IPDA National Champions

Debate Team wins IPDA National Title

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On the weekend of March 27, the Union University debate team brought home the national title from the International Public Debate Association national championship at Boise State University in Boise, Idaho. The team won first place in the novice and professional divisions, the team sweepstakes and the overall season long Founders Award, the season-long championship.

“It was a really great feeling at the tournament,” said Allison Pulliam, junior double major in broadcast journalism and political science. “It was a really good feeling to be able to walk up on stage and everyone on our team win an award.”

Pulliam won first in the nation for the professional division in season long awards.

“It was extremely enjoyable,” said Thomas Gray, sophomore broadcast journalism major. “We did something that was unprecedented and unheard of.”

The schools that the team went to compete with ranged from small schools to large universities.

“It was also really interesting to have nationals in Boise because a lot of our tournaments were regional tournaments and we were competing against people from the south,” Pulliam said.

 

Gray also said competing nationally was different than competing regionally because there are schools from all over the country, so competitors have different backgrounds and styles of speaking, and that provided the team with a different dynamic.

“I appreciated seeing all the different styles at nationals because when you compete regionally, it can isolate you and your team just a little bit, from the rest of the country,” Gray said. “Nationals was a really great opportunity to break out from your region and see what people from other parts of the country value in the way they debate.”

Pulliam said that the team was competitive and driven to succeed, and this helped them be victorious at nationals.

Web Drake, chairman of the communication arts department and the debate director, went along with the team on this journey and watched them succeed.

“This year’s team was a privilege to coach,” Drake said. “They understood what was necessary and set out to accomplish their objectives with determination and focus.”

C&C Magazine

C&C Magazine named Best in the South

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C&C, a magazine publication of Cardinal and Cream, was named Best College Magazine of the South at the Southeast Journalism Conference in Atlanta, Georgia, the weekend of Feb. 26-Feb. 28.

Katherine Burgess, senior journalism major and editor-in-chief of Cardinal and Cream, said she was surprised and excited by the award.

“My heart jumped and I nearly teared up when I found out the magazine was the ‘Best of the South’,” Burgess said.

Jenaye White, senior public relations major and managing editor of print for Cardinal and Cream, said she had a similar reaction.

“I was blown away and so excited,” she said. “It’s a huge deal to win such a prestigious award.”

Last semester was the first semester Cardinal and Cream published a magazine. It was a collaborative effort by the entire staff, and Burgess said she was pleased to see their work recognized.

“From the photos to the text to the layout, the pieces came together beautifully for our first magazine. I’m so pleased with the work the Cardinal and Cream staff accomplished. It’s wonderful to see that work acknowledged by SEJC,” she said.

Courtney Brown, senior art major and design editor for Cardinal and Cream, said she thought collaboration was key to the magazine’s success.

“It was a real group effort across the board. There was a real commitment to excellence, so everyone poured in a lot of time and effort to make it timely and timeless,” said Brown.

White agreed, and said careful planning was also integral to the magazine’s success.

“We thought long and hard about each article, and I think our careful planning really showed in our final project,” she said.

Ashley Fitch Blair, faculty adviser to Cardinal and Cream, said that not only was each article carefully planned, but every visual detail was as well.

“I believe attention to detail really gave us an edge. The staff did an exceptional job of combining strong writing, design and visuals. Nothing was left to chance. Every story, photo, graphic, color and font was intentionally chosen and refined to create a cohesive piece,” said Blair.

The conference is composed of more than 45 colleges and universities in seven states across the southeast. Each year, the top ten individuals and schools are awarded for their work in a variety of categories ranging from multimedia journalism to print layout. Cardinal and Cream staff won a total of twelve awards.

Cardinal and Cream’s print newspaper was ranked third and the website was ranked sixth. Individual awards include alumnae Kate Benedetti, fifth in magazine writing;  Brown, second in magazine layout; Burgess, second in the College Journalist of the Year category and sixth in news writing;  senior Christian ministry and missions major Mikalla Cotton, second in multimedia journalism; senior advertising major Evan Estes, ninth in arts and entertainment writing; alumnus Nathan Handley, second in special events coverage and sixth in newspaper page layout and White, eighth in feature writing.

Estes said he was both surprised and pleased at his individual award, and advised aspiring journalists to “treat every article as if you were submitting it to win an award.”

Cotton said she was “pleasantly surprised” with her award. “I knew I could have made my multimedia submission better, but I’m still humbled to receive such a high reward,” she said.

Blair said her hopes for future C&C magazines are high.

“The inaugural C&C staff has created a tremendous foundation for the future and set a high bar for excellence. I hope the C&C will build on this foundation, showcasing the unique strengths of each year’s editors, writers, photographers and designers as they cover compelling stories for the Union community,” she said.

Cardinal and Cream’s next magazine will be available May 1.