Student Newspaper Honored at National Convention

November 3, 2015

The Hudsonian, the student newspaper of Hudson Valley Community College, received honors at the recently concluded Associated Collegiate Press/College Media Association National College Media Convention in Austin, Texas.

The paper placed ninth overall in the newly-expanded category for two-year college newspapers. There were more than 50 entries in the category. Last year, The Hudsonian placed fourth in the competition for two-year school tabloids.

"I feel this award is much bigger than last year's, due to the fact that we were placed in one general category this year, and are considered the ninth best two-year college newspaper in the nation," said Editor-in-Chief Matt Whalen, who was one of eight student journalists to attend the conference.

First published in 1961, The Hudsonian is an independent, student-managed newspaper published weekly during the academic year.

Students who attended the three-day convention included Editor-in-Chief Matt Whalen, Managing Editor Tyler McNeil, News Editor Durgin McCue, Sports Editor John Longton III, Photo Editor Marison Topinio and staff writers Samantha Longton, Rebecca Jordan and Sam Kobylar.

Attending the national convention allows student journalists to learn best practices, hear nationally-recognized keynote speakers and attend workshops covering design, storytelling, investigative journalism, new media, leadership and dozens of other topics.

The Hudsonian provides students with opportunities in journalism, the editorial process, layout, sales, advertising, public relations, promotions, accounting and website design. Hudson Valley offers more than 50 student clubs and organizations to enhance the academic and social experience at the college.

"This staff has worked hard to produce an effective paper, and the recognition is especially rewarding considering that none of them are journalism majors and the college does not yet offer a Journalism degree in contrast to most of the other schools with whom we competed," said the paper's adviser, Associate Professor Rachel Bornn. "The Hudsonian staff feels that this year's entry was truly the best issue in the paper's history including both page layout and engaging editorial content, and we hope to continue our success in competition, and more importantly, our success serving the community with news."