Two collegiate scholarship winners have been announced for 2020. The winers are Catie Denfeld of White Oak and Kaylee Pippins of Azle.

CATIE DENFELD
 Catie is from White Oak and currently a student at the University of Houston. Catie is an award winning collegiate journalist who has served as Photo Editor, Copy Editor and photojournalist for Kilgore College’s nationally recognized publication “The Flare”.

Catie has earned numerous awards which include:

Most Outstanding Journalism Student at Kilgore College

Columbia Scholastic Press Association-1st place Entertainment Review, 2nd place News Page Design, as well as three Certificates of Merit for a photo story and photographs.

Texas Intercollegiate Press Association-1st place Photo Essay live competition, 2nd breaking news photo, 3rd Feature Photo, 3rd Cover Design Newspaper

Texas Community College Journalism Association-1st place Photo Essay, 3rd Feature Photo.

In Catie’s NETPA application she wrote:
“Keeping up with community journalism is very important when it comes down to knowing what is going on locally in your own area. When it comes to small towns like White Oak, the newspaper is the only place you can go to stay informed of all that is going on within city hall, as well as on the streets.”

KAYLEE PIPPINS

Kaylee is from Azle and is currently a student at Tarleton State University. She has been published in the Azle News, Springtown Epigraph and in work for the Azle Chamber of Commerce. While in high school she was the Editor-in-Chief of “The Sting” Azle High School’s newspaper which she helped resurrect after a decade of dormancy. Kaylee was also the Yearbook Design Editor for “The Hornet”. She was a UIL journalism competitor qualifying for state her senior year.

In her NETPA application Kaylee wrote:
“Community journalism, especially in rural populations, is important because instead of focusing on the quantity of news, reporters can truly develop quality stories that reflect the state of their community and bring their community closer together. Also, community journalism and local papers establish a strong and loyal audience because they are reporting on news happening in their immediate area. People are more likely to read a local newspaper if the news has occurred in their backyard.
Community journalism is important because it keeps local reporters accountable and true to their community. Local papers establish strong bonds within the community with news content, but also with advertising and other local businesses.”