ACCLAIM lives up to its namesake

The Great Plains Journalism Awards announced Thursday that Chadron State’s ACCLAIM magazine is a finalist in at least one of the four categories staff members entered it in, a contest coordinator stated last week.

“We are happy to announce the finalists in the 2013 Great Plains Journalism Awards, which honors journalists in Oklahoma, Arkansas, Kansas, Missouri, North Dakota, South Dakota, Nebraska and Iowa,” contest organizer Ashley Parrish stated. The Great Plains Journalism Awards is hosted by Tulsa Press Club and Benevolent Association. The competition aims to promote the highest standards of journalism across an eight-state region, its website states.

Nebraska is one amongst seven other states that is given the privilege to enter in this competition, and out of many schools that sent in their pieces, Chadron State College’s ACCLAIM magazine became one of nine finalists.

Michael D. Kennedy, instructor of social and communication arts, said he was very pleased with how well the staff performed.

“I’m very proud that our inaugural edition of ACCLAIM has achieved finalist status in such a prestigious competition. If we win, great, but just to be nominated fresh out of the gate is indeed a big honor. I’m very proud of T.J. and the entire staff for making ACCLAIM so successful.”

“ACCLAIM was brought to CSC’s campus in 2012,” Executive Editor T.J. Thomson said Wednesday. “Student government funded the project and supported it the entire way. The success of ACCLAIM is tribute to the faculty members in the Communication Arts Department and the staff members of The Eagle.”