Cronkite Students, Professor Win National Awards

SAN FRANCISCO – Cronkite students won six national magazine awards while one of their teachers was named the nation’s top “promising professor” here at the annual meeting of journalism educators.

The Arizona State University journalism students won two first-place awards in the contest sponsored by the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, tying the journalism programs at Northwestern University and Boston University for most in the country. ASU also won more overall AEJMC magazine awards than every other school except Northwestern.

Awards by students from the Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication included:

• First Place, Investigation and Analysis Category, Ryan Kost, “University Cooling Costs Not Looking So Hot,” State Press Magazine.
• First Place, Service and Information Category, Anya Britzius, “Home is Where the Mold Is,” Minnesota Monthly.
• Second Place, First Person Category, Mindy Lee, “Open Hearted: A Story of Life After Lost Love,” State Press Magazine.
• Second Place, Online Magazine Category, The Devil’s Tale.
• Honorable Mention, People Category, Arthur Martori, “Webb: Young and Homeless,” Phoenix Magazine.
• Honorable Mention, Service and Information Category, Stephanie Burger, “The Dangers of Social Networking Web Sites,” 944 Magazine.

“These pieces of award-winning journalism show the great diversity of talents among Cronkite School students,” said Dean Christopher Callahan. “The stories range from hard-edged investigative reporting to beautifully written feature stories. We’re extremely proud of the accomplishments of these terrific student journalists.”

Meanwhile, Assistant Professor Carol Schwalbe took home two AEJMC awards.

Schwalbe placed first in the group’s “Promising Professors” competition. “Your teaching inspires not only your students, but your colleagues as well,” one of the judges wrote.

Schwalbe, who teaches magazine writing and online journalism, also placed first in the teaching category for AEJMC’s Best of the Web competition for the site she created for JMC425: Online Media. Earlier this year, Schwalbe won the Broadcast Education Association’s top Web award for the site. She designed and built the site to give students a place to access links, the syllabus, assignments, step-by-step instructions and other class resources.

“Carol is a superb teacher, a wonderful mentor to many students and a first-rate researcher,” Callahan said. “We are honored to have her as an integral part of the Cronkite team.”