Echo staff report
Seth Boyum
BLOOMINGTON Û The Rochester Community and Technical College Echo won five awards in the collegiate division of the Minnesota Newspaper Association’s Better Newspaper Contest.
The Echo placed second in general excellence, a noteworthy achievement because it competes against student newspapers from four-year universities throughout Minnesota. Last year, The Echo placed third.
“We only had two students returning from the previous year, so this award is especially gratifying,” said Echo adviser Dwight Boyum. “The staff coalesced quickly and put out some impressive papers throughout the year.”
Zachary Deppa
Graphics Manager Seth Boyum placed first in Editorial Writing for an opinion headlined “Nation’s health depends on free press.” He also placed second for the editorial “Choosing third-party candidate isn’t throwing away your vote.”
Sports Editor Zachary Deppa placed first in Sports Story for a feature headlined “Grateful for a second chance.” The story profiled RCTC volleyball player Jennifer Nelson and her recovery from a near-fatal traffic accident.
Lydia Smith
Photo Editor Lydia Smith placed third in Photo Story for a full-page layout headlined “Flapdoodles is your favorite place,” where she documented a day at a Rochester ice cream shop.
The students received their awards Jan. 25 at the Minnesota Newspaper Association’s annual convention at the DoubleTree by Hilton Hotel in Bloomington.