WKU News

For the first time, WKU Student Publications has four finalists for national Pacemaker awards -- one in each category in which the Associated Collegiate Press honors the nation's best student-run publications.

WKU's finalists for the honors, which will be awarded in October at the National College Media Convention in Dallas, are:

• College Heights Herald - finalist for the newspaper Pacemaker.
• Talisman - finalist for the magazine Pacemaker.
• 2016 Talisman: Life More Life - finalist for the yearbook Pacemaker.
• WKUTalisman.com - finalist for the online Pacemaker.

"Having a finalist in every category for the Pacemakers is extraordinary," said Chuck Clark, director of WKU Student Publications. "It shows our students know how to think big, work hard and execute well. This says our students are among the very best in the country at producing exceptional publications."

This is the first year WKU has had student-run publications eligible in all four Pacemaker categories.

"The transition of the Talisman from a yearbook to a life and culture magazine, and the timing of the yearbook awards, gave us a one-time opportunity to compete in all four categories," Clark said. "To emerge as a finalist in each is quite extraordinary, especially with Talisman reaching that level of quality in its first year as a magazine."

Talisman's final edition as a yearbook covered the 2015-16 year. Its inaugural issues as a life and culture magazine were in November 2016 and April 2017.

The Pacemaker is considered the most prestigious award a student-run publication can earn. WKU's student publications have been awarded 33 Pacemakers through the years -- 18 for Talisman and 15 for the College Heights Herald, earning each publication a spot in the ACP Hall of Fame.

Editors for the periods the Pacemaker contest covered were:

• College Heights Herald: Brandon Carter, a December 2016 graduate now living in Washington, D.C.; and Lashana Harney, a senior from Paris, Kentucky. The adviser was Carrie Pratt.
• Talisman magazine: Kylee Kaetzel, a May 2017 graduate now living in New York City. The adviser was Charlotte Turtle.
• 2016 Talisman: Life More Life: Naomi Driessnack, a May 2016 graduate now living in New York City; and Tanner Cole, a May 2016 graduate now living in Burlington, Iowa. The adviser was Charlotte Turtle.
• WKUTalisman.com: Helen Gibson, a senior from Cadiz who is now editor-in-chief of Talisman. The adviser was Charlotte Turtle.

Contact: Chuck Clark, (270) 745-4206, chuck.clark@wku.edu