Oakland, CA–March 11, 2009. Mills College's student newspaper, the Campanil, won the top journalism award in its division for general newspaper excellence as well as first place in nine other categories. The bi-weekly publication received a total of 15 honors awarded by the California College Media Association at its Feb. 28 ceremony.

In addition to winning General Excellence, the newspaper won Best Editorial in its division; Best Breaking News by current Campanil editor Jennifer Courtney; Best Arts and Entertainment Column, written by Lola Olson; and Best Sports Story, written by Maureen Leahy.

Former Campanil editor Bonne Marie Bautista won two top awards, Best Features Photo and Best Photo Illustration, while her colleagues Allison Morris, Jennifer Courtney, and Anna Belle Peterson won first, second, and third, respectively for Best News Photo.

Mills College students Sandhya Dirks won first place, and Kathleen Donovan won second place for Best Personal Opinion. Christina Macias won first place, and Sarah Gonzalez won second place for Best Arts and Entertainment Story. Kathleen Donovan won third place for Best News Feature.

"I'm immensely proud of what our student journalists achieve," said English professor and Campanil advisor Sarah Pollock. "We're a small college, and yet the students here manage to produce a regular, independent newspaper which covers many important stories. They do it well and they show a great deal of initiative."

Nestled in the foothills of Oakland, California, Mills College is a nationally renowned, independent liberal arts college offering a dynamic progressive education that fosters leadership, social responsibility, and creativity to approximately 950 undergraduate women and 500 graduate women and men. Since 2000, applications to Mills College have more than doubled. The College is named one of the top colleges in the West by U.S. News & World Report, one of the Best 368 Colleges by the Princeton Review, and ranks 75th among America's best colleges by Forbes.com. Visit us at www.mills.edu.

PRESS CONTACT:
Quynh Tran
Media Relations Manager
510.430.2300