Klipsun writers win AEJMC Magazine Contest
Story by Peggy Watt
Klipsun Magazine writers earned two national awards in the 2024 Student Magazine Contest sponsored by the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication.
Maylis Laverne (’24) received first place in the essay category for “Finding myself in the memory of my mother,” which appeared in the summer 2023 issue of Klipsun. Runner-up in the DEI issues category was Matthew Phillips (’23), who wrote “Our joy and our magic and our chaos,” a profile of Western vice president Melynda Huskey. His article appeared in the winter 2024 issue of Klipsun, for which Laverne was editor-in-chief.
Laverne’s essay was described by judge Lea Konczal, an editor at Texas Monthly, as “a moving, well-structured essay [that] takes the reader on an emotional journey through her exploration of her mother’s life, ending with the profound realization that parts of her mother live on through the actions of those who knew her.”
DEI category judge Tara Donaldson, WWD executive editor, called Phillips’ feature “a great story, well-written, with strong quotes and moments to make you sad, proud, angry and hopeful.”
The annual contest, organized by AEJMC’s Magazine Media Division, drew 137 entries from 21 colleges and universities across nine categories. Western was one of four universities that had more than one winner, and the other three (University of Florida, University of Missouri, University of Oregon) are much larger programs.
