Knowing that Friday, April 12, was the last time I would attend the South Carolina Press Association’s collegiate awards ceremony and meeting was bittersweet. As a senior, I’ve found that I’ve recently experienced a lot of “lasts” and will continue to do so until May 19, but this one was definitely a hard “last.”

Katie Kirk ‘25, managing editor, and I travelled to Rock Hill, South Carolina, for the day to attend the meeting at Winthrop University. The day was packed with several panels, roundtable discussions and learning opportunities. 

We both learned about various ways in which The Old Gold & Black could better report news to and serve the Wofford community. This is always a highlight for me because, while winning awards is great, it’s even more important to recognize that there is always room for growth and to strategize on what that growth will look like. 

“Attending the 2024 SCPA conference was such a wonderful learning opportunity. We were able to learn from students across the state and how they are working to keep journalism alive on college campuses,” Kirk said. “It was also so helpful to learn about the different obstacles collegiate journalists are facing across the state. Making connections with students who have a similar campus environment to Wofford was one of the highlights of this experience.”

For us, I have noticed that we need some growth in areas such as reporting breaking news in a timely manner, given that we are a biweekly publication. Luckily, we discussed many ways to make this growth possible, and I believe that The Old Gold & Black will implement these strategies. 

As far as the awards section of the conference, I am so proud to announce that we came home with eight awards, including two first place rankings, one second place ranking and five second place rankings. 

We were awarded first place for sports photograph and news story. Hailey Hirter ‘26, layout and design editor, won for her photo of the equestrian team. This photo was selected because she “anticipated the timing of the shot and captured a frame that tells the story.”

An anonymous writer won the first place in news story category for their reporting in “Murdaugh trials and tribulations.” The judges said that this article was chosen because of its ability to relate a national issue to Wofford’s campus. 

Additionally, we received second place for arts and entertainment story. This was awarded to Emory Robinson ’26, staff writer, for her story, “Wofford student to produce and star in short film ‘After Party.’”

The final five awards we won were all third place in their category. Our paper won third place for general excellence, which is an award based on the overall success of the publication. 

Nick Ross ’26, web designer, won third place for our website usage. Nola Webb ’26, staff writer, won third place for sports story with her story, “Growing up on the sidelines.”

My story, “‘Bath towels do not belong in toilets,’” won third place for news story. Finally, Hirter won third place for page one design for issue 5. 

Congratulations to all who won awards this year. I am so proud of the progress that our publication has made this year and am excited to see what is in store next. 

I also want to be sure to recognize each of our staff members for their hard work this year, whether they won an award or not. Our team has worked hard and had a lot of fun doing it. I am proud of the growth that each staff member has made. 

If you are interested in applying for a staff position at The Old Gold & Black, applications are now open and can be found on our Instagram or in the daily announcements. 

Please email me at [email protected] if you have any questions about the application process or would like more information about what it’s like working for The Old Gold & Black.