Mirror News wins 10 awards at MPA Better Newspaper Contest

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Katie Warden and her skeleton puppet from The Passage.
HFC student Falaah Abdun-Nur won Third Place in the Division 3 - Front Page Design category for her front-page cover of The Mirror News called "Voyage to Victory," featuring HFC student Katie Warden and her award-winning puppet seen in HFC's acclaimed production of The Passage.

The Michigan Press Association honored the Mirror News, HFC’s student-run newspaper, giving them 10 awards at this year’s Better Newspaper Contest.

“I'm extremely honored to earn second place in the News Story category. I've been working with the Mirror News for about two years, yet I still feel like I learn something new every day,” said Buchi-Nkem Ezeoke.

The Mirror News staff won individual awards in the following categories:

  • The MPA Foundation Community College Scholarship was awarded to outgoing editor-in-chief Ashley Davis
  • First Place in all divisions in the Single Ad category to Wagiha Alhalabi for “Black History Month”
  • Second Place in all divisions in the Single Ad category to Destiny Little for “LAND Conference 2024”
  • Third Place in all divisions in the Multimedia Reporting category to Rattanna Abdellatif for “ ‘Found in Translation’ at the Library Street Collective in Detroit”
  • Second Place in the Division 3 – News Story category to Ezeoke for “A Celebration of Life and Community: The Excellence of the Black Woman Conference”
  • Third Place in the Division 3 – Investigative Reporting category to Ali Seblini for “Exploring Detroit’s Arab American and Jewish Perspectives on the Israel-Hamas Conflict”
  • Third Place in the Division 3 – Column, Review or Blog, News category to Davis for “ ‘I’m A Virgo’ is a Hugely Entertaining Satire of American Capitalism”
  • Third Place in the Division 3 – Editorial category to Abdellatif for “Calling for Ceasefire in Gaza”
  • Third Place in the Division 3 – Front Page Design category to Falaah Abdun-Nur for “Voyage to Victory”
  • Third Place in the Division 3 – Non-Front Page Design category to Ashley Demario for “The Vintage Market Expands to New Venues”

With more than 320 members, the MPA was established in 1868 and now promotes freedom of the press through its public policy work, “ease of use” advertising placement, professional development programs, and legal hotlines. It is a source of new ideas for newspapers and their products, both print and digital.

HFC English instructor Dr. Peter Kim is the Mirror News’ faculty advisor.

“Each year I am impressed with how talented the students working on the Mirror News are, and each year that talent is recognized by the MPA,” said Kim. “The Mirror News student staff demonstrates that they can compete at a high level with four-year educational institutions like the University of Michigan and Michigan State University. I congratulate all the winners and wish them much success in their future endeavors.”