Student Organization Spotlight

Six Mile Post wins first in state in multiple categories

GHC’s student newspaper, the Six Mile Post (SMP), won three first-place awards from the Southern Regional Press Institute (SRPI) and a first-place award from the Georgia College Press Association (GCPA).

From the SRPI, the SMP brought home first-place awards for Best Website, Best Opinion or Editorial in the Editorial category, and Best Podcast or Internet Streamed Show. SMP received first place for Best Campus Community Service-Sports from the GCPA.

“This year’s staff has only met in person one time this year and has still managed to produce quality, award-winning work that rivals previous years,” said SMP Faculty Advisor and Assistant Professor of Journalism and Communications Allison Hattaway. “These students have covered history and covered it well – from COVID-19 to stink bugs to the 2020 election.”

Julia Belew, who served as SMP Editor-in-Chief from August 2020 to February 2021, said she felt lucky to be surrounded by such talented writers at the SMP. For example, Belew cited the work of managing editor Lily Chesnut.

“Their pieces portrayed real journalism and I am so glad they got the recognition they deserved,” Belew said. “I am also proud of winning first place for Best Opinion or Editorial for our unsigned ‘Let’s get down with pronouns’ piece.”

The SRPI judges noted “bold, clear, and unapologetic position on a widely discussed and misunderstood topic” for the newspaper’s editorial titled “Let’s get down with pronouns” and cited individual reporters’ data-driven, creative, and eye-opening stories.

Current Editor-in-Chief Olivia Fortner, who is enrolled in the Bachelor of Business Administration program, said she is very proud of all the staffers at SMP. Due to COVID, the routine of writers and contributors meeting in person to discuss current events and campus news has been put on hold.

The SMP has been working remotely and communicating through Zoom which creates a daunting scenario for students who are taking on the challenge of covering campus news in addition to their responsibilities inside and outside of the classroom. “Because of these changes, our staff is much smaller than it has been in recent years,” Fortner said. “However, I am not surprised that we received these awards because I have witnessed, firsthand, the hard work and dedication all the staff have put in to maintain excellence.”

Taking on multiple roles had staffers and GHC journalism students like Brandon Dyer receiving awards for both writing and photography. Dyer won a second-place award for photography, as well as a second-place award for Best Column.

“The column that I wrote with my Sports Editor at the time, Bradley Singh, is one of my favorite pieces I have published for the Six Mile Post,” Dyer said.

The Six Mile Post team won the following awards:

submitted photo

Southern Regional Press Institute Staff Awards:

Best Website – 1st

Best Opinion or Editorial – 1st

Best Opinion or Editorial – 2nd

Individual Awards:

Best Podcast or Internet Streamed Show – 1st – Austin Williams and Kimberly Lyons

Best News Story – 2nd – Lily Chestnut

Best Features Story – 2nd – Lily Chestnut

Best Features Story – 3rd – Michelle Hardin

Best Opinion or Editorial – 3rd – Alexis Johnson

Best Sports Story – 2nd – Trevin Wade

Best News Photography – 2nd – Jackson Morris and Olivia Fortner

Best News Photography – 3rd – Jackson Morris

Best Features Photography – 3rd – Olivia Fortner

Phi Theta Kappa members nominated for All-USA Academic Team

The GHC Phi Theta Kappa (PTK) chapter Alpha Psi Omicron has many reasons to be excited this semester.

Several members of the organization have been placed in competition for the All-USA Academic Team, Coca-Cola Academic Team, and the New Century Pathway Scholarship Awards.

Those students are Dariela Delgado-Castro and Carl Hayes, who attend classes at the Marietta site; Brittany Skeen, who attends classes at the Paulding site; and Karen Rogers, who attends classes at the Floyd campus.

Their nomination selections for the All-USA Team led these students to also be recognized as members of the All-Georgia Academic Team. They will each receive an All-Georgia medallion and certificate to commemorate this honor.

This year the traditional All-Georgia Academic Team Awards Luncheon in Atlanta was not be held in person. Instead, the All-Georgia Academic Team was acknowledged during the awards program of the virtual PTK Spring Regional Conference in March and at the GHC Awards Night ceremony in April

The organization received numerous accolades during this month’s Spring Regional Conference, including Five-Star Status and being elected the new Regional Vice-Presidential Chapter, putting the chapter in charge of the Fall 2021 Regional Conference.

The chapter’s vice president of membership and Student Government Association representative Heather Choate, who lives in Cartersville and attends classes on the Cartersville site, said while COVID changed how the organization provided community outreach, it did not detract from PTK’s goals and output.

“We knew our research on financial literacy, the Goodwill donations, and the community Halloween Movie drive-in were important projects to serve the community,” Choate said. “We stayed in constant contact weekly and maintained motivation through emails, text, and zoom meetings.”

Choate said the support of PTK officers and the camaraderie shared by members has created a foundation for the organization. She said while she is humbled by the numerous chapter awards, it is also great for the chapter to be recognized for their efforts.

“The PTK community has inspired me to go beyond my academic excellence to character excellence,” Choate said. “Our team is pretty phenomenal, and the multiple awards reflect PTK’s Five-Star

PTK – continued on page 34

Student Organization Spotlight

Student Organization Spotlight

Woman 2 Woman organization gives back to the community

One of GHC’s student organizations has been busy this year working with a local nonprofit to serve the community. Woman 2 Woman rallied behind Helping Hands in Paulding County on several community projects.

Woman 2 Woman is a GHC student organization founded in 2010 with an emphasis on developing communications skills, volunteering in the community, and supporting each student in the group on the road to degree completion.

“Woman 2 Woman continuously works with Helping Hands and other charitable communities because helping our community helps us gain moral values and look at the world from a different perspective,” student and organization president Manoucheca Jean said. “We believe that helping the community brings us closer together and it is a very humbling experience.”

The student organization assisted with an oncampus coat drive in 2020, effectively collecting and distributing two carloads of coats to Helping Hands. Woman 2 Woman co-advisor and Paulding Site Manager Christina Henggeler said the organization previously led drives to collect items from fellow students or worked alongside other volunteers to unload deliveries from the Atlanta Food Bank.

Jean, who lives in Powder Springs and attends classes at the Paulding site, said while the positivity, laughter, and connections built among organization members encourages her to continue on with Woman 2 Woman, the aspect of community service is central to the student organization.

“I was inspired to get involved with Woman 2 Woman because sisterhood is important to me. I believe we must stick together and that great things happen when women stick together, especially young women,” Jean said. “It is important that we help one another through our life journeys because we are all on a mission to become the women of our dreams.”

According to its website, hhpcga.org, Helping Hands works to foster a caring atmosphere for anyone experiencing temporary or emergency struggles due to a crisis situation. The organization, which offers services such as a food pantry and clothing center, is located in the south side of the student parking lot at GHC’s Paulding site.

SMP – continued from page 24

Georgia College Press Association Staff Awards:

Best Campus Community Service – Sports – 1st

Best Campus Community Service – News – 3rd

Best Photo Essay – 3rd

Best Website – 3rd

General Photography Excellence – 3rd

Layout and Design Excellence – 2nd Individual Awards:

Best Photograph-Editorial/Feature – 3rd – Olivia Fortner

Best Column – 2nd – Mariah Redmond, Brandon Dyer, Bradley Singh

Best Photograph – Sports – 2nd – Brandon Dyer

Best Photograph-News – 3rd – Olivia Fortner

Best Sports Story – 2nd – Austin Williams