ThreeSixty Journalism is excited to announce three students were honored at the Minnesota Newspaper Association Awards on Thursday, January 24, 2019.
The students were joined by their families for a dinner celebration at the Awards Banquet in Bloomington.
Two students earned the top recognition in their category, while another student placed second in the College Better Newspaper Contest, which is a college-level competition.
However, our high school students’ work is eligible and competitive with college students.
The winners all wrote their stories as seniors in high school and are now attending universities across the state.
Anne Omer, ThreeSixty alumna and University of Minnesota freshman, earned a first-place honor as a columnist for her college essay, Telling My Story, Without a Costume.
The judges wrote, “Anne Omer describes a life few of us begin to understand. The daughter of Ethiopian immigrants, her perspectives on adversity, heroism and fitting in at school has given her unique cultural insights. Masterfully written.”
Zekriah Chaudhry, 2018 ThreeSixty Scholar and current freshman at the University of St. Thomas, won first place for his sports story, Ninjas in Training: American Ninja Warrior-Inspired Gym Creates Local Youth Program. The judges commented, “Cool topic and well written.”
Loveisajoy Pha, who is a ThreeSixty alumna and now a student at St. Cloud State University, also won an award for her sports writing, placing second. Her winning feature is titled, More Than a Game: Off the Field, Dana Nelson Leads Super Bowl LII’s Charitable Giving, Investing in Youth Health and Wellness. Judges commented, “Nice, crisp lede, and good mastery of AP style.”
Another alumna recognized at the event was 2014 ThreeSixty Scholar Deborah Honore. She took first place in the multimedia category for her story, As Syrian Refugees Resettle in Minnesota, Student Parallels Her Journey from Ethiopia. The video appeared on TommieMedia, which is the student news organization on campus.
Judges called her piece, “an amazing entry, almost a mini-documentary. The final product showed the amount of time and research that went into the project. It was a beautiful mix of personal experience and national and international policy, explaining the overall policy of the refugee situation, but also making it real for the viewer. This should be widely viewed to understand where our country is right now in regards to refugees.”
