The Kentucky Kernel won 19 Best of the South Awards as well as four on-site competition awards during the Southeast Journalism Conference (SEJC).
SEJC, an academic organization created to encourage greater interest in student journalism according to the SEJC website, was held this year in Starkville, Mississippi from Jan. 31 through Feb. 2.
According to former Kernel Editor-in-Chief Hannah Stanley, this would be the second year the Kernel attended SEJC.
Stanley, who served as editor-in-chief for the 2023-24 academic year, said SEJC served as a way for Kernelites to learn more about journalism in the real world.
“There’s been a good understanding and a lot of growth in our writers and in general coverage and understanding that it’s important to have everything out in a timely stance,” Stanley said.
Stanley, who graduated in December 2024, received two awards at SEJC for her work done at the Kernel during 2023-24.
“It’s just a unique position that you get to be in to see that, even after you leave, there’s still success happening,” Stanley said. “There’s never one person leading everything. You have so many people who are happy to help out and who are succeeding and learning and really putting together a strong newsroom.”
Current Kernel Editor-in-Chief Abbey Cutrer said she was proud of the work done by the Kernel this year, especially the Kernelites who had just recently joined the Kernel.
“I have absolutely loved being part of the current year and leading a team of such incredibly talented journalists,” Cutrer said. “I think the Kernel is better because of the younger people on our staff, and they’ll be the next generation to take over.”
Cutrer said she was happy she decided to bring some of the younger Kernelites to SEJC this year, as the Kernel did not do so the year prior.
“That completely changed the dynamic of the trip for the better, and I am really hopeful that the freshmen we brought on the trip will take what they learned and continue to run with it,” Cutrer said. “I’m just really thankful they were there.”
University of Kentucky Student Media Advisor Ryan Craig said the most important part of SEJC was not the awards won, but the on-site competition.
“It’s more the experience of the contest that they have on-site there and the things we can learn from that that I feel like is the most important part of SEJC,” Craig said.
Craig said the SEJC competition helped less experienced Kernelites learn more about how to react to things like tight deadlines.
“At some point, some of the ones that are younger, especially that participated, are gonna be the leaders,” Craig said. “It’s good for them to have a high-pressure situation like the on-site contest to participate in. . .it’s a good real-life application of what we do.”
Craig also said he was proud of the work done by the current and former editors-in-chief at both the Kentucky Kernel and KRNL.
UK Student Media Coordinator Bryce McNeil said SEJC served as a way to recognize student journalists.
“It’s (the) gathering of Southeastern universities with journalism and com programs and a celebration of the journalism that those students do and are learning to do,” McNeil said.
McNeil, a former president of SEJC, has been the treasurer of SEJC since 2016.
Kernel Assistant Photo Editor Christian Kantosky said he was proud of the work he did while at SEJC.
“I was confident going in and knew the opportunity would arise for me to seize it, so I bet on myself,” Kantosky said.
Kantosky, who won first place in the on-site competition for best feature photography, said he was hopeful to win another first place award at the next conference.
“Now I have a photo to remember my work by,” Kantosky said. “I hope to go back and compete again and hopefully be considered for Best of the South for the photographers of the year.”
Kernel Feature and Copy Editor Kennedy Parker said she loved being able to connect more with her fellow Kernelites while at SEJC.
“I always have a lot of fun going on the Kernel trips because you get closer with some people you might not necessarily see every day, like the broadcasters,” Parker said. “I really enjoyed getting to know them more.”
Parker won second place in the SEJC on-site competition for best feature writing and said it was very meaningful to her to win an award.
“I wanted to set the standard and show my writers that you can win awards for writing,” Parker said. “It was just something super special to me because it showed that all of my hard work ended up paying off and that all of my hard work has not just been wasted.”
List of Kentucky Kernel SEJC award winners:
Best of the South Awards
Best News Writer
4th place: Hannah Stanley
Best Feature Writer
1st place: Reaghan Chen
Best Op/Ed Writer
5th place: Peyton Keyes
Best Sportswriter
Honorable mention: Cole Parke
Best Photographer
2nd place: Abbey Cutrer
Best Graphic Artist/Data Journalist
4th place: Sara Nelson and Ashleigh Jones
Best Newspaper Designer
2nd place: Akhila Nadimpalli
Best Magazine Writer
2nd place: Carlee Hogsten
Best TV Feature Reporter
1st place: Bryce Towle
Best TV Journalist
1st place: Edward Smith
Best Advertising Staffer
2nd place: Bryce Towle
Best Multimedia Journalist
3rd place: Samantha Money
Best Audio Program
4th place: University of Kentucky
Best Video Newscast
2nd place: University of Kentucky
Best Magazine
1st place: University of Kentucky
Best Newspaper
1st place: Kentucky Kernel
Best Website
2nd place: University of Kentucky
Best Research Paper
2nd place: Alexis Baker
Journalist of the Year
4th place: Hannah Stanley
On-site Competition Awards
Feature Photography
1st place: Christian Kantosky
Feature Writing
2nd place: Kennedy Parker
News Writing
3rd place: Lilly Keith
Current Events Quiz
3rd place: Casey Sebastiano