth to the topic.

Honorable Mention

Taylor Pettit, Eastern Kentucky University

Excellent lead and a very engaging way to begin the story. Don’t assume that readers know much about Japanese geography – help orient me to where the cities are that you’re talking about. How far away are they from the earthquake? Good job in getting numerous voices into this story.

Aaron Williams, University of Louisville

This is a strong features piece that takes a newsy approach. I’m always loathe to use anonymous sources, but there are approaches that would give credibility to this student’s story. How many students does U of L bust each year for illegal downloading? Have any ever been prosecuted? A little bit of context could negate the need for this anonymous source.

Feature story

B

First Place

Nicolas Schrager, Lindsey Wilson College

Outstanding use of descriptive writing, particularly using strong action verbs (engulfs, hiccups). The italicized portions, where much of the scene-setting is occurring, is written with more passion than the remainder of the article. Make sure that tone matches throughout.

Second Place

Leslie Moore, Lindsey Wilson College

Great job at including very important context – average life expectancy, size of family, income. These kinds of details really help fill in the blanks for readers who may understand that Uganda is impoverished, but these figures show just how serious the problem is. Even features stories need additional voices and this would have benefiting from speaking with someone at the college who knew him as a student.

Third Place

Matt Attaway, Somerset Community College

This story presents a great way to take a huge national issue and make it local, and to do so in a timely manner. This type of story could have been at any time, but coming off the Tucson shootings provided a local response to something that was in the national media.

Honorable Mention

Nadia Smith, Transylvania University

This story rests on the terrific anecdotes the professors tell and the writer does a nice job of adding in voice when it’s needed and getting out of the way when it’s not. Watch for quotes that can be strengthened by being trimmed or paraphrased rather than running on a bit too long.

Will Houp, Asbury College

Nice descriptive passages here, especially in describing the people featured in what they’re wearing and how they move. It’s great to broaden the story out with a second student who creates Apple products, but it might have been best to either feature him more or eliminate him altogether.

Judged by Paige Clancy, Vanderbilt Student Communications

General Interest Column

A

First Place

Dana Cole, Eastern Kentucky University

Dana is a skilled storyteller and writer. The piece was touching and very interesting, yet concise.

Second Place

Logan Todd, Morehead State University

Nicely argued and good job including informative news and facts.

Third Place

Tessa Duvall, Western Kentucky University

Colorful writing and funny with an interesting perspective on study abroad.

General Interest Column

B

First Place

Alex Cheser, Transylvania University

Colorful storytelling, great descriptions of food, nice history of people and business. Fun to read and compelling.

Second Place

Molly Crain, Transylvania University

Informative and interesting. Would have been stronger with a more concise commentary on media consumption habits. Instead, give that space over to more information about the store. Nice to hear from the owner of the store in the piece.

Third Place

Savannah Cox, Bellarmine University

Nice story. Could have been stronger if restructured to lead with “When I arrived in Granada, I was terrified.” Then, the information about the place and the school could follow later in the piece. Interesting details about the experience.

Judged by Sandy Smith, formerly of the Nashville Tennessean

Personality profile

A

First Place

Natalie West, Western Kentucky University

The essence of what makes a strong personality profile lies largely in the use of the voice of the subject. By drawing out the subject in interviews, the writer provided herself with a wealth of solid material to use. The writer then used those quotes well, in just the right amount. That combined with an ability to get her own words out of the way provided a compelling look into the subject’s life.

Second Place

Morgan Caldwell, Eastern Kentucky University

Writing about a legislator’s impact on the university was no easy assignment. Conveying the subject’s importance is a tall task, made even more difficult by the need to speak to a number of state representatives—never an easy bunch to get on the phone. Nice to round out the man and his impact on the university as well as his impact on the state legislature. Especially nice touch to include his sense of humor and what he’ll be doing next.

Third Place

Jamie Booth, Murray State University

Attention to detail pushed this entry into the winning category. By seeking out contextual statistics—the professor is the only one with 40 years experience and has served longer than any other professor in decades—the writer helps the reader easily understand why this subject is featured. It’s a lost art many times in feature writing. I do with there had been a few easy questions answered—why did her husband retire before she did? When does she plan to retire (if at all) and what are her five favorite movies.

Honorable Mention

Brandon Barb, Northern Kentucky University

Excellent balance of her personal story along with good fact-based information. The writer handled an emotional subject without becoming maudlin. It’s a nice deft touch and writing with a restrained hand.

Emily Patton, Western Kentucky University

Nice approach, especially with putting the news of his Boston Marathon finish so late in the article. The article was engaging and the quotes were well-used. I do with there had been a bit more attention to rounding out his whole life a bit rather than tightly focusing on his wheelchair racing.

Personality profile

B

First Place

Jessica Flores, Georgetown College

Nice, well-rounded profile that incorporates the professor’s off-campus life as well as the contributions she’s made to the college. There also are some nice throw-away elements that round out the subject more fully – the stake on her desk and the fact that she’s considering bidding online for a Shakespeare-shaped tea pot. This is a great way to add color and depth to a personality without spending too much time on facts that don’t merit it.

Second Place

Kaitlyn Mullins, Somerset Community College

A tightly focused profile that strings the instructor’s love of books—from her childhood to her cluttered office—throughout. While personality profiles often round out a person’s life, this example of keeping it  narrowly honed to one general topic works as well, especially because the writer packs a lot of information around the notion of the subject’s love of books.

Third Place

Jason Hood, Lindsey Wilson College

It’s always a terrific idea to round out people who are known for one skill—in this case basketball. By including interviews with his wife and his position as a chaplain do this well.

Honorable Mention

Abby Ferguson, Transylvania University

The story idea showcases a nice awareness of the campus. By including pertinent details such as NCAA rules, the writer has helped the readers to see the experience more fully.

Veronika Walker, Kentucky State University

It’s clear that the writer either did her homework before the interview or has a deep passion for the topic. Her understanding of the nuances of poetry come through and because of that, she was better able to draw the interview subject out on the topic.

Judged by Paige Clancy, Vanderbilt Student Communications

Review

A

First Place

Charlotte Kyle, Murray State University

Grabs the reader immediately. Beautifully written. Subject matter is local, which is more interesting and unique than just another review of a national act/book/movie. Background on recording and editing techniques by the artist is informative.

Second Place

Roxanna Blevins, Northern Kentucky University

Extremely interesting subject matter. Writer shows the reader something new and explains why it’s worth hearing. This piece acts as a translation for a reader who is interested in music but needs help understanding a genre like folk-metal. More balance could have been given to the second half of the album to round out the structure of the review. Very enjoyable to read.

Third Place

Matt Murray, University of Kentucky

Great imagery. Matt skillfully described the performers, the place, the people. The criticism of the main act was interesting and pretty well argued, but I wanted to hear more about the opener’s performance and the crowd’s reaction.

Review

B

First Place

Laura Laffoon, Asbury College

Great lead – puts the reader right into the story being reviewed.

Second Place

Mindy Borie, Transylvania University

Nice comparison of book and tv series.

Third Place

Holly Brown, Transylvania University

Very thorough and interesting.

News

Judged by Brenna Kelly, The Cincinnati Enquirer

Continuing News

A

First Place

Karli Wood, Northern Kentucky University

Wood’s stories about the combining of Black Studies and Women’s and Gender Studies is very complete. She does of good job of explaining what the University wants to do and who it will affect. She talks to students in the program and even finds out how other University’s minority programs work. The University withdrew the plan after outcry that was likely result of Wood’s stories.

Second Place

Brad Stephens, Cole Claybourn, Western Kentucky University

This is a great example of using the paper’s online site to publish stories on days the paper does not publish. Stephens goes a great job of getting the news of the coach’s DUI online – writing two stories the day of the arrest. Clayburn does great job following up and holding the athletics department accountable. I also liked that he asked the football players how they felt about the arrest.

Third Place

Cole Claybourn, Tessa Duvall, Katherine Wade, Western Kentucky University

These reporters do a good job with the story of a professor being fired. Clayburn uses the state’s open records law to get the story, then Duvall advances it when the professor files a lawsuit. Wade does a good job of making sure the story doesn’t go away by checking in with the attorneys.

Honorable Mention

Elizabeth Johnson, Nick Reside, Austin Ramsey, Murray State University

These students did a great job of talking to the student who filed the complaint and getting her to share the documents of the case. They also do a good job of following up with the professor’s side of the story. Finally they tell us the resolution of the case. However in the final story, I would have liked them to go one step further and report how much the University was paying the professor.

Eva McEnrue, Patrick T. Sullivan and Chase Sanders, University of Kentucky

Good job following an issue that students on campus are no doubt interested in. The last story, though coming from coverage of a meeting, does a good job of explaining how the revamped Rupp would be connected to campus.

Judged by Kevin Kelly, The Cincinnati Enquirer

Continuing News

B

First Place

Jake Hawkins, Charlie Zwischenberger, Erin Brock, Transylvania University

An enterprising and commendable effort by this group of reporters. The initial property records search and solid sourcing in the opening article provided the foundation. A list or locator map depicting the location of university-owned properties would have been helpful to readers of the first article who were not familiar with the area. Subsequent stories were strong, and the breaking news coverage showed the paper’s staff stayed on top of the issue. Good work.

Second Place

Victoria Engelhardt, Georgetown College

A nice example of taking ownership of a story from the outset and following it to completion. Engelhardt’s first story offers good background and information about the proposed residence hall, including the timetable and estimated costs. Thought it needed a paragraph about existing housing options and the total percentage of students living on campus. Move-in day was a good angle to wrap up the last story.

Third Place

Kendra Farmer, Miesha Glover, Lavonne Shephard, Kentucky State University

The reporters identified an issue – the lack of textbooks in the bookstore – that was affecting students, faculty and university staff and went to work covering it from different angles. Many powerful quotes from multiple sources. The reporters did a good job keeping the spotlight on the issue even as officials started taking steps to remedy the problem.

 

Honorable Mention

Erin Brock, Transylvania University

Laura Miller, Abby Ferguson, Molly Crain, Transylvania University

 

Judged by Kevin Kelly, The Cincinnati Enquirer

Investigative Reporting

A

First Place

Josh Moore, Western Kentucky University

Moore took a daunting topic – the university’s debt concerns – and produced a polished enterprise piece. The amount and quality of reporting, variety of sources, story organization and writing style distinguished this entry from others in the category. Creative design and informative graphics add to the strength of the package. Impressive.

Second Place

Taylor Moak, University of Kentucky

The opening paragraph of this article about the costly new office for the university’s former president is an attention grabber. And it was possible because Moak obtained the pertinent information through an open records request. Solid execution on a story that probably got the campus and community buzzing.

Third Place

Cole Claybourn, Western Kentucky University

Clayborn paints a detailed picture of a summer employment scam that led to suspensions of two basketball players by utilizing several sources of information, including personal records provided by the players. Glad the reporter made the effort to reach out to the company and hiring manager in question for comment.

Honorable Mention

Jesse Call, Northern Kentucky University

Olivia Medovich, Murray State University

Judged by Brenna Kelly, The Cincinnati Enquirer

Investigative Reporting

B

First Place

Kacie Goode, Lindsey Wilson College

Writer does a good job exploring a topic all college students care about – food. Goode quotes students who are affected by having to pay for more meals than they eat. Impressed by her effort to compare Lindsey Wilson to other similar colleges and to even quote officials at another school. However, some of most important information, that Lindsey Wilson is considering changes to the meal plan, was buried at the end of the story. The story could have had even more impact had that information been higher in the story.

Second Place

Jake Hawkins, Transylvania University

The writer does a great job using public records to examine the properties that the university owns. He then uses that information to talk to university officials about their plans. As a reader I was wanting to know more about these properties. What are they, where are they, how much did the university pay for them and how much are they worth now.

Third Place

Jane Brannen, Asbury College

Brannen uses a student who transferred into Asbury and one to who left to frame the issue of retention. Story would have been stronger if it included some statistics on the number of students leaving. I felt that the news – the registrar saying that more students are leaving – was buried midway through the story.

Honorable Mention

LeeAnn Cain, Lindsey Wilson College

Very complete story about retention at the school. I would have liked to hear more from former student such as why she left. Also the information about what the school plans to do to improve retention could have been played higher in the story.

Lavon Shephard, Kentucky State University

Interesting story about student sanctions. Shephard does a good job of talking to two students who have been sanctioned. However, I would have liked statistics on how many students are sanctioned each year. Story was also missing comment from school administrators.

Judged by Brenna Kelly, The Cincinnati Enquirer

News Story

A

First Place

Matt Murray, University of Kentucky

Well-written story following the protest at the capitol. Excellent reporting to spend time with protesters. Would like to have seen the UK student and the about section how the protesters feel about UK’s role in energy higher in the story.

Second Place

Rialda Zukic, Western Kentucky University

Great job reporting a story that will affect many students. Zukic explained how much more international students will have to pay take 15 hours. She also does a good job of talking to international students too see how it will affect their education.

Third Place

Tessa Duvall, Western Kentucky University

This reporter showed enterprise in going to Joplin with the student group. Great lede and really liked the ending and the ending quote.

Honorable Mention

Jesse Call, Northern Kentucky University

Very complete story about the proposed changes to rules for speakers on campus. Only thing missing was a comment from someone who regularly speaks on campus.

Becca Clemons, University of Kentucky

Reporter did a good job laying out what happened and why it matters. Also like that she got the perspective of the sports management professor and the Herald-Leader editor.

News Story

B

First Place

Staff, Transylvania University

The Rambler staff gets the nod here for recognizing an opportunity to localize a national story and pulling it off in a timely manner. Certainly deserving of its Page 1 placement. While we’re on the topic of placement, the last paragraph illustrates how the “Occupy” movement had arrived on campus and needed to be higher in the story. Multiple voices added depth to the story. Good job.

Second Place

Crystal Passmore, Somerset Community College

The reporter took what might be considered a ho-hum topic and produced a solid story with good details and by quoting officials and students. Loved the “annoying” quote. Would have preferred to see the information about the expected completion date higher in the story. Also, what is the price tag for the project, and who’s paying for it?

Third Place

Jake Hawkins, Transylvania University

Fraternity members drinking live goldfish and allegedly assaulting three women who wanted to stop them? Not your every day story, and probably a difficult one to write on a small campus. Nice work by the reporter to request the incident report and still get the details without it.

Honorable Mention

Elisa Platillero, Asbury College

Kacie Goode, Lindsey Wilson College

Online

Judged by Bryan Murley, Center for Innovation in Collge Media, Eastern Illinois University

Multimedia

A

First Place

Becca Clemons and Tessa Lighty, University of Kentucky

Good use of video for a story with obvious visual appeal. Additional photos add depth to the entry.

Second Place

Taylor Moak, Latara Appleby and Becca Clemons, University of Kentucky

The video could have used more action shots in the first minute. Close-ups. The audio on the final interview is very low. Photo slideshow has a variety of wide, medium and closeups.

Third Place

Jerry Englehart Jr, Western Kentucky University

Needs explanatory text below the video. Blends stills and video well.

 

Overall Web Site

A

First Place

Staff, University of Kentucky

Well-organized with plenty of graphics on the front page, but still lots of white space. I would suggest making the “social buttons” on individual story pages a little less obtrusive. Plenty of entry points to related content. Well done.

Second Place

Herald Staff, Western Kentucky University

Clean and organized front page, with a little too many headlines, add more photos to break up the text better. Nice public records page.

Third Place

Northerner Staff, Northern Kentucky University

well-organized front page. A little heavy on navigation elements. Dominant graphics grab attention.

Honorable Mention

Eli Phillips and Staff, Murray State University

Page design feels very blog-like. No news since December.

Opinions

Judged by Vanessa Gallman, Lexington Herald-Leader

Comic Strip or Panel

A

First Place

Brittany Granville, Northern Kentucky University

Appealing drawing style makes strip a fun read even when topics are as heavy as excessive consumerism, unemployment and weight gain.

Second Place

Nick Patton, Murray State University

Nice drawing. The Obama one explained well a complicated national issue and the Ky. senator in a jersey deserved a chuckle. At least one strip on a state/local/campus issue would have shown more range.

Third Place

Alex Lane, Murray State University

There is an interesting mind at work here, most apparent in the strip about old people. Needs to work on production quality and getting the message across effectively in the space provided.

Comic Strip or Panel

B

First Place

Andrew Williams, Transylvania University

This work shows strong art skills and an intriguing mind. It will be interesting to see where they take him as he challenges himself.

Second Place

Richard Rutledge, Asbury College

Quirky, but accessible, drawing style makes the work fun to and easy to read. Loved the Trojan horse toon.

Commentary

A

First Place

Cassidy Herrington, University of Kentucky

This 9/11 anniversary column managed to say a lot of thoughtful things without being preachy,sappy or overwrought. And it ended with an inspiring call to arms for a generation. That’s not easy to do.

Second Place

Logan Todd, Morehead State University

Pithy and passionate criticism of allowing concealed guns on campus. It has a fearless quality.

Third Place

Shannon Frazer, University of Kentucky

This was a cool, reasoned column on the hot-button issue of coal in Kentucky. It pricked consciences rather than slammed heads, which likely made it more effective.

 

Honorable Mention

Taylor Moak, University of Kentucky

While it took a while to get to the point,the column was a strong defense of journalistic principles during a challenging time for the paper.

Commentary

B

First Place

Kendra Farmer, Kentucky State University

This is a heartfelt, straightforward plea to the university to not lower the passing grade standards. An example of speaking truth to power.

Second Place

Athena Bowling, Somerset Community College

Some sympathy for the last brutal moments of the Libyan dictator’s life was something many people likely felt, despite themselves. The writer had the courage and skill to explain it. Thought-provoking.

Third Place

Ethan Smith, Georgetown College

Straightforward questioning about how  love of sports can overshadow moral responsibility in Penn State sex abuse tragedy. Covered a lot of ground in tight space.

Honorable Mention

Matt Attaway, Somerset Community College

“Growing old in the Internet age” blends a news item about gaming-research with an account of his passion and then diminished interested in gaming. It makes an interesting read.

Megan Ray, Lindsey Wilson College

The writer’s criticism of a planned “Womanless Beauty Pageant” takes a while to get going but when it does, it becomes a passionate demand to really see the anti-woman messages we send, even in good fun.

Editorial

A

First Place

Editorial board, University of Kentucky

A succinct, forceful, fair demand for the university president to be a leader. It doesn’t get more powerful than that.

Second Place

editorial board, Western Kentucky University

Editorial on campus smoking policy got right to the point, offered an alternative policy and issued a call to action in a tight space. Impressive.

Third Place

editorial board, Eastern Kentucky University

A new caste system for student organizations was a great topic, although the writing was a bit melodramatic for the information available. Good to see a campus paper stand up for student rights. Nice illustration.

Editorial

B

First Place

editorial board, Transylvania University

Strong, well-reasoned editorial on changing the recruitment schedule of Greek organizations. Good job.

Second Place

editorial board, Kentucky State University

Endorsements for Student Government Association are often challenging tasks for campus papers. This was comprehensive and respectful of the candidates.

Editorial Cartoon

A

First Place

Lea Faske, Morehead State University

Fine, detailed drawings with lots of depth and detail and interesting points of view. Favorite is the one on campus smoking. Appreciate the time and thought it takes to communicate without a lot of captions.

Second Place

Christopher Epling, University of Kentucky

The cartoons are nicely drawn,appealing and easy to understand — the one on 9/11 anniversary especially. But they were easy, even mundane, points to make.

Third Place

Walter Deller, Northern Kentucky University

Fell in love with the cartoon on the closed financial aid office. A lot of emotion in such a deceptively simple presentation.

Honorable Mention

Darren Vogt, Western Kentucky University

The cartoon about claiming the prize of WKU admission made one laugh and say “ouch.” Focus on distilling all your points to something that simple and powerful.

Opinion Pages

A

First Place

Alli Collis, Morehead State University

This was a strong entry full of good cartoons,editorials and columns about state or campus issues. The campus comment feature is well-presented; the look overall is crisp, clean and inviting. Great job.

Second Place

Brian Hancock, University of Kentucky

Good touch to publish quotes and tweets about the paper’s conflict with athletics. Strong cartoon and good writers who can make points in limited space.

Third Place

Seth Littrell and Kaylia Cornett, Eastern Kentucky University

This entry is full of opinion and the space to display it. A little more creativity in design would make it sparkle. Strong editorials.

Honorable Mention

Spring 2011 Herald Staff, Western Kentucky University

The Tops& Bottom feature is clever and the pages are crisp and appealing. The size of the display of both a cartoon and a comic strip takes over the page and reduces space that could be used for letters and other opinion. The box with all the names also overwhelms.

Opinion Pages

B

First Place

editorial board, Transylvania University

Entry shows a nice variety of information, from clear editorials, columns from the political right and left, quotes from students and letters. With one page, it’s best to standardize the boilerplate info in as small a space as possible, so you know exactly how much space to fill.

Second Place

newspaper staff, Lindsey Wilson College

This page has an interesting mix of topics and seems basically a place to showcase staffers. However, the writing needs to be tightened so that at least three offerings can fit. All the masthead and boilerplate info can be tightened up as well. It could also benefit from a more feature-like design — one dominant illustration, for example.

Photo

Judged by Greg Cooper, Brooks Institute

Feature Photo

A

First Place

Britney McIntosh, University of Kentucky

Great job on getting the under water shot, but that alone wouldn’t have been enough for me, you also managed a great moment. Just an overall great feature to illustrate this story.

Second Place

Ryan Stone, Western Kentucky University

Nice picture, great moment, wonderful POV – I feel like I’m in the audience watching the performance. Also, nice job with getting separation between the people in the audience and the circus announcer.

Third Place

Cooper Burton, Western Kentucky University

Great moment, certainly carries this picture. Also, nice job on the lighting and framing of your subject.

 

Honorable Mention

Leslye Davis, Western Kentucky University

Wonderful POV and great moment. Nice job thinking on your toes, getting the shot!

Feature Photo

B

First Place

Riah Lawry, Asbury College

Great shot and wonderful way to lead the package. Love the moment (especially the reactions in the background) and on top of that, technically great. Nice job!

Second Place

Zach Wilson, Asbury College

The great moment carries this picture. Wonderful faces and technically proficient. Great job!

Third Place

Jennifer Godbey, Somerset Community College

Great point of view and nice job getting their faces in the shot along with showing the environment – which is key to illustrate the story.

Judged by Clay Jackson, The Advocate-Messenger in Danville, Ky.

News Photo

A

First Place

Tessa Lighty, University of Kentucky

Great angle and eye catching.  Easy to read what is going on in the photo.

Second Place

Leslye Davis, Western Kentucky University

Nice direction of the three subjects in the photo.

Third Place

Brandon Goodwin, University of Kentucky

Nice emotion

Honorable Mention

Jerry Englehart Jr., Western Kentucky University

The photo tells the story. It’s hard covering a accident.

Austin Ramsey, Murray State University

Nice depth of field.

Judged by Clay Jackson, The Advocate-Messenger in Danville, Ky.

News Photo

B

First Place

Riah Lawry, Asbury College

Good angle and lighting with it being tough

Second Place

Brownrygg Woolls, Asbury College

Nice moment

Third Place

Sam Withey, Asbury College

Nice portrait and use of the photo on the page.

Judged by Greg Cooper, Brooks Institute

Photo story

A

First Place

Brandon Goodwin, University of Kentucky

Great story and extremely well illustrated. Good moments, great access and variety. Way to stick with the story.

Second Place

Jabin Botsford, Western Kentucky University

Nice job, love the way it was shot, the moments and variety of subject matter.

 

Third Place

Michael Rivera, Western Kentucky University

Your package has a lot of graphic appeal – especially the lead shot. It is also shot very well. The moments are solid and good job with variety.

Honorable Mention

Britney McIntosh, University of Kentucky

The graphic appeal of the lead shot carries this package, nice job with that. The story is well illustrated and moments are solid.

Photo story

B

First Place

Kacie Goode, LeeAnn Cain, Matthew Hicks, and Tiffany Berger, Lindsey Wilson College

Powerful set of images, great faces, awesome variety and nicely displayed (although not key to winning). A very solid effort, nice job telling the story of a segment of our society that most people don’t know enough about.

Second Place

Riah Lawry, Sam Withey, Asbury College

Wow, great job covering Keeneland or any equestrian event. Great moments and very nice variety. Solid effort.

Third Place

Katelynn Ralston, Transylvania University

Very nice package on a “day in the life” -style story. Fantastic variety, decent moments and well shot. Nice job!

Judged by Clay Jackson, The Advocate-Messenger in Danville, Ky.

Sports Photo

A

First Place

Jabin Botsford, Western Kentucky University

Great capture to wiggle your way to get the shot.

 

Second Place

Britney McIntosh, University of Kentucky

Great crop and point of focus. Cudos for running the photo big.

Third Place

Christian Randolph, Western Kentucky University

Great action shot! easy to read and sharp!

Honorable Mention

Quianna Lige, University of Kentucky

Great moment!

Latara Appleby, University of Kentucky

Great lighting.

Sports Photo

B

First Place

Rebecca Baker, Asbury College

nice moment

Second Place

Rebecca Baker, Asbury College

nice reaction photo

Third Place

Aaron Holmes, Asbury College

Nice action shot

 

 

Sports

Judged by Barry Reeves, Sporting news

Sports Column

A

First Place

Cole Claybourn, Western Kentucky University

Cole wrote a smart, timely column. His opinion surely bucked common thought around campus, but it was blunt and smart and not condescending. Well done.

Second Place

Tanner Hesterberg, Morehead State University

Third Place

Jonathan Lintner, Western Kentucky University

We really liked Jonathan’s writing. He is no doubt the best “writer” in this category, but all of his submissions were feature stories rather than columns.

Honorable Mention

Aaron Smith, University of Kentucky

Jonathan Lintner, Western Kentucky University

Sports Column

B

First Place

Erin Brock (Lane/Calipari), Transylvania University

The good columnists get out in the field and report. That doesn’t necessarily mean they’re quoting people left and right but they’re talking to people and watching with a careful eye. Erin, unlike her competitors in this category, got off the couch and hit the hardwood and reported her piece.

Second Place

Andy Russell (Wheldon death), Georgetown College

Third Place

John Overby (NBA lockout), Lindsey Wilson College

Sports Feature

A

First Place

Aaron Smith (Hoops freshmen), University of Kentucky

A great feature starts with great reporting. Aaron provided a well-sourced story and provided insight into UK’s four famous freshmen basketball players. Considering this was a story being told by many pros, Aaron was able to create a story device to tell each of the four players’ stories in a concise manner and yet still be able to educate the causal fan but  tell devoted UK fans something they didn’t know about the players. Job, well done.

Second Place

Cole Claybourn (Gordon), Western Kentucky University

This was the toughest category to judge. Cole’s story is the second-best story of all submitted in the Sports categories. It’s nicely reported and well written.

Third Place

Jonathan Lintner (message boards), Western Kentucky University

Honorable Mention

Marsha Groppo (food services), University of Kentucky

Brad Stephens (fishing for a pitcher), Western Kentucky University

Sports Feature

B

First Place

John Overby (football head injuries), Lindsey Wilson College

Jeff did a nice job of taking a major national story and providing a local angle.

Second Place

John Overby (BMX), Lindsey Wilson College

Third Place

Abby Ferguson (tennis brothers), Transylvania University

Honorable Mention

Brooke Crum (race walker), Lindsey Wilson College

Carlos Melger (women hoops scorers), Transylvania University

Sports Game Story

A

First Place

Les Johns (women vs. Duke), University of Kentucky

Les’ story did everything a gamer should: He was able to articulate the stakes of the game, provide game details and strategy and tap into the emotion of the night.

Second Place

Ethan Levine (football vs. Tenn.), University of Kentucky

Third Place

Jonathan Lintner (women vs. Arkansas St.), Western Kentucky University

Honorable Mention

Tanner Hesterberg (OVC title), Morehead State University

Aaron Smith (Elite Eight win), University of Kentucky

Sports Game Story

B

First Place

Abby Ferguson (vs. UK), Transylvania University

Love how Abby worked to intermix her observations with the quotes, to further the story. Loved the Lane/broom practice story and would’ve preferred it up higher, but she wins this category because it was obvious that she outworked her competition in this category, talking to more people to provide her readers better insight.

Second Place

Ray Hupfer (hoops national title), Bellarmine University

Third Place

Ray Hupfer (Elite Eight hoops), Bellarmine University

Honorable Mention

Will Houp (soccer/Popp), Asbury College

Jeremiah Gonia (soccer 8-0 win), Asbury College

Sports News Story

A

First Place

Brad Stephens (bowl drama), Western Kentucky University

Anybody can cover a press conference.  This wasn’t a complicated story, but Brad went above and beyond in getting the ESPN sources on the record about why the network didn’t push any of its minor bowls to take WKU. That gave him the edge over two well-written press conferences pieces from the Kernel lacking only such second-level reporting.

Second Place

Ben Jones (Cobb announcement), University of Kentucky

Third Place

Taylor Moak/Rachel Aretakis (AD’s daughter), University of Kentucky

Honorable Mention

Cole Claybourn (Guidry DUI), Western Kentucky University

Stephen Wilder (Div. I budget), Northern Kentucky University

Sports News Story

B

First Place

Jeremiah Gonia (freshman transfers), Asbury College

Jeremiah showed nice enterprise here, noticing a trend in freshman transfers and then working to explain the reasoning behind so many basketball transfers at his school. Well done.

Second Place

Abby Furguson  (lacrosse startup), Transylvania University

Third Place

Victoria Engelhardt (Div III), Georgetown College

Honorable Mention

Richard Carver (football recruiting), Lindsey Wilson College

Victoria Engelhardt (Bengals training camp), Georgetown College

Results announced beginning at 9 a.m. EST on Jan. 22, 2011 a the Kentucky Intercollegiate Press Association Conference at the Hyatt Regency in Louisville.

News

Judged by Kevin Kelly, Brenna Kelly, Cincinnati Enquirer

News Story

Division A

First Place

Patrick T. Sullivan, University of Kentucky

A solid news story from start to finish. Well written and extremely well sourced. The quotes really add to the story and help explain the bigger issue. The reporting work done by the writer really shines through here.

Second Place

Garret Wymer, University of Kentucky

A complete package. The writer did a good job on deadline detailing the trend and what law enforcement intended to do about it. The locator map and breakouts add depth.

Third Place

Laura Butler and Steve Thomas, Eastern Kentucky University

A clear, well-organized story that deals with a complex issue. The writer was able to work multiple sources into the story without weighing it down. Effective use of subheads.

Honorable Mention

Tessa Duvall, Western Kentucky University

News Story

Division B

First Place

Jake Hawkins, Transylvania University

Good job explaining how a bill in the General Assembly would affect students. In addition to quoting legislators, the writer also talked to the students the bill would affect.

Second Place

Anna Giaritelli, Asbury College

An interesting, well-written story. I like that the story included Kerr’s background, however, I would have liked to hear from Kerr earlier in the the story. The first person quoted was someone giving an endorsement. I felt that Kerr’s first quote should have been the first quote in the story.

Third Place

Dequann Walker, Kentucky State University

The writer did a good job of putting the issue in context by showing that there have been problems with Greek organizations elsewhere in Kentucky and the nation. Glad to see both students and administrators quoted. I would have like to see the opposing view higher in the story.

Honorable Mention

Jordan Rowe, Georgetown College

Good explanation of new curriculum at the school. I would have liked to have heard from a student about what he or she thinks about the new requirements, even though current students would not have to follow them.

Honorable Mention

Investigative Reporting

Division A

First Place

Laura Butler and Lindsay Huffman, Eastern Kentucky University

These reporters took the initiative to find out what their school was doing and then compare it to other schools in the state and country.   Very clear and well-written story. While the writers include some of details of the university’s food contract, it would have been helpful to include the dollar amounts of the food contracts.

Second Place

Nick Reside and Austin Ramsey, Murray State University

Great idea to check the security of campus buildings. The result was a concise story that told readers why they should care if a building is left open.

Third Place

Austin Ramsey and Ben Morrow, Murray State University

This was a very comprehensive look at faculty salaries. The writers interviewed faculty, administrators and students. I appreciated that the story included the consequences of on no raises – teachers will leave and offered solutions – cut spending elsewhere.

Honorable Mention

Jesse Call, Northern Kentucky University

This reporter provides a detailed look at an SGA scandal. While I commend the investigative reporting this reporter under took, I felt the story became too bogged down with back and forth between the parties. I would have liked to see the reporter explain the effect the SGA infighting could have on all NKU students.

Continuing News

Division A

First Place

Emily Wadley and Shakia Harris, Western Kentucky University

These reporters followed this issue closely from committee to protest to final resolution. They did a good job in the final story of including a professor who was affected by being able to have domestic partner benefits. The timeline was also helpful to readers.

Second Place

Staff, University of Kentucky

Thorough coverage of a city issue that affects students. However, I kept wanting to hear from a student who would have had to move if the ordinance passed as proposed. The staff did a great job of using a breakout to explain the proposed rules and a timeline to show the next step.

Third Place

Jesse Call and Vern Hockney, Northern Kentucky University

These reporters did a great job of following the firing of two staff members. Good use of e-mails, public records and using the African-American student retention rate. Thought the second story could have been more concise, but the subheads helped.

Honorable Mention

Logan Todd, Morehead State University

This reporter did a good job of following the state budget process and explaining its how it affects Morehead students.

Honorable Mention

Laura Cash, Elizabeth Johnson and Nick Reside, Murray State University

These reporters did a good job of following the state budget from the proposal all the way to final outcome, a tuition increase.

Continuing News

Division B

First Place

Kim Rodgers, Jake Hawkins, Staff, Transylvania University

Note: I tried to upload all four files but only one would take.     This staff did a great job of chronicling the school’s search for a new president. The paper covered the candidate forums with students, profiled each candidate, then interviewed the winner. Very thorough coverage.

Second Place

Whitney Ward, Asbury College

Good job exploring an issue that is probably overlooked at most colleges. First story brings the issue to light, second shows what the school is doing about it and the final story follows up.  In the final story, I would have liked to have heard from more than one transfer student.

Third Place

Staff, Asbury College

The staff does a good job chronicling the environmentally friendly changes to the campus. They even questioned whether one of the measures really saves water. I would have liked to see more students quoted who were not involved in the initiative or did not work in the cafeteria.

Honorable Mention

Zack Klemme, Asbury College

Reporter does a good job keeping tabs on Asbury alums in Haiti and what the school did to help after the earthquake.

Honorable Mention

Analyses and special reports

Division A

First Place

Ben Morrow, Murray State University

A comprehensive look at an issue that affects many on campus. Solid reporting. The variety of sources the writer sought out and the various facts and figures helped distinguish this piece.

Second Place

Tessa Duvall, Western Kentucky University

Timely and relevant topic. The lack of an intro is a little jarring. Beyond that, the writer did a good job incorporating several different sources in an informative piece that’s easy to digest.

Third Place

Jesse Call, Northern Kentucky University

A good explainer about the changes and the university’s reasons for making them. Good sources but thin on reaction from concerned students. Paraphrasing the longer quotes would have helped story flow without sacrificing content.

Honorable Mention

Andrew Pillow, University of Kentucky

Awarded for “Court case may redefine housing terms” – Jan. 21, 2010

Analyses and special reports

Division B

First Place

Zack Klemme, Asbury College

Nice work identifying and exploring the trend. Impressed by the writer’s hustle to obtain data from other colleges. A good blend of faculty and staff but no students. What’s their theory about the trend?

Second Place

Zack Klemme, Asbury College

A smart follow-up to the writer’s earlier story about grade point averages trending up on campus.  A graphic breaking down GPAs by department would have been a good complement to this article.

Third Place

Will Houp, Asbury College

The writer did a good job getting thoughtful comments from those interviewed for the story. Budd’s explanation about the differences between chapel and church would have fit nicely after you quote the first student. Also, it might have been worth asking a university official to expand on the policy spelled out in the handbook.

Honorable Mention

Leah Girard, Asbury College

 

Features

Judged by Rich Copley, Lexington Herald-Leader; Phyllis McLaughlin, Oldham Era

Personality profile

Division A

First Place

Nick Craddock, University of Kentucky

Nick Craddock took a sports story that really had only one piece of action, one catch, and weaved a compelling tale of a sidelined athlete fighting to come back. Particularly impressive was the clear description of a complex medical condition and the use of multiple sources to paint a complete portrait of Brian Adams.

Second Place

Ben Jones, University of Kentucky

Ben Jones created an isolated but vivid portrait of two fighters, but primarily Nathan Angel, through the description of one night in the ring. Jones clearly challenged himself in approaching this piece, and it paid off.

Third Place

Jeremy Jackson, Northern Kentucky University

Jeremy Jackson takes us into the studio of Norse Code Radio with J.D. Keith and Cody Scott to create an entertaining portrayal of the duo at work that probably felt familiar to their listeners and he filled in some of the details of their long-running friendship. It’s a really fun piece.

Honorable Mention

Chris Rutledge, Western Kentucky University

In Ben Rogers, Chris Rutledge found a unique character on campus and quickly gave a complete picture of why he does what he does and how he makes it happen. One thing I really liked about this and other WKU entries was the knowledge it does not take a 40-inch opus to provide a precise portrait of a subject.

Honorable Mention

Aaron Williams, University of Louisville

No doubt everyone at Louisville knows Red Reign. But in a quick snapshot, Williams told readers a lot they probably didn’t know and gave us a good sense of the guy and why he makes such a spectacle of himself.

Personality profile

Division B

First Place

Kristy Jackson and JR Sroufe, Somerset Community College

This was a really strong read about a Somerset student who has been a drug addict for nearly half her life. From the opening vignette about Kidd receiving her first drugs when she was getting a tattoo to many achingly honest stories and details, this was a compelling story and cautionary tale.

Second Place

Riah Lawry, Asbury College

Lawry’s clear investment of time created this rich “personalities” profile of the cleaning crew that probably never gets recognition it deserves. From the vomit on the bathroom floor to the weekly lunch rituals, it was a wonderful portrayal. Note to the paper’s editors: One thing this story really missed was a photo of the subjects. The card was a nice detail shot, but I wanted to see these people.

Third Place

Anna Leon, Asbury College

Anna Leon has a nice combination of an interesting person in new Asbury professor Joshua Overbay and the offbeat subject of Christian horror films for this entry. It leaves the reader feeling like they have been introduced to a cool new person and thinking about an interesting topic.

Honorable Mention

Stephanie Collins, Somerset Community College

Sometimes a person’s passion becomes their personality, which Collins illustrates through her profile of Somerset professor Alyce Grover. We learn a lot about the professor and Border Collie rescue, an activity the professor appears to have devoted most of her free time and resources to. It’s a really nice read rice in vivid detail, such as the rescue of Rosie, that I’m sure will come back to readers anytime they hear about this issue.

Honorable Mention

Larissa Watkins, Somerset Community College

I really liked this story about the husband and wife team of anaconda specialists and the detail of how they deal with these seemingly frightening creatures. It was really well written and colorful, though I was concerned there seemed to be a lot of reliance on the ABC interview.

Feature story

Division A

First Place

Josh Ballard, University of Louisville

Josh Ballard used the feature format to take the ongoing story of cultural change and move it to another level. It was a piece rich in detail and honesty, which made it a compelling read.

Second Place

Katie Saltz, University of Kentucky

The focus of Katie Saltz’s story never leaves little Abby, but through her, we learn about Kentucky Children’s Hospital, the rare disorder CHARGE and the challenges facing Abby’s parents. It’s an enriching read in a thorughly professional story.

Third Place

Lana Bellamy, Morehead State University

Lana Bellamy silly story stands out because she took it seriously. What could have been a throwaway about a bunch of guys having Nerf gun wars on campus turns into a terrific feature because Bellamy took the time to get the details that tell the story. It epitomizes the old saying, if it is worth doing, it’s worth doing well.

Honorable Mention

Elijah McKenzie, University of Louisville

Generally, I am not a fan of first-person stories. But Elijah McKenzie had a very interesting story to tell that was enriched by his perspective. But he also took the time to go out and report it for a well-rounded, informative piece.

Honorable Mention

Katie Saltz, University of Kentucky

Using the feature format really personalized this story about the elimination of the dance minor at the University of Kentucky. It would have been a contender for the Top 3, but it really needed an administration voice or evidence that the administration was asked for comment to make it complete. Still, excellent writing.

Feature story

Division B

First Place

Critley King, Somerset Community College

This was probably a very well-read story on campus because it took a well-known subject and really explored it in a different way. At first I thought the answer to the question of why people cheat was fairly obvious and did not warrant further exploration. But King kept me going through the article’s insights and variety of voices.  Overall, Somerset Community College had the best feature writing of this competition. Clearly, someone there understands the concept and is pushing students to write really good features.

Second Place

Shelby Brown, Elizabethtown Community & Technical College

This was a case of a reporter taking fairly routine news coverage of an on-campus talk and turning it into a compelling feature. The keys were her use of details and  movement in the story from Jackie Vaught’s talk to a narrative of her story to comments from the audience. Like we said, this was basically event coverage, but Ms. Brown shows a knack for telling good tales that should really work in telling more interview- and observation-based stories.

Third Place

Larissa Watkins and Stephanie Collins, Somerset Community College

Not the likeliest of features, the news that there may be previously unknown graves on the Somerset campus, Watkins and Collins turn it into an interesting little tale of local knowledge and research.  This story did have to overcome a very obvious and  cliched lead sentence the authors should watch out for in the future. But the subject and storytelling made up for it.

Honorable Mention

April York, Transylvania University

This was a well-done look at the Transylvania Boys A Cappella group with several news pegs from their CD recording to their Spotlight Lexington performance to the fact that the last of the founding members of the group are getting ready to graduate. I would have liked to have read some color on the group in action, but overall, it was a really nice profile.

Honorable Mention

Sean Marcum, Somerset Community College

This seemed to be a pretty thorough introduction to an important new part of the Somerset program.

Review

Division A

First Place

Matt Murray, University of Kentucky

The reviewer has a good knowledge of Eminem’s life story and gives the reader an insight into the newest release and how the music relates back to his recovery. It is well-written, well thought out and makes me want to listen to work by an artist I, otherwise, would have no interest in.

Second Place

Shawn Buckenmeye and Roxanna Blevins, Northern Kentucky University

I like the two perspectives used by the writers. I thought Buckenmeyer’s piece was stronger; Blevins’ lede left me hanging. But both were well-written and used quotes well to tell why readers would want to see this production.

Third Place

Kyle Sebree, Northern Kentucky University

This was crisply written and discriptive, not giving away too much but giving me a good feel of what the movie is about. A lot of thought about the roles of the actors, director and cinematographer.

Honorable Mention

Jeremy Jackson, Northern Kentucky University

Paragraphs were too long, but I like the conversational and smart style of writing to tell what the play was about.

Review

Division B

First Place

J.R. Sroufe, Somerset Community College

Clean writing, pithy and to the point. It is exactly the right length, but still tells the reader what to expect from the film. The writer gives some hint of how he felt watching the film without becoming too much a part of the piece.

Second Place

Holly Brown, Transylvania University

Very descriptive of not just the play and its plot, but also how the audience responded to the content and the message. It’s long, but doesn’t meander. Well-organized.

Third Place

Bianca Phillips, Kentucky State University

Was a quick-paced overview of an awards show, which generally aren’t so quick-paced themselves. Smartly written, good observations. I came away knowing what I’d missed.

General Interest Column

Division A

First Place

Steve Thomas, Eastern Kentucky University

Engaging, witty. Story flows easily and wraps up with an ending that circled back nicely to the beginning. Had me at hello.

Second Place

Angela Oliver, Western Kentucky University

Very well-written, clean and easy to follow. Takes the Thanksgiving theme, but avoids the cliches to give a thought-provoking look at how traditional holiday meals can highlight the health-destroying eating habits of a family. Unexpected.

Third Place

Cody Evans, Morehead State University

Makes good points, pithy commentary and sharp, crisp writing.

Honorable Mention

Katie Saltz, University of Kentucky

I liked her topic. Her writing is clean and engaging.

Honorable Mention

Marianne Hale, Western Kentucky University

Though the lede was a bit of a stretch, I liked her list of the 5 C’s for preparedness on the campus level.

General Interest Column

Division B

First Place

Larissa Watkins, Somerset Community College

Poignant and personal, this letter to her son about their loved one’s deployment is beautifully written and brought tears to my eyes. Eloquent. Well done.

Second Place

Jacob Pankey, Georgetown College

Nice use of tongue-and-cheek humor to poke light-hearted fun at a professor who obviously has a sense of humor about himself. I laughed out loud.

Third Place

Kristy Jackson, Somerset Community College

One of the better “advice to other college students” pieces entered. Good topic that contains useful information. Well written, if not concise.

Honorable Mention

Amanda Holt, Transylvania University

Very funny; love the last “digit” remark. Leaves me wondering if any of the guys actually tried this.

 

Editorial

Cartoons Judged by Joel Pett Lexington Heral-Leader; Remaining categories judged by Benjy Hamm, Landmark Community Newspapers

Editorial

Division A

First Place

Staff, Eastern Kentucky University

The editorial is well-written, provides important context and makes a thoughtful argument against a growing problem — texting while driving.

Second Place

Staff, Western Kentucky University

The newspaper offers a different take on what appears to be a positive story: naming a building after the college president. The editorial makes a good case that while the president is doing well, he has a long-term contract to fulfill. Now is not the time to honor him by putting his name on a building.

Third Place

Staff, Murray State University

The editorial provides numerous unattractive examples of partially completed plans. And it makes a compelling argument that the university isn’t adequately planning for a number of changes on campus. It’s a well-written editorial with a clear message

Editorial

Division B

First Place

Staff, Transylvania University

This editorial weighs the strengths and weaknesses of the candidates for college president and offers specific reasons why Joseph Bruno should be selected. The editorial is filled with facts, perspective and insight, which offer the reader a good understanding behind the recommendation.

Second Place

Staff, Transylvania University

The goal of a paperless initiative on campus sounds great, but is it? This editorial explains why pieces of the goal are good, but others are not practical. Good editorials challenge conventional wisdom and provide much-needed skepticism.

Third Place

Staff, Kentucky State University

Political endorsements can be difficult to make, especially when the candidates are fellow students. But this editorial tells readers how they should vote, and why. Students have a short window of time to evaluate the candidates, so the newspaper is provided a good service.

Commentary

Division A

First Place

Cassidy Herrington, University of Kentucky

This columnist doesn’t settle for giving top-of-mind comments on a national issue. She knows that great columnists provide original reporting and insight. For this column, she wore a hijab, a Muslim headscarf, for a month on campus and noted the reactions of fellow students. The column tells the story of how one headscarf changed her outlook, and how others responded to her. It’s a terrific idea.

Second Place

Cody Evans, Morehead State University

This columnist takes on something  embraced by professors — tenure — and questions whether it’s good for students and the university. The column is short in comparison to many others in this category. But it’s direct, powerful and clear.

Third Place

Cody Arant, Murray State University

Arant makes a complex issue interesting and understandable as he explains the importance of net neutrality. He also tells readers why they should care about the issue, and how it can impact them on a day-to-day basis.

Commentary

Division B

First Place

Shelby Brown, Elizabethtown Community & Technical College

Brown mixes commentary with reporting to show how the new online math system takes more time and is less effective than a good ol’ textbook. The writer offers good examples of the problems as well as perspective on why new isn’t necessarily better.

Second Place

Amanda Holt, Transylvania University

Holt reaches across campuses to give advice to the University of Kentucky as it begins its search for a new president. In doing so, she explains what worked, and what didn’t, in a similar search at Transylvania. Readers from both campuses can understand and appreciate the insight.

Third Place

JR Sroufe, Somerset Community College

Columns about cussing have to be interesting. Sroufe makes a case that cussing isn’t all bad, and perhaps can be good in some situations. In doing so, she takes a stand for a society that determines cussing is right as a natural reaction but wrong when used as a weapon.

Editorial Cartoon

Division A &B (Judge combined divisions)

First Place

Lea Faske, Morehead State University

Lea’s drawings were clean and succinct. Opinions were clearly stated, if a little less pointed than great editorial cartoons.

Second Place

Travis Clark, Morehead State University

good stuff.  i would have liked to know WHY they think Mr. Limbaugh was going to hell!!

Third Place

Trevin Holder, Murray State University

good stuff!    but a good cartoon doesnt need a large boldface headline above it.

Honorable Mention

Annie Erskine, Eastern Kentucky University

Annie’s drawings are excellent!  Her editorial ideas might need some sharpening.

Opinion Pages

Division A

First Place

Staff, University of Kentucky

The entries showcase a variety of opinions, with the bulk of the columns and editorials on local university issues — not generic national topics. The design is clean and effective, mixing in breakout boxes and other elements. The background color on one page makes it difficult to read, but the powerful columns keep readers interested.

Second Place

Fall Staff, Western Kentucky University

This newspaper does the best job of including a variety of compelling content — editorials, columns, student comments, letters, editorial cartoons, and a guest column for someone who wants to criticize the newspaper. The editorials and local columns are not quite as strong as the winning entry, but these editorial pages have to be well read on campus.

Third Place

Alli Collis, Morehead State University

These opinion pages also offer a good mix of content, in an easy-to-read style. Brevity is the key here, with short columns, student comments and a tight editorial. A good overall entry.

Opinion Pages

Division B

First Place

JR Sroufe, Somerset Community College

These opinion pages offered the most variety in subject matter in either the A or B division. The topics addressed included pop culture, cussing, transfer students, college stress and sexting. The columns and editorials are lively, with interesting perspectives.

Second Place

Erin Brock, Transylvania University

These pages provide a good mix of staff columns and editorials, plus letters, student comments and outside columnists. The pages could use more art, but the overall package is good.

Third Place

Staff, Transylvania University

The presentation is good, and the page offers a mix of student comments and staff columns. This entry would have ranked higher with a greater emphasis on campus issues and less emphasis on national issues that don’t have direct impact on the university.

 

Sports

Judged by Jerry Brewer, The Seattle Times

Sports Game Story

Division A

First Place

Whitney Spencer, University of Louisville

This terrific game story goes beyond the obvious angle — the last game at Freedom Hall — and tells the story of an unlikely hero. Great emotion is reflected in this story without being overwritten. A very inspired piece that rises to the level of the major event.

Second Place

Ryan Alves, Eastern Kentucky University

Best lede and opening five paragraphs of the bunch. The story stays solid and interesting from beginning to end. It’s a very well written piece on a rivalry game.

Third Place

Zach Greenwell, Western Kentucky University

The anguish of a team on a 26-game losing streak is captured well.

Honorable Mention

Metz Camfield, University of Kentucky

The quote from UK coach John Calipari about disgruntled MSU fans carries this story.

Honorable Mention

Nick Craddock, University of Kentucky

The significance of a major upset comes across clearly in this piece.

Sports Game Story

Division B

First Place

Jordan Rowe, Georgetown College

The lede gives this story just enough of an edge to win.

Second Place

Brittany Howard, Asbury College

Very detailed game report. It just needed a little more writing flair and imagination.

Third Place

Kenton Sena, Asbury College

This story really helps readers understand the many ways this tennis team is so good.

Sports News Story

Division A

First Place

Emily Patton, Western Kentucky University

Terrific, detailed reporting on the heartbreaking story of how a coach and his team responded to a bus driver dying while transporting the team to a game.

Second Place

Garrett Wymer, University of Kentucky

By explaining the economic impact of a great basketball team, the reader gains great perspective on the importance of Kentucky hoops.

Third Place

Robin Phelps, Murray State University

Strong piece that tells all sides of Murray State’s controversial call for a decrease in athletic spending. The writer never allows the pertinent facts to get lost amid the debate.

Honorable Mention

Aaron Smith, University of Kentucky

Nice concept for a news story. It’s good, but it would’ve been great if the reporter had used more sources.

Sports News Story

Division B

First Place

Jordan Crouse, Asbury College

By the end of the story, you have a clear understanding of the man Asbury hired as its golf coach.

Second Place

Brittany Howard, Asbury College

Very clean story looking at the hiring of two coaches.

Third Place

Andy Russell, Georgetown College

The lede is cliche, but the story overall is a nice reflection on a speech by former basketball star Junior Bridgeman.

Sports Feature

Division A

First Place

Ben Jones, University of Kentucky

Great storytelling device, great quotes, great narrative — and a wonderful example of showing instead of telling. The writer could’ve easily turned his subject into a caricature, but to his credit, he showed all the layers of trainer Rock Oliver.

Second Place

Whitney Spencer, University of Louisville

Writer does a good job of letting the reader experience Asaad Ali as she did. Story makes him a person and not just the son of one of the greatest icons in the world.

Third Place

Zach Greenwell, Western Kentucky University

An interesting look at a new coach, told through his relationship with his “adopted” family. Excellent reporting, but could’ve been written a little tighter.

Honorable Mention

Ryan Alves, Eastern Kentucky University

A good, heartwarming tale of a football player who triumphed over tragedy.

Sports Feature

Division B

First Place

Jordan Crouse, Asbury College

A nice glimpse of what holds a baseball team together. Well told.

Second Place

Sarah Abiro, Asbury College

This story helps the reader understand the challenges and the joy of being a college athlete.

Third Place

Krisja Curlin, Kentucky State University

By the end of the story, you really wind up appreciating the subject, Latrice Watkins. Solid job of depicting her grit and positive vibe.

Sports Column

Division A

First Place

Greg Waddell, Murray State University

The writer’s nostalgic yearning for his high school athletic career makes for an unexpectedly brilliant column.

Second Place

Jonathan Lintner, Western Kentucky University

A convincing argument on why guarantee games are both evil and essential.

Third Place

Zach Greenwell, Western Kentucky University

This is a model for how young columnists should write opinion pieces off games. The game isn’t the column for this writer. The game is a platform to write a column. Bravo.

Honorable Mention

Andy Burress, University of Kentucky

A funny look at an average Joe trying out for one of the most storied programs in college basketball history.

Sports Column

Division B

First Place

Brison Harvey, Asbury College

Solid, thorough analysis of the NFL playoffs.

 

Editing

Judged by Jenny Fischer, Colorado State; Paul Wallen, Huntsville Times.

Overall Layout

Division A

First Place

Fall staff, Northern Kentucky University

VERY clean design.  Lots of white space, good type choices, good design concept for a tab publication.  Good page 3 index section, very clean, they take the opportunity to feature comics and photos and use it well.  Doubletruck spread is a nice feature, good way to feature the cover story.  Very consistent throughout, departures are well-measured, as in the case of the Halloween edition.

Second Place

Fall Staff, Western Kentucky University

Very clean, good font choices.  Lots of white space on page 2, good inclusion of elements like the Sudoku and crime reports.  Topper Extra is very well-designed, with good elements like the Q&A section, stats and schedules.  Great use of the bottom rail on the front page for standing elements like weather and contact information.  LOVE the ‘A to Z’ feature.  Great way to get to know the campus culture and community, bring different voices into the publication.  Good headline departures, as is the case with the Caught Illegally Downloading story.

Third Place

Mia Walters, Murray State University

Consistent use of existing style, including elements like the weekly calendar, ‘Pick Em’ and New Releases/Editor’s Pick for DVD and CD releases.  Good font choices all around.  Good creativity taken with the Features page and sports pages.  Menu Tab is very well done, nice cover and good use of style throughout.

Honorable Mention

Staff, University of Kentucky

Good font choices, lots of room to include white space. Nice, clean front page design with style elements that allow for departure, in the case of the Rock of Ages piece.  Good use of type and well-designed standing bugs.

Overall Layout

Division B

First Place

Spring Staff, Elizabethtown Community & Technical College

This paper showed creativity. The teasers on the front page clearly went with a page inside. This paper stepped outside of the box and did a creative April Fool’s Day edition.

Second Place

Erin Brock and Staff, Transylvania University

Comic strips, breakout boxes and consistency throughout made this paper work. It was very easy to follow and nicely organized.

Third Place

Fall Staff, Elizabethtown Community & Technical College

This paper was clean and easy to read. The paper was thought through and well planned but the creativity and execution falls a little short of the other two.

Front Page Layout

Division A

First Place

Staff, University of Kentucky

Beautiful consistency with design elements and font choices.  Nice inclusion of white space in style elements.  Good use of column bugs and photo illustrations.  Excellent, consistent means of featuring the main stories, good use of white space around, to profile those pieces of the layout.  Good typography.  Good means of departure from normal style with the basketball front.  Simple, clean design.

Second Place

Spring Staff, Northern Kentucky University

Maintains simple design concepts for tab cover, great use of enlarged photos and bold colors as “grabbers” for readers.  Simple typography doesn’t overwhelm the smaller layout.  Consistent size and style of teasers.

Third Place

Samantha Rainey, Western Kentucky University

Nice, clean design concepts.  Good font choices and nice typography in feature headline departures, as in the ‘Hookah’ story.  Consistent between front pages.  Use of dominant artwork is good, some needs to be bigger in cases, as it fights for attention with the teaser bar.  Good use of the bottom bar for features like weather and contact information.

Honorable Mention

Staff, University of Kentucky

Beautiful consistency with design elements and font choices.  Nice inclusion of white space in style sheets.  Good use of column bugs and photo illustrations.  Excellent, consistent means of featuring the main stories, good use of white space around, to profile those pieces of the layout.  Good typography.  Good means of departure from normal style with the ‘Gone’ front.  Simple, clean design.  ‘Limestone’ and ‘Post Secret’ features need more white space around them, those two pages feel crowded.

Front Page Layout

Division B

First Place

Tyler Hoff, Asbury College

These front pages succeed by building around a dominant photo, mixing in a variety of visual storytelling devices and calling attention to the best content inside the paper.

Second Place

JR Sroufe, Somerset Community College

We like how these front pages choose a lead story and go bold with the image and lead headline. It’s very clear what the stories of the day are and they are presented in an inventive way.

Third Place

Erin Brock, Staff, Transylvania University

These pages have a clean, consistent design, clear design hierarchy and strong photo play.

Feature Page Layout

Division A

First Place

Chris Phillips, Murray State University

Great, simple concept.  Nice use of white space to really bring the illustration home, great attention to detail throughout the page.

Second Place

Karli Wood, Aly Durrett, Northern Kentucky University

Very clean, well done layout.  Nice, clean typography, good, measured departure from established style.  Great photo illustration, used in a way that maintains balanced composition throughout the layout.

Third Place

Josh Moore, Western Kentucky University

Great, simple concept.  Great profile photo, allowed to stand on its own with simple type treatment.  Nice use of white space around the feature story, good, clean layout throughout.

Feature Page Layout

Division B

First Place

JR Sroufe, Somerset Community College

This page is well organized and easy to follow. The transparent white boxes behind the text help make the story easy to read and are a nice solution when using an image in the background. The cutlines are consistent. The photo helps separate the two chunks of the story and the layout shows creative thinking.

Second Place

Lauren Bednar, Elizabethtown Community & Technical College

Breaking the text up into smaller bits of information is a great way to include visuals and keep the reader in- terested. The photo credits are consis- tent on the three photos and the color palette works well with the theme. A nice amount of white space is given around each so it does not look too crowded.

Third Place

Theresa DeMario, Elizabethtown Community & Technical College

This is a good example of using great art big. The chair image breaks into the page and is cut out, rather than in a box. The rest of the layout is kept clean which is nice. The headline is a little difficult to read sideways but it shows a creative approach without being too distracting.

Sports Page Layout

Division A

First Place

Andy Burress, University of Kentucky

Great profile photo.  The full-page photo makes the layout hum.  Good, simple typography lets the photo stand alone, and helps keep the text legible. Teases in reverse type work, enlarging the type makes it legible.

Second Place

Greg Waddell, Murray State University

The map concept is a great means of creating this ‘explainer’ graphic for the reader.  The composition of the graphic is very simple, which keeps it legible and easily navigable for the reader.  The text is explanatory, but pared down enough to keep the blocks of type small and easy to work with.

Third Place

Elizabeth Johnson, Murray State University

Great concept, good use of photo illustration.  The numbered concept and simple type treatment makes the breakout information legible and keeps it organized.  There is no dominant image; shifting the layout to make one photo stand out would help the overall composition.

Sports Page Layout

Division B

First Place

Laura Laffoon, Asbury College

The designer on this page wisely played up some very nice sports action photography and let the images do the heavy lifting.

Second Place

Staff, Asbury College

Another sports page with strong photo play.

Third Place

H.B. Elam, Transylvania University

This page has a nice flow and distribution of visual elements.

Best Special Section

Division A

First Place

Andy Burress, University of Kentucky

Good cover concept, nice execution.  GREAT inclusion of design elements from the cover throughout the section, good means of creating unity throughout.  Clean layouts throughout, nice inclusion of elements like the schedules for the men’s and women’s teams.  Good photo choices, selections of history and fan/color pieces.

Second Place

Fall Staff, Western Kentucky University

Nice, simple cover.  The ‘W’ image in the lower right-hand corner feels out of place.  Very cool pieces included – Faces of Homecoming, Queen candidate profiles, extensive calendar of events, as well as locator maps for the parade and tailgating locations.  Nice history timeline, very well organized with good photo choices.  Good inclusion of cover typography throughout the section.

Third Place

Mia Walters, Murray State University

Great cover.  Simple, and descriptive of the ‘Special SEXtion’ concept.  Good use of typography in this title, would have been nice to see the typography and strawberry imagery throughout.  Good inclusion of elements like the student sex survey, sex norms from around the world, and embarrassing stories revealed.  Nice reader involvement.

Honorable Mention

Mark Payne, Northern Kentucky University

Really cool concept, great reader participation.  Nice inclusion of the world map and mug shots of everyone involved.

Honorable Mention

Michael Kennedy, University of Louisville

Nice photo illustrations on the cover, and consistent use of Stamp font throughout the interior pages.  That should have been the font choice on the cover to create unity throughout.  Nice features like  What they don t tell you ,  Fighting the boredom  and  Campus Hot Spots , with good photo.

Best Special Section

Division B

First Place

Lauren Bednar, Elizabethtown Community & Technical College

This entry showed a lot of creativity.

Best News Headline

Division A

First Place

Staff, University of Kentucky

Good wordsmithing. Punchy, automatic read.

Second Place

Staff, University of Kentucky

Nice play on words, good reference for popular hangout.

Third Place

Nick Reside, Murray State University

Creative use and combination of poker terms for this headline.

Honorable Mention

Laura Cash, Murray State University

Definitely a ‘looker’, makes the reader look twice.

Honorable Mention

Laurel Wilson, Western Kentucky University

Runs with a women as minority story, below a photo of a girl working.  Nice play on words, pull quote.
Best News Headline

Division B

First Place

Anastasia Hill, Kentucky State University

The fun, conversational tone of this headline helps engage the reader in the complicated and potentially dry topic of health care reform legislation. It also does an effective job of selling the story by speaking directly to the reader and promising to explain how the reform will apply to them.

Second Place

Theresa DeMario, Elizabethtown Community & Technical College

We liked the play of words on this headline and it does a good job drawing you into the story.

Third Place

Leah Girard, Asbury College

Best Feature Headline

Division A

First Place

Staff, University of Kentucky

Punchy, good play on words.

Second Place

Charlotte Kyle, Murray State University

Catchy, definitely a ‘looker’, nice play on words.

Third Place

Staff, University of Kentucky

Playful, good dual use of phrasing.

Honorable Mention

Vern Hockney, Northern Kentucky University

Good integration of text-speak with headline.

Best Feature Headline

Division B

First Place

Anna Leon, Asbury College

A fun contrast between the name of the play (Dearly Departed) and adjective (lively), which also does a good job telling the story.

Second Place

Kendra Farmer, Kentucky State University

We liked the fun, casual approach to this music review headline.

Third Place

Ben Joubert, Asbury College

This headline made us curious to read the story and worked well with the photos.

Best Sports Headline

Division A

First Place

Staff, University of Kentucky

Punchy, good inclusion of reference to Starkville, the location of the game, in a short headline.

Second Place

Elizabeth Johnson, Murray State University

Nice inclusion of descriptive pull quote from the coach in headline.

Third Place

Zach Greenwell, Western Kentucky University

Punchy, nice multi-meaning reference to rebounds.

Honorable Mention

Staff, University of Kentucky

Nice play on words, use of name in headline.

Best Sports Headline

Division B

First Place

Staff, Asbury College

This headline works well with the story topic, but would have benefitted from a deck to provide a little more information.

Second Place

Laura Laffoon, Asbury College

Third Place

Kenton Sena, Asbury College

 

Illustrations

Judged by Chris Howell, The Herald-Times; Carrie Pratt, St. Petersburg Times

Original Illustrations

Division A

First Place

Jody Beamer, University of Kentucky

The cartoon illustration was well done and is what kept it around for consideration. What put it over the top was the unique/cute idea of using the crazy hair to illustrate a bar graph of sorts which depicted the highest percentage to the lowest. It bleeds over into the text of the story that goes with it, linking the package together and it makes good use of the top half of an inside page. Only thing I would like to see is a bit more separation between the bottom of the illustration and the advertisements at the bottom of the page. The vibrant colors of the adds pull away from the illustration. Some white space on the left/right and bottom would help keep the eye on the illustration.

Second Place

Aly Durrett, Karli Wood, Northern Kentucky University

I liked the movie poster treatment of this cartoon spoof on the Rocky Horror Picture Show. It seemed fitting for the season and the awkwardness of the line drawing seemed to fit with the haunting characters. It has a B-movie feel with the treatment of The Northerner mast head, but a more modern feel with the promo pictures at the bottom of the page. It combines the two nicely. It is clean and quick and easy to read. I have to assume this is a cover for a special tab or student newspaper, but I’m not being directed to the inside. Maybe this is just a simple poster promoting a show, but that is unclear in the entry. But overall it is well done.

Third Place

Chris Phillips, Murray State University

THis was an interesting way to illustrate the locations of the different schools in the conference. At first glance it looks like a photograph of a bulletin board with a piece of paper tacked up on it, but there should have been more care taken in applying the tacks, overlaying the Roadmap of the OVC headline, and the picture frame all could have used a little more attention to make it really come together. It is a good idea. I would like to see what the map would look like without the yellow road lines just to see if it takes away from the chaos a bit. I think they compete with the red lines that take me to the information about each school. Also, giving it a little more white space around the frame would help give it some air and not make it feel so cramped on the page.

Honorable Mention

Karli Wood, Charlotte Etherton, Northern Kentucky University

I like the burned holes in the page. I think it is something that could have been used more throughout the white space of the page. I do like the clean look, but the smoke looks too digital and the clear glass ash tray should reflect the white background it’s on–on the page not what it was shot on. The yellowed look doesn’t match what we see on the page.

Original Illustrations

Division B

First Place

Critley King, Somerset Community College

This category had a total of seven entries, five of which were entered incorrectly labeled and placed in the wrong category.     This illustration was a clearly better than the other one because you could tell they put some thought into how they were going to illustrate cheating. Placing the headline in the photo works in this case because of the dry erase board in the background. The photo could have been executed a little better. I think a lower angle (from the students point of view) would have worked well, and maybe being closer to the student with the crib nots on his arm would have helped clean it up a bit. The computer station in the background is distracting. But over all I felt this one was the strongest one.

Second Place

H.B. Elam, Transylvania University

This illustration probably wouldn’t have received an award had the category been filled, but it fit the description better than the rest. It’s a quick easy way to illustrate the face they need a new president.

Comic Strip or Panel

Division A&B (Judge combined A & B)

First Place

Annie Erskine, Western Kentucky University

Annie’s strip is very polished.  Thoughtful and wry. Professional-quality art was the difference in winning first place.

Second Place

Alex Lane, Murray State University

Funny stuff.  Alex isn’t afraid to try new things with the drawings.  I like that in a college cartoonist.  The lettering could be improved.

Third Place

Ian McAfee, Asbury College

Very interesting and thoughtful writing carries so-so art.  Funny.  Thanks Ian!

Honorable Mention

Brittany Granville, Northern Kentucky University

I liked this stuff.  Could easily have finished higher, but the competition was especially good this year.

Honorable Mention

Trevin Holder, Murray State University

Tough competition or Trevin could have finished higher.  Good stuff.

Informational Graphic

Division A

First Place

Jan Diehm, Western Kentucky University

Localizing the threat of an earthquake and illustrating the different fault lines on the map which surrounds WKU is a great idea. This package is illustrated very well. It is easy to read and very informative. It holds the page well and lets the designer fit three more stories on the page, and it still feels “airy.” Good job.

Second Place

Andy Burress, University of Kentucky

Second place is a really well designed inside page. The maps at the right work well with the photos and text and are informative in placing the location of the story. I might have toned the colors of the map down a bit. Maybe keeping the same colors, but reducing the percentage to be more pale. I felt they competed with the vibrant colors of the photos too much. Well done though. Both first and second are very sophisticated.

Third Place

Elizabeth Johnson, Murray State University

This was a distant third place. The idea was good, but it wasn’t executed as well as first and second. The cut outs in the grey boxes were not very well done. There is also a lot of distant grey text separating the graphic elements which make it feel “boxy”.

Informational Graphic

Division B

First Place

Chad Tyner, Somerset Community College

An interesting idea to show the countries flags on the globe. It’s a little rough around the edges and the detail hard to see because of it’s size.

Second Place

Ian McAfee, Asbury College

A simple, clean and to the point graphic. Not much else to say.

News Photo

Division A

First Place

Leslye Davis, Western Kentucky University

I really like the use of light in this photo. It’s also nice to see a photographer get close with a wide lens. There is a hint of intimacy because of the choice of lens and the distance from the subject. Nicely done.

Second Place

Armando L. Sanchez, Western Kentucky University

Good feature shot of students playing football in the snow. I assume that the snow was the news of the day. I like this photo for second because it puts me in the middle of the action. It’s tough to shoot that type of action while you’re in the middle of it. The action and movement of the subjects work well together and balance the photo nicely.

Third Place

Justin A. Shaw, Western Kentucky University

Great photo from an arrest and tazing. The layering works well. I would have liked to see more of the guy talking with the suspect on the left. I think the other officer in front is blocking to much of him. Way to be there.

News Photo

Division A

First Place

Dorothy Edwards, Western Kentucky University

Great moment. This one image tells the entire story.

Second Place

Ricky Martin, Murray State University

Great moment that gives the viewer a sense of how it feels to be doing what this student is doing.

Third Place

Tim Harris, Western Kentucky University

Nice quiet moment. Would have placed higher if there was a moment in the background with the person sitting on the couch.

Honorable Mention

Chris Fryer, Western Kentucky University

Interesting visual. Raises a lot of questions about what the subject is actually doing.

News Photo 

Division B

First Place

Brownrygg Woolls, Asbury College

This seemed to fit the category the best. It was more of a news photo than the others and it was well shot. It was a difficult thing to illustrate and the photographer kept their eyes open and made it work.

Second Place

Tyler Hoff, Asbury College

An interesting look at an interesting story. It’s well composed and the looks on the actors faces help make this photo work.

Third Place

Anna Leon, Asbury College

I don’t think this photo fits the category as well as it would fit in feature, but it was the next best photo. It is composed well but a bit over exposed.

Feature Photo 

Division A

First Place

Dorothy Edwards, Western Kentucky University

Not only does the image capture the entire story in one moment, but the viewer can feel her pain in this image.

Second Place

Ricky Martin, Murray State University

Fun competition image that shows texture and emotion.

Third Place

Tim Harris, Western Kentucky University

Honorable Mention

Chris Fryer, Western Kentucky University

 

 

 

 

Feature Photo 

Division B

First Place

Ian Gerard, Transylvania University

Nice moment from an annual event.

Second Place

Brownrygg Woolls, Asbury College

Strong moment but would have been better to have been shot at the students’ eye level.

Third Place

Eric Shelton, Asbury College

This photo would have stronger if the child wasn’t looking directly at the camera but it still has a nice feel to it.

Honorable Mention

Joey Nunez, Asbury College

Nice attempt at layering at a staged event. The layering keeps the eye moving throughout the image.

Sports Photo 

Division A

First Place

Britney McIntosh, University of Kentucky

One of the strongest images I came across. Not only is it hard to gain access to the locker room and real moments with a team that is heavily in the spotlight, this image tells the agony of defeat. It also has a certain sense of solitude that makes it stand out.

Second Place

Mike Weaver, University of Kentucky

Great frame of this almost touchdown. The arm reaching out gripping the ball makes the frame. The only way to improve this image would have been to captured it while kneeling but I’m not sure what the sideline rules are.

Third Place

Josh Mauser, Western Kentucky University

The face of the offensive player makes this image. The defensive body position of the goalie adds to the image as well. Finally, had the ball not been in this image, it wouldn’t had worked as well.

Honorable Mention

Britney McIntosh, University of Kentucky

There’s strong layering in this image, from the players, to the coach peaking out between them to the fans with their arms up. Images from the sidelines of basketball games seem very common but this is one of the stronger attempts at one.

Sports Photo 

Division B

First Place

Rebecca Baker, Asbury College

Great moment. Would have been nice to see this image shot with a longer lens therefore blurring out the background a bit but still very strong.

Second Place

Zack Wilson, Asbury College

Nice clean moment. Love the open space on the right of the image. This gives it room to breathe.

Third Place

Tyler Hoff, Asbury College

The lens flare in this image works to give it an interesting feel. This image would have placed higher if the person in the front on the left wasn’t cut off.

Photo Essay 

Division A

First Place

Britney McIntosh, University of Kentucky

This was the strongest set of images that told a story. The group of images showed the impact the doctors had and told the story of their experience in a third world country. A strong choice of composition and lenses used help bring the viewer closer and father away from the subjects and helped keep the visual storytelling interesting.

Second Place

Britney McIntosh, University of Kentucky

Strong set of images from a planned situation. This story gives the viewer a strong sense of what it’s like to go through this training. Love the opening image and the last image of the blindfolds, which looks like it could be guerrilla fighters from another country. These images are a strong reminder of historic war images.

Third Place

Austin Koester, Bethany Mollenkof, Dave Kasnic, Tanner Curtis, Western Kentucky University

Powerful opening image in this package that tells a lot about this story. Would like to have seen this story follow perhaps one person to make it stronger.

Honorable Mention

Brandon Goodwin, Allie Garza, Britney McIntosh, and Scott Hannigan, University of Kentucky

Strong set of images illustrating the end of a basketball season. The opening image as well as the dominant image on the double truck are a bit redundant, which is why it didn’t place higher.

Honorable Mention

Dave Kasnic, Luke Sharrett, Western Kentucky University

This is for the package of Faces of Homecoming. Would have broken up the second set of images of the three men. They look a bit redundant.

Photo Essay 

Division B

First Place

Tyler Hoff, Rebecca Baker, Zach Wilson, Asbury College

The lead photo is very strong. Quite beautiful, even with the text on top of it. Nice set of images that illustrate an annual event. Next time try looking beyond the obvious as all of the secondary images did.

Second Place

Third Place

Honorable Mention

Honorable Mention

This was a disappointing category. Most entries were not a story or essay, but a grouping of images from a single event that really didn’t support each other. The students who entered this category should review what a photo essay is to learn how to shoot stronger.

 

Advertising

Judged by Teresa Revlett, Kentucky Press Association 

Advertising Design 

Division A

First Place

David Szemeredy, Murray State University

Wise choice of art and very little wording did the job of telling the story.

Second Place

Jody Beamer, University of Kentucky

Where in the world is Mr. UK – The color drew me into this ad and made me want to find out more.

Third Place

Melissa Pinguely, Western Kentucky University

Creative use of art, color and logo placement.

Honorable Mention

David Szemeredy, Murray State University

The only reason this one didn’t place higher is because I felt like it was too wordy. Otherwise, a great looking ad.

Honorable Mention

Aliesha Flora, Morehead State University

Cash for books – timely – ran just before Christmas and “packaged” well. Very nice looking ad.

Advertising Design 

Division B

First Place

Chad Tyner, Somerset Community College

Very well thought out page. Logo centered at the bottom of the half page makes it all come together.

Second Place

Jocelyn Daulton, Somerset Community College

Nice looking mix of copy and art – the dog on the right could have been a little more clear, however.

Third Place

Sean Marcum, Somerset Community College

Nice balance of white space, art and copy.

House Ad 

Division A

First Place

Melissa Pinguely, Western Kentucky University

Nice job displaying years of yearbooks. People are very visual, so this should do the trick!

Second Place

Karli Wood, Northern Kentucky University

What a great contest idea!

Third Place

Aliesha Flora, Morehead State University

Even though it is in all caps – I think this ad is easy to read.

Honorable Mention

Chris Phillips, Murray State University

Meal plan ad – especially eye catching

Honorable Mention

Jody Beamer, University of Kentucky

I like that you used the actual book in the ad for Blue Is Back. Nothing tells the story like the actual product.

Advertising Art

Division A

First Place

Jody Beamer, University of Kentucky

Great art – definitely makes it worth the read

Second Place

Karli Wood, Northern Kentucky University

Love it – looked at the ad before the stories on the page!

Third Place

Fall Staff, Northern Kentucky University

Great art – especially in the “feel like you’re being watched?” ad – that is cute

Honorable Mention

Karli Wood, Northern Kentucky University

Good job showing that diversity is a slice of life

Honorable Mention

Aliesha Flora, Morehead State University

Good work.

Advertising Copy

Division A

First Place

Nick Paxton, Murray State University

Very appealing. Ads are easy to read with plenty of information.

Second Place

Jody Beamer, University of Kentucky

Lots of information, but you have made it informative with the variations in fonts and styles

Third Place

Aliesha Flora, Morehead State University

Organized well

Honorable Mention

Jody Beamer, University of Kentucky

Lots of ad copy is easy to read with these varying art elements. The copy is informative.

Honorable Mention

Nick Paxton, Murray State University

You made the best use of the space with lots of copy

Advertising Campaign

Division A

First Place

Kirby Feldcamp, Murray State University

Learn something new everyday is a great idea! And what better way than this to highlight positive facts and figures about MSU students.

Second Place

Andy Burress, University of Kentucky

What a great idea! Show the portrait session to advertise the portrait session! Fun artwork to go along with the text. Good job!

Third Place

Fall Staff, Northern Kentucky University

These ads all carried very powerful messages. Each one was well worth the read.

Honorable Mention

Fall Staff, Northern Kentucky University

Color was a bonus on this one – very noticeable!

Honorable Mention

Spring Staff, Northern Kentucky University

Ad has lots of information but it is easy to read. Good work!

Home Page

Division B

First Place

Collegian Staff, Asbury College

Overall, a clean design. I like the look of photo scroller at the top, but it seems odd not to have links to stories in that spot. (And if not there, then on the photo page they are linked to.) Also, I’m a bit confused by the poll graphic in the right rail, although it looks great. There’s no way to interact with it (story/package that generated it?) and nothing to explain it.

Overall Web Site

Division A

First Place

Herald Staff, Western Kentucky University

http://wkuherald.com/    Site is organized well with good use of social media and RSS feeds. Good variety in the multimedia. Nice public records section.

Second Place

Staff, University of Kentucky

http://kykernel.com/

Third Place

Vern Hockney, Jesse Call, Northern Kentucky University

http://www.thenortherner.com/

Overall Web Site

Division B

First Place

Collegian Staff, Asbury College

Clean site. Section fronts could use art.      http://www.asburycollegian.com

Best Special Section

Division A

First Place

Andrew Robinson, Western Kentucky University

One of the only true special section entered in this category. It provided a place to get all the information about a wide-ranging event like homecoming before, during and after.    http://wkuherald.com/homecoming/

Second Place

Staff, University of Kentucky

http://kykernel.com/2010/04/06/the-heart-of-the-matter/

Third Place

Staff, University of Kentucky

http://kykernel.com/2010/04/21/cutting-their-losses-budget-cuts-force-uk-to-suspend-minor/

Best Inside Page

Division A

First Place

Jonathan Lintner, Western Kentucky University

Well-organized section front.    http://wkuherald.com/sports/

Second Place

Staff, University of Kentucky

Good multimedia with an interesting story about basketball in the state and the Louisville battleground.    http://kykernel.com/2010/12/06/deck-the-hall-uk-floor-installed-at-freedom-hall-time-lapse/