Southwestern College’s student newspaper, The Sun, was named National College Newspaper of the Year by the National Newspaper Association of Columbia, Missouri at its annual convention in Phoenix.
“Great college paper,” read the NNA judges comments. “The writing is solid, headlines are compelling, photos are strong, editorial page is insightful (we especially enjoyed Managing Editor Angela Van Ostran’s column), and the sports section is lively. The Sun is what every college paper should strive to be.”
The Sun also received the Gold Medal Award for Excellence in Collegiate Journalism from the Columbia University Scholastic Press Association. A detailed 20-page critique of the newspaper completed by the judges gave The Sun 971 out of 1,000 points.
“I am extremely proud of my talented staff for publishing such outstanding work,” said Amanda Abad, The Sun’s 2012-13 Editor-in-Chief. “It is an honor to bring positive national recognition to Southwestern College and Chula Vista.”
The Associated Collegiate Press in Minneapolis awarded individual finalists for writing and reporting for stories done during the 2012 academic year. One of the three finalists for National College Reporter of the Year is Nickolas Furr of SWC.
“I was shocked,” said Furr. “I sort of sat there and blinked at the email for a while. Then I realized just how much of an honor this was. I think this is one of those awards where it really is an honor just to be nominated. I think I’ve done very good work, but I’m not the only one. I’m just another in a long line of Sun journalists who do very good work.”
The team of Ernesto Rivera, Albert Fulcher and Serina Duarte is a finalist for the Diversity Award for their story “Winning the Race of her Life,” about the near deportation of SWC cross country star Ayded Reyes. Abad is a national college finalist for sports writing, the only community college student nominated. The awards will be presented next month in New Orleans.
“The nomination is an incredible honor,” said Rivera. “It is a testament to The Sun and the great work and students that come from the program. To be able to write a compelling piece that promoted significant change is a dream come true.”
