The Northwest Missourian, with its sister publication nwmissourinews.com, has been named a 2014 Crown Award finalist by the Columbia Scholastic Press Association (CSPA). Finalists will be named as either Gold or Silver Crown winners during the Spring National College Media Convention Friday, March 14, in New York City.
For the first time, The Missourian was recognized as a finalist in the hybrid journalism category, a category classified as a publication that works to combine digital and print publications. Last year, The Missourian was a Silver Crown winner in the print category.
Trey Williams, a senior journalism major from Independence, served as editor-in-chief of the combined edition. Williams is in his third year as editor-in-chief of The Missourian.
“At this point in my career as editor I sort of expect to be a Crown finalist,” Williams said. “If we are not, then we aren’t doing our jobs right. To be a Crown finalist lets us know all the hard work we put in is paying off.”
Steven Chappell, who has been student publications director at Northwest Missouri State University since August 2012 and serves as The Missourian advisor, praised the students’ work.
“Just being a Crown finalist is a rare feat,” Chappell said. “I’ve been advising college student newspapers for 21 years, and I’m always excited when my students’ hard work is recognized for what it is.”
Williams and Chappell, along with five additional students from Northwest Student Media, will attend the convention March 12-16 in New York. Williams will also serve on a panel discussion at the convention about diversity in college student newsrooms. Chappell will present sessions about internships, yearbook management and using social media as a yearbook promotions tool.
A total of 1,236 digital, newspapers, magazines and yearbooks published during the 2012-2013 academic year were eligible for judging in the 2014 Crown Awards Program. Entries were judged at Columbia University in December by a panel of judges that included journalism professionals and educators.
In addition to Northwest, the finalists include publications produced by student media at Ball State University, University of Miami, University of Oregon, Indiana University, The University of Alabama, University of Pennsylvania, Ithaca College, Iowa State University, Loyola Marymount University, Colorado State University, University of California-San Diego, Baylor University and University of Oklahoma.
The CSPA is an international student press association uniting student journalists and faculty advisers at schools and colleges through educational conferences, idea exchanges and award programs.