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Grand Rapids Community College’s Publication Named 2024 Newspaper of the Year

Students at Grand Rapids Community College's newspaper, The Collegiate, celebrated their recent achievement.

News Summary

Grand Rapids Community College’s student publication, The Collegiate, has been recognized as the 2024 Division 3 Newspaper of the Year by the Michigan Press Association. This prestigious award highlights exceptional talent as The Collegiate garnered 13 awards following 536 submissions from 17 institutions. Alongside this accolades, GRCC’s Board of Trustees accepted the resignation of President Charles Lepper, with Lisa Freiburger stepping in as interim president, marking significant changes in the college’s leadership.

Grand Rapids – Grand Rapids Community College’s student publication, The Collegiate, has achieved significant recognition by being named the 2024 Division 3 Newspaper of the Year in the Michigan Press Association Better Newspaper Contest. This marks the second consecutive year that The Collegiate has won this esteemed accolade.

In a competitive field, the contest attracted 536 submissions from 17 college newspapers across Michigan, making the achievement of The Collegiate even more noteworthy. The publication garnered a total of 13 awards in various categories, showcasing the talent and dedication of its student journalists.

Among the standout awards were the following individual recognitions:

First place in News Story went to Abby Haywood for her piece titled “Report: Sharp rise in GRCC students thinking of harming self, others while counseling center critically understaffed.”
Third place in the same category was awarded to Alexa Cheaney for “Donald Trump visits Grand Rapids, uses murder of Ruby Garcia as campaign rally cry against undocumented people.”
In Investigative Reporting, the top honor went to Blace Carpenter and the Collegiate staff for “GRCC has an active shooter response video; professors aren’t required to show it and many students don’t know it exists.”
Abby Haywood and Blace Carpenter received second place for “GRCC professor presents white nationalist views during Gaza panel discussion, later says he was roleplaying.”
In Sports News/Features, Pierson VanGorp won first place for “Mohamed Tamour is poised to lead GRCC’s first soccer squad to Regionals.”
Third place in Sports went to Blace Carpenter for “Detroit Lions fans go through a wave of emotion as they watch the NFC Championship in downtown Grand Rapids.”
Alexa Cheaney earned second place in the Column-Review or Blog-News category for “Queer music is on the rise, and so is its importance.”
The best writer award was given to Blace Carpenter, who took second place.
The Collegiate editorial team received first place for the piece, “GRCC administrators need to send safety videos directly to students.”
Blace Carpenter also earned second place for Best Photographer.
An original comic by Abby Haywood and voiceover by Jamie Miller, titled “Things I overheard on Campus,” won first place in the Original Cartoon-Editorial or Entertainment category.
The online version of The Collegiate secured second place among competing college newspapers.

In addition to these awards, the Grand Rapids Community College Board of Trustees has accepted the resignation of President Charles Lepper during a special meeting held on April 14. Lepper had been on paid administrative leave since March, with the specifics surrounding his resignation remaining undisclosed. The board briefly entered a closed session to deliberate before making the decision.

Lisa Freiburger has been appointed as the interim president following Lepper’s resignation. Freiburger had been serving as GRCC’s acting president during Lepper’s leave and is expected to retire at the end of May. Lepper, who was the college’s 11th president, had a vision focused on recruiting top-tier faculty, enhancing partnerships, and promoting inclusivity and diversity within the college community. His prior background includes significant roles at Salt Lake Community College and Tidewater Community College. Lepper was appointed as GRCC president in September 2022.

These recent developments at Grand Rapids Community College highlight the achievements of its student publication, while simultaneously marking a period of transition in its administrative leadership.