News Tribune staff nets 22 awards at MPA conference

The News Tribune's downtown office at 210 Monroe St. in Jefferson City.
The News Tribune's downtown office at 210 Monroe St. in Jefferson City.

The News Tribune staff took home 22 awards from the Missouri Press Association's Better Newspaper Concert for 2016, awarded Sept. 30 at the 151st Annual MPA Convention in Springfield.

The News Tribune staff overall earned an honorable mention for General Excellence.

Reporter Michelle Brooks took first place in the Best Story About Rural Life or Agriculture category for "Mapping history," which described an effort to mark graves at Middle River Memorial Cemetery in Tebbetts, and first place in Best Military Story for "Treasure trove of military history," a look at new exhibit items brought to the Museum of Missouri Military History.

Sports reporter Jason Strickland took first place in Best Sports Photo for capturing the Jefferson City Jays baseball team's celebration after winning the Class 5 semifinals.

Photographer Kris Wilson took first place in Best Photo Package.

Design Editor Doug Waggoner and Assistant Design Editor Molly Skyles earned first place in Best Headline Writing, as well as third place in Best Front Page.

Skyles also took second place in Best Page Design.

Reporter Jeff Haldiman took second place in Best Breaking News Story for "Gunshots hit JC school bus," which informed community members of an April 2016 incident affecting a Jefferson City Public Schools bus, and third place in the same category for "Riverside rescue," describing another April 2016 incident where local emergency personnel rescued a couple who had fallen off a cliff near the Union Pacific Railroad.

Former HER Magazine editor Shelley Gabert earned second place in the Magazine/Alternative Publication category for HER Magazine.

Haldiman and reporter Shelby Rowe took second place in the Best News or Feature Series category for daily coverage of a trial spanning more than a week in Pat Rowe Kerr's lawsuit against the Missouri Veterans Commission and Director Larry Kay.

Brooks also took second place in Best Story About History for "Guardian of a treasured past," which profiled Mark Schleer's work as Lincoln University archivist, as well as honorable mention in the same category for "State Archive to digitize property records," which covered a partnership between Cole County recorder of deeds and the Missouri Secretary of State's Office to preserve historic Cole County property records.

Jim Dyke took second place in Best Editorial Cartoon for "Keep off grass" and honorable mention in the same category for "Too busy to vote."

Rowe earned third place in Best Feature Story for "A neighborhood steeped in history," which shared the history of Jefferson City's Roland Street neighborhood while the Jefferson City School District was considering purchasing property there.

City Editor Rebecca Martin earned third place in Best Business Story for "New Truman Hotel funding plan proposed," which outlined a proposed plan to use lodging and property tax funds to reimburse the Puri Group of Enterprises for redevelopment costs on the former Truman Hotel property should tax increment financing have been approved.

Martin also received honorable mention in Best Investigative Reporting for "Uber tricky," which examined use of the ride-hailing service in Jefferson City before the City Council approved operation of transportation network companies, as well as proposed statewide legislation; in Best Business Story for "Working the clock," which outlined how new federal overtime regulations could affect businesses and employees; in Best Local Business Coverage; and in Best News or Feature Special Section for the #jcmo Inside Business journal with the News Tribune staff.