J-School has national winner in SPJ contest
Five national finalists also make J-School proud

By Lina Miller
J-School Web reporter

photo courtesy of Meghan Piercy

Meghan Piercy might have ignored the sign's advice when she learned of her first-place SPJ win.

Students of the University of Montana’s journalism program — including one national first-place winner — will be recognized during the Society of Professional Journalists 2006 Mark of Excellence Awards Luncheon Oct. 4 in Washington D.C.

Meghan Piercy, who receivedher master's degree in December 2006, received a national first place in the Magazine Non-Fiction Article category for her  article “Manhunt for a Terrorist.”

The Mark of Excellence awards honor journalism students across the country both regionally and nationally. Awards are offered in 39 categories for print, radio, television, and online journalism.

“I think that professionals in journalism recognize the value of these awards,” said R-TV assistant professor Denise Dowling, whose students were national finalists. Winning the Mark of Excellence award showcases the university’s ability to produce talented journalists, she said. 

Piercy wrote her article for a spring 2006 Feature Writing class that explored the 10-year anniversary of the arrest in Montana of Unabomber Ted Kaczynski. The class wrote stories and, along with photo and design students, produced a magazine, “The Unabomber in Montana: 10 Years After,” which was a national finalist in two Mark of Excellence Award categories.

photo by Amanda Determan

The Spring 2006 Feature Writing class wrote stories for "The Unabomber in Montana: 10 Years After," a national finalist in the SPJ contest. National first-place winner Meghan Piercy is second from right in back row.

Piercy’s article takes a comprehensive look at the FBI manhunt for the Unabomber. She details everything from his early career as the “junkyard bomber” in the late 1970s to his April 1996 capture in a cabin in Lincoln, Mont.

Piercy went to great lengths to get the story. She managed to track down FBI agents who worked on the case and flew herself down to California to conduct interviews.

Although winning the award doesn’t help pay for her plane ticket, Piercy said she appreciates being recognized for the story she worked so hard on. She plans to attend the SPJ convention next month to receive her award.

“I’m looking forward to going to the convention on Capitol Hill,” Piercy said. “This will be a good opportunity to meet some top-notch journalists.”

UM J-School Dean Peggy Kuhr also plans to attend the convention to pick up the rest of the School's awards.

photo by Gabe Ferguson

Gabe Ferguson's piece,"Butte Reborn: The Mining City in the 21st Century," explores how Butte is using its mining legacy to attract tourists.

In addition to Piercy's first-place win, the U of M boasts national finalists in Television In-Depth Reporting (Gabe Ferguson for “Butte Reborn: The Mining City in the 21st Century," which aired on Montana PBS in July 2006); Television News Photography (Amber Bushnell for “Wilderness and Civilization Program"); Television Feature Photography (Matt Sampson for “Omelette Guy”);  and Best Student Magazine and Online Feature Reporting, both for the Unabomber magazine.

Associate professor Sheri Venema, who taught the feature writing class that produced stories for the Unabomber magazine, said a Mark of Excellence Award is an asset to any aspiring journalist’s résumé since the award is so widely recognized in the professional community.

“The fact that (University of Montana students) were national finalists meant our work was respected and noticed,” Venema said.

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