Southeastern students honored by Louisiana Press Association, media organizations
Tuesday, June 25, 2019 
by: Tonya Lowentritt
AWARD WINNING SPORTS PHOTO – Southeastern Louisiana University Lion’s Roar Reporter Nikisun Shrestha was recognized for his photography by the Louisiana Press Association “Better Newspaper Contest” for 2019. Shrestha received a second place award in the Best Feature Photo category, along with a first place award in the Best Sports Photo category for this photo. Shown is Southeastern senior pole-vaulter Devin King as he attempts to regain the facility record at Southeastern Track Complex. He held the previous record that was broken by Lafayette High School’s Armand Duplantis with a height of 19-01 feet. Photo credit: Nikisun Shrestha/The Lion’s Roar.
HAMMOND – Southeastern Louisiana University’s student newspaper, The Lion’s Roar,
recently received several awards from the Louisiana Press Association “Better Newspaper
Contest” for 2019.
The Lion’s Roar staff was recognized in several categories of the competition
with awards for first place in the Best Overall Website category and second place
in the General Excellence category. Southeastern student journalists also received
awards for page design and photography. The Nebraska Press Association judged this
year’s 1,034 entries from 37 publications and college and university student newspapers.
The Lion’s Roar Editor-in-Chief Annie Goodman, a senior majoring in communication
from Denham Springs, took first place in the Best Feature Story category for her piece
titled “Overcoming Addiction: four years sober.” Goodman also received second place
in the Best Front Page category for her design work for the front pages of the August
28, 2018 and November 13, 2018 issues of The Lion’s Roar.
“I have learned so much from working at The Lion’s Roar,” said Goodman. “I never
expected to be where I am today achieving the things I am. I’ve won a few awards over
the years, but this is my first, first place award, which is pretty exciting.”
Reporter Nikisun Shrestha also received recognition for his photography. Shrestha,
a senior majoring in accounting from Nepal, was honored with a first place award in
the Best Sports Photo category, along with a second place award in the Best Feature
Photo category.
Recently the staff of The Lion’s Roar also received awards from the Louisiana-Mississippi
Associated Press Broadcasters and Media Editors College Contest competition and the
Columbia Scholastic Press Association’s Gold Circle Awards in March.
Jacob Summerville, a senior political science major from Baton Rouge, was awarded
second place in the Feature Photo category at the LA-MS APME Career Day and College
Awards held at the Two Mississippi Museums in Jackson, Miss. Summerville’s photo featured
students who performed in the production of “The Beautiful Bridegroom.”
For the Columbia Scholastic Press Association Gold Circle Awards, Riana Brasleman
and Jonathan Rhodes, both former staff reporters for The Lion’s Roar, were honored
for their work in cartooning and sports photography respectively.
Brasleman, a senior majoring in social work from Mandeville, was recognized for
her cartoon portfolio showcasing her work titled “Dear College,” which received a
second place award in the Cartoons category and a third place award in the Cartoon
Portfolio of Work category.
Rhodes, a recent graduate in communication from Slidell, also placed third in
the Single Sports Photography category for his photo titled “Lions Win Game Despite
Rainout.”
“My staff has grown so much since they joined, and I love watching them flourish,”
Goodman continued. “Seeing them recognized for their good work is really amazing -
especially since I know I don’t praise them nearly enough. Now, I can’t wait to see
what awards our newer staff members will receive this time next year.”
Goodman was also recognized by the Gold Circle Awards for her opinion piece titled
“Decoding the Barcode Tattoo,” with a second place prize in the Personal Opinion:
Off-campus Issues category.
“These talented students continuously learn and grow as individuals, while at
the same time serving the campus with compelling and unique news information,” said
Lee E. Lind, director of Student Publications. “We are extremely proud of the recognition
they have received for their hard work and dedication to the Southeastern community.”
The Lion’s Roar and its staff have garnered over 20 awards in the past two years
from competitions such as the LPA’s Better Newspaper Contest, the LA-MS APME, the
American Scholastic Press Association and the CSPA Gold Circle Awards.
To view past issues of the award winning publication, readers can visit www.lionsroarnews.com. Readers can also view content from The Lion’s Roar by subscribing to the publication’s
new e-mail newsletter sent out weekly, following the newspaper’s social media accounts,
reading a digital version on Issuu.com, or picking up a copy of the paper at one of
our 88 newsstands located on campus or in the Hammond community.
