Headlines
Faculty receive Harrison awards Several members of The University of Virginia’s College at Wise faculty were presented with faculty awards on May 14. Professors Marla Weitzman and Debra Carter received the Outstanding Teaching Award, presented to a faculty member who excels in classroom teaching and who works particularly well with students. Professor Chris Scalia received the Outstanding Service Award, given to those who have made significant contributions to UVa-Wise and the community. Professor Amy Clark received the Outstanding Research and Publication Award, earned by faculty members who have made significant contributions to published research in his or her discipline. Professor Wally Smith received the Mentoring Undergraduate Research Award, presented to a faculty member p Amy Clark, Wally Smith, Chris Scalia, Michael McNulty, Debra Carter, who fosters relationships with undergraduates that results in Brian McKnight and Marla Weitzman research appropriate for publication or public presentation. Professor Yenli Yeh received the Outstanding Advising Award, The late Thomas Galyean was posthumously awarded the presented to a faculty member who has provided exceptional Outstanding Contribution to the Academic Mission award for service to students through advising and related activities that his work finding funding sources and grants to assist the faculty. support the academic program. The award, which will be given to his family, will now officially Professor Kevin Jones received the Distinguished Professor be named the Thomas Galyean Outstanding Contribution to the Award, presented to a faculty member who has given outstanding Academic Mission award. service in many areas of the academic program over a long period Professors Brian McKnight and Michael McNulty received of time. special recognition for being nominated for the State Council for Professor Eric Smith received the Student Government Higher Education in Virginia’s 2010 Outstanding Faculty Award. Association’s Professor of the Year award.
Highland Cavalier editor awarded SPJ National Mark of Excellence The editor-in-chief of The University of Virginia’s College at Wise student newspaper, The Highland Cavalier, was awarded first place for breaking news reporting in a national journalism contest for a 2012 news story about the sudden death of the College’s seventh chancellor. Jordan Fifer’s breaking news reporting won first place in the Society of Professional Journalists’ National Mark of Excellence competition this week. The story had previously won first place for breaking news reporting in SPJ’s Region 2, which includes Delaware, Maryland, North Carolina, Virginia and Washington, D.C. The Mark of Excellence Awards honor the best collegiate journalism in the U.S. and are judged by professionals with at least three years of journalism experience. Fifer’s winning entry competed among category winners from the 12 SPJ regions. According to the SPJ: “Judges were directed to choose only those entries which they felt were outstanding work worthy of a national honor. If the judges determined that none of the entries rose to the level of excellence, no award was given. This year student journalists submitted more than 4,600 entries.”
6 UVa-Wise Magazine
Fifer’s Feb. 3, 2012 Highland Cavalier story “Wise mourns Prior’s death” was a breaking news article written in less than a day after Chancellor David Prior died unexpectedly early on a Thursday morning. The Highland Cavalier, then a weekly newspaper, was due to be published the next morning, and Fifer worked to ensure the story made it to print despite minimal time before the paper’s deadline. The entry will be recognized at SPJ’s p Jordan Fifer ’13 Excellence in Journalism 2013 (EIJ13) conference in Southern California, Aug. 24 to 26. Fifer, a member of the class of 2013 and a senior interdisciplinary studies major, is the outgoing editor-in-chief of The Highland Cavalier. His reporting and photography have appeared in The Roanoke Times, The Virginian-Pilot, The Bristol Herald - Courier, The Coalfield Progress and other publications. His work has won several regional, state and national awards for newspaper writing, photography and videography.