Communication students recognized for excellence at annual SEJC's Best of the South competition
Office of Public Relations & Communications |
Lipscomb University's School of Communication made an impressive showing at the Southeast Journalism Conference (SEJC) held in Troy, Alabama, in February.
College journalists representing 25 universities competed across 30 categories at the 36th annual SEJC Best of the South Awards. This year’s competition marked the first time that Lipscomb public relations students participated and were recognized for excellence along with journalism students.
Students who were recognized for their work that was published, aired or distributed from November 2022 through November 2023 are:
- Brandon Bigsby: second place, Best TV Feature Reporter
- Brandon Bigsby: third place, Best TV Journalist
- Hannah Cron: second place, Best Arts & Entertainment Writer
- Joey Dwyer: fifth place, Best Sports Writer
- Kylie Kissler: fifth place, Best Special Event Reporter/Editor
- Herd Media: second place, Best Website
During the conference several individuals and teams participated in the on-site competition. Lipscomb had three finalists:
- Isaiah Davis: first place, Sports Photography
- Isaiah Davis: third place, Feature Photography
- Bekah Haralson, Makenna Overweg and Madison Schomer: first place, Public Relations
"SEJC is a wonderful opportunity for Lipscomb journalism students to compete against other universities and showcase what they have learned and their talents,” said Lois Jones, assistant professor of communication and public relations. “This year SEJC added an on-site competition in public relations. I was delighted to choose a team of students to represent the PR major here at Lipscomb. I knew our team had all the knowledge and skills to win. They completed their competition under pressure with a short deadline. I couldn't be prouder of all of our students who competed. It is wonderful that our PR students can have this opportunity along with our journalism students and be recognized."
"This year all of the students attending the Southeast Journalism Conference were new to the conference. This was the first time we've ever had students compete in the public relations category and to come away with a first-place award was impressive,” said Jimmy McCollum, professor of communication. “I'm proud of all of the students for trying something new and representing Lipscomb superbly."