Ithaca College’s weekly student newspaper, “The Ithacan,” earned national honors when it was presented with a Gold Crown Award this spring at the National College Media Convention in New York City.
The award is the Columbia Scholastic Press Association’s highest recognition of overall excellence. “The Ithacan” won in the “hybrid” category, described as “a publication that works to combine their digital and print publications as one.” This is the third time the paper has won in the category since it was created in 2013.
The award was presented for work during the 2014-2015 academic year. Jack Curran, who served as editor in chief for that period of time, attributed the paper’s success to their effort to not only cover but to also analyze the news. He believes it is this analytical approach that appeals to readers.
“When I heard ‘The Ithacan’ had won the Gold Crown Award I was thrilled to see that everyone’s work had paid off,” said Curran. “Everyone on the staff put in so much work while I was there, so it was great to see everyone getting recognition for that.”
“The Ithacan” was one of only three publications to win the Gold Crown in the hybrid category, along with the “Indiana Daily Student” of Indiana University and “The Los Angeles Loyola” of Loyola Marymount University.
Looking to the future, Curran said he is excited to see what “The Ithacan” does next.
“The paper this year has blown me away,” said Curran. “I think we built momentum last year, and this year’s staff has kept that going and produced an even better paper.”