CSUN’s student-run publication, The Sundial, earned 22 awards during the Associated Collegiate Press (ACP) Spring National College Media Conference held in Long Beach at the Hyatt Regency in March.
The Sundial, founded in 1957, won first place in the Best Documentary and Special Issue/Section categories at the California College Media Association (CCMA) Awards, in which 74 student media organizations participated in 40 contest categories, with 871 total entries. The Sundial took home 10 CCMA awards. Uvalde: The Town’s Stories of Grief and Healing, a magazine and website project based on a reporting trip to Texas in January 2024, by student journalists Quinn Alexander, Yulissa García, Rodrigo Hernández, Brenda Larin, Elle Laur, Jaz Méndez, Brittney Ornelas, Griffin O’Rourke and Savannah Rapallo won first place in the Special Issue/Section category.
“This is the best reported project I’ve seen entered in a long time. Kudos to the Cal State Northridge students who participated in this insightful look at the Uvalde shooting and what it has done to the community,” wrote one of the judges. “In particular, Brenda Larin’s photography sends this project. The work as presented is sparkling. It’s well edited, strongly presented, deeply meaningful, and insightful and informative. It is an achievement of editing, reporting and photography from these students.” Yulissa García, a reporter who worked on the series and is now a graduate student and Sundial editor said, “Uvalde was such a life-changing experience. It was a huge opportunity to grow as a journalist. The trip made me realize that I’m heading down the right career path.” (Funding for the reporting trip came from the Golden Globe Foundation.)
In addition, Juseong Park’s short documentary film 1994: Northridge Earthquake also won first place in Best Documentary. The film remembered the 1994 natural disaster with in-depth interviews. Jerzy Mialkowski cinematographed the project, Park edited it, and Quinn Alexander supervised the post-production. Park’s documentary had also placed in the Top 20 in the Hearst Journalism Award contest.
The Sundial also placed in the following CCMA categories: Best Magazine Inside Page (2nd), Best Social Media Reporting (2nd), Best Multimedia Package (2nd), Best Photo Illustration (2nd), Best Editorial (2nd) News Series (2nd), Best Illustration (3rd) and Best Vertical Short Video (3rd).
In the ACP’s Best of Show awards, which recognizes individual and staff journalism excellence, The Sundial won 12 awards. The Sundial’s Benjamin Hanson won in sports photojournalism and news/feature photo with Solomon O. Smith and Griffin O’Rourke. The Sundial also placed in Broadcast Feature Story and editor-in-chief Quinn Alexander won multiple awards in broadcast news, as well as reporting diversity, equity and inclusion. The Sundial also won awards in the Best in Design Magazine and Best in Design News Magazine categories.
During the conference, student journalists also participated in sessions, panels, and roundtables focused on improving audience engagement and their journalism skills.
Header Image-From Left to Right (Top): The Sundial Adviser Eduard Cauich, Alyssa Alvarez, Quinn Alexander, Pamela García, ACP speaker Tamara Zellars Buck, Quinn Cisneros, Jesse Illanes, Julia Torres. (Bottom) Claire Geriak, Taylor Parise, Frenchy Sandoval, Ashley Sánchez, Yulissa García and Jaya Roberts.
Article from the CSUN Journalism Department newsletter.
