Place Name: First Place Contestant Name: A&M-San Antonio - The Mesquite Entry Title: High turnover, poor work environment spun ‘revolving door’ in Marketing and Communication, former employees say Entry Credit: Daisy Gonzalez-Quezada, Clarissa Martinez Judge Comment: This story was extremely well-sourced, and covered a compelling controversy within the university that seemed to go all the way up to the top of the administration. This is the kind of reporting that can create real change!
Place Name: Second Place Contestant Name: St. Edward's University Entry Title: Former baseball coach sues university Entry Credit: Claire Lawrence Judge Comment: Reporter did a good job sourcing documents and establishing a strong context for the racial tensions between coach and players. That relationship should be one of trust, and it's essential for journalists to expose when it is eroded.
Place Name: Third Place Contestant Name: Tyler Junior College Entry Title: Timely Care Entry Credit: Asia Johnson Judge Comment: This story had a wealth of important information for students, was heavily sourced and gave good insight into a real solution to a problem.
Place Name: Honorable Mention Contestant Name: A&M-San Antonio - The Mesquite Entry Title: Administration announces initial responses to compensation concerns Entry Credit: Graham Hotard Judge Comment: Teacher pay is an issue on many college campuses, and this story explained the issue well and from a variety of perspectives.
Competition Comment: The best stories in this category each started with a compelling premise. They then followed that with a multitude of sources, context and details. For a narrative category, hard news topics need lots of perspective and explanation, while feature stories require strong, creative prose. I didn't quite see the latter in any of the articles submitted, but most at least had a variety of sources and useful info for students. But a lot of good interviews and a decent premise still require strong writing and execution to succeed.
