Waynesburg University’s student-run newspaper, The Yellow Jacket, recently got word that it received eight awards from the Pennsylvania NewsMedia Association (PNA), for work published in the 2017 calendar year.
The PNA is a nonprofit trade association for print and online media in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. Each year, student and professional journalists are given the opportunity to submit entries for the Keystone Press Awards, in categories including general news, profile and feature writing and photography, among others.
Staff members and alumni from The Yellow Jacket won a total of eight awards in the Division II category, for four year colleges and universities with enrollment under 10,000. This is four more awards than the publication received from the organization last year, which had been a record-breaking year. For Mattie Winowitch, junior journalism major and executive editor of The Yellow Jacket, this is an exciting accomplishment.
“This is a moment that I have been waiting for from the moment I first sat in my executive editor chair this past August,” said Winowitch. “And to be able to say that I helped lead my staff to accomplish this difficult and amazing feat is more than I could ever ask for.”
Winowitch attributes the success to the hard work of staff members and the leadership of The Yellow Jacket advisors. The newspaper has a longstanding reputation for being professionally recognized—winning 4 awards from PNA and 11 from the Society of Professional Journalists in 2017. Winowitch is excited to maintain that momentum.
“The Yellow Jacket has a deep history of being award-winning, and by maintaining that pattern, we are further showing the world that we are very skilled at what we do,” she said. “With each award, we are putting Waynesburg University on the map, and I think that’s pretty cool.”
Sarah Bell, academic communications coordinator and one of The Yellow Jacket advisors, was ecstatic to hear about the awards. She said the accolades are testament to the hard work the staff puts into publication each week.
“I am incredibly proud of The Yellow Jacket staff for all of their work this year,” said Bell. “Winning a record-breaking eight PNA Keystone Press Awards is a reflection of how dedicated and multi-talented the newspaper staff is. Being selected to receive awards in a range of categories – from featuring writing and sports to photography and layout – speaks volumes to the quality of student journalism at The Yellow Jacket.”
Founded in 1849 by the Cumberland Presbyterian Church, Waynesburg University is located on a traditional campus in the hills of southwestern Pennsylvania, with three additional sites located in the Pittsburgh region. The University is one of only 22 Bonner Scholar schools in the country, offering local, regional and international opportunities to touch the lives of others through service.
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