North Carolina Central University’s (NCCU) Department of Mass Communication students and faculty soared past other colleges and universities on March 1 at the Southern Regional Press Institute (SRPI) in Savannah, Ga.
NCCU associate professor Lisa Paulin, Ph.D., was awarded the institute’s Wilton C. Scott Award for Excellence in Scholastic Journalism.
Lashonda Lewis, a senior, won best audio production for her work with NCCU’s AudioNet news station. Senior Mushaya Carter won best video production for her video “Charlottesville Aftermath.”
Autavius Smith, a recent graduate, also brought home an award for best sports writing for “Scoring low and aiming high at the HBCU Invitational Tournament.”
Chelsea Slaton, another recent graduate, won second place in feature writing for “Could NCCU handle an active shooter?”
Jennifer Maxwell, a senior, took home second place in photography for images accompanying the story “What’s to become of Durham’s homeless population during Hurricane.”
The NCCU student newspaper, The Campus Echo, earned a second-place award as best online newspaper.
Campus Echo staff also were recognized in the 2019 North Carolina College Media Association conference on Feb. 23.
The publication was named Best of Show in both the newspaper and online news categories. It earned a first-place award in the Opinion Writing category for a piece by co-editor Kaylee Sciacca, who also received a second-place award for news writing, a third-place award for photography and honorable mention for page design. Campus Echo staff photographer Kera Robinson received a second-place award for photography and former multi-media editor, Autavius Smith, received a third-place award in the Digital Storytelling category.
“It is a positive reflection on our students and our instructors when our department’s push for students to do professional-quality work is validated by professionals in venues like the Southern Regional Press Institute,” department chair Calvin L. Hall, Ph.D., said. “Over the years, our students have built a strong reputation at the institute for their work, and it’s something that we are proud of as a department.”
The SRPI is a two-day conference for college students mainly in the southeast. This year marked the 68th anniversary of the annual event held at Savannah State University. The event brings media professionals in to train students on issues facing the industry, including such topics as ethics, new media technologies, innovations and entrepreneurship.
In addition to the awards ceremony, students attended workshops with media professionals and were able to network and meet students from other colleges and universities.
