Latest Achievements

Research by the Department of Forestry and Wildland Resources faculty was recently featured in a special issue of _California Agriculture_, a quarterly journal of peer-reviewed research from the University of California Division of Agriculture and Natural Resources. The issue titled, _Forestry: Managing for the Future_ highlights a wide range of forestry related research being conducted in California.

Sara Hanna and Ken Fulgham, Lecturer and Emeritus Professor respectively in the Forestry & Wildland Resources Department, had their article on Post-fire vegetation dynamics of a sagebrush steppe community change significantly over time published in California Agriculture, Volume 69, Number 1, January-March 2015. The article summarizes almost 30 years’ worth of data collected on two prescribed wildland fire sites in the Clear Lake Hills area of Modoc County. Significant findings regarding the post-fire plant community trajectories and changes over time have management implications for domestic livestock grazing, interstate mule deer herd winter range use, and the provision of suitable habitat for the threatened Sage Grouse (_Centrocercus urophasianus_).

Journalism Major Javier Rojas has been elected to the California College Media Association as a student board member. The former managing editor of the Lumberjack newspaper will represent the interests of student newspapers across the state.

Communication Professor Michael S. Bruner presented the paper, "Methods for Accounting for the Reception of Food-Related Photographs," at the annual meeting/conference of the Association for the Study of Food and Society in Pittsburgh, PA, June 24-28, 2015. The paper was co-authored by Brittany Stuckey, an Undergraduate Research Fellow in the CAHSS. The study reported on four research methods, including a Bruner & Stuckey photo array and survey of 170 HSU undergraduates in Spring 2015, using the International Affective Picture System.

Geology Professor Lori Dengler and Lecturer Amanda Admire presented talks at the 26th International Union of Geodesy and Geophysics in Prague, Czech Republic

Dr. Steven Steinberg, Adjunct Professor of Geospatial Sciences, was honored by the California Geographic Information Association with the Advancement in Collaboration Award granted for outstanding application of GIS technology representing innovative, elegant, or creative techniques. The award was made at the 21st Annual CalGIS Conference in Sacramento on June 1. For more information: http://cgia.org/2015/06/2015-cgia-award-winners/.

Two HSU students recently won first place in their category at the 40th Annual West Coast Biological Sciences Undergraduate Research Conference at Point Loma Nazarene University in San Diego. Carsten Charlesworth and Kyle Herout took first in the Cell Biology category for their presentation on the Paternal Effect Genes of C. Elegans. Their adviser on the project was Biological Sciences Professor Jakob Varkey.

Three Humboldt State University students passed the rigorous “Fundamentals of Soil Science” exam offered April 17, 2015 becoming Associate Professional Soil Scientists, according to test results from the Council of Soil Science Examiners. Crystal Welch, Andrew Longman and Tyler Hanson were among five individuals in California who attempted the exam this spring and were the only California examinees to pass the exam. Nationally, 61 individuals took the exam with a pass rate of 59% overall according to Michele Lovejoy, Program Manager for Professional Development of the Soil Science Society of America.

Crystal Welch graduated in Fall 2014 with a degree in Rangeland Resource Science (Wildland Soils option). After performing lab analysis of soils for Dirty Business Consulting in Arcata, Crystal starting working as a field scientist for the Great Basin Institute in Reno, Nevada. Andrew Longman graduated Spring 2014 with a degree in Rangeland Resource Science (Wildland Soils option) and will soon begin a position as Junior Specialist for Organic/Conventional Farming Project with Dr. Louise Jackson at U.C. Davis. Andy will help study the effects of water deficits on crop physiology, biology and pests. Tyler Hanson has completed his minor in Wildland Soil Science, and will graduate in Fall 2015 with a degree in Botany. Robin Halloran, another Wildland Soils option graduate (Spring 2015), passed the same exam November 21, 2014. In summary, 16 out of 23 HSU students who have attempted the exam have passed (70%) since 2011, well above the national average pass maximum of 63% for the same time period.

Those who pass the fundamentals exam will be eligible to take the Professional Practice exam after five years of professional experience, an additional step in becoming a Certified Professional Soil Scientist. Recent Soil Science Society of America (SSSA) discussions about program self-certification have included the fundamentals exam as one indicator of program quality. Given that the exam is multiple choice, it does not evaluate students’ field skills per se, but is an exam that is offered nationwide and is therefore ‘portable.’ Humboldt State University Wildland Soils students (an option under the Rangeland Resource Science major) spend more than 200 hours in field or laboratory learning experiences, honing hands-on skills and field judgment of soil properties, limitations, and capabilities.

Communication Professor Michael S. Bruner's article, "Labeling: Organic, Local, Genetically Modified," appears in the new SAGE Encyclopedia of Food Issues. See Vol. 2: 877-882. The article arose from previous work in the HSU Communication Department on California Prop 37 and on the organic food movement. The three volume encyclopedia was released in hardcover this month, Ken Albala, Ed. (Thousand Oaks, CA: SAGE Publications, 2015).

Sarah Jaquette Ray attended the "Rethinking Race in the Anthropocene" symposium at the University of Oregon May 7-9.

Politics Professor Selma Sonntag is one of two editors of State Traditions and Language Regimes, recently published by McGill-Queen’s University Press, in which scholars from Asia, Europe, and North America shift focus from the consequences of language policies to how and why states make language policy choices.

For the past four years, Social Work Faculty Member César Abarca has helped plan, coordinate, and implement a community-based, grassroots organization, Los Jardines Institute's 4 Direction Intergenerational Youth Exchange, in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Two videos produced by youth who attended the summer institute are now available to view.

"Video One - Four Directions Youth Exchange 2012":https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UDriNsPHpYw

"Video Two - Four Directions Youth Exchange 2013":https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9R3mrMyrm4

The institute is organized with assistance from community organizations including PODER San Francisco, TEJAS Houston, TX, New Mexico Acequia Association, TEWA Women United NM, El Chante Casa de Cultura, and ABQ NM, among others.

Sarah Fay Philips has successfully completed the Cascadia Center for Leadership's 2015 Leadership Training Program, demonstrating exceptional leadership skills, vision, and commitment to action.

The California Newspaper Publishers Association awarded Professor Marcy Burstiner first place for best column in the weekly newspaper division in its 2014 Better Newspapers Contest. The CNPA presented Burstiner with the award May 9 in a ceremony in San Diego for two columns published in the North Coast Journal: "What's Not to Know," published Feb. 27, 2014 and "The Big Chill," published March 27, 2014. Burstiner has written a monthly column on local media, the public's right to know and First Amendment issues for the Journal since 2006.

The California Newspaper Publishers Association awarded The Lumberjack newspaper first place for general excellence in the 4-year college newspaper category in its 2014 Better Newspapers Contest, deeming it the top student newspaper in the state for 4-year colleges. The judges said: “The paper has a professional look. Excellent layout and design throughout. Stories were tight and well-written. Headlines are clean and crisp. News reporting was balanced and covered all sides well. Overall, a great college newspaper executed with flair and authority.” The 2014 Lumberjack teams were lead by students Diover Duario, Rebecca Gallegos, Israel LeFrak and Ian Bradley.

The California Environmental Legacy Project’s 2-hour program, "Becoming California" was recently nominated for four EMMY Awards, including Best Documentary Program by the San Francisco/Northern California Chapter of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences. It also received nominations for the 44th Annual Northern California Emmy Awards in the categories of writing, photography and editing. The California Environmental Legacy Project is a multimedia initiative that aims to raise public understanding of environmental change and stimulate a new culture of stewardship. The project was led by Sacramento State and Humboldt State and HSU students were key contributors.

Social Work student Bobbie Good co-facilitated with Byrd Lochtie May 4 at a session for board members and those working with boards on behalf of NorCAN, which promotes connections between people and organizations that work make the community healthy and strong.

The monthly presentations focus on keeping local organizations fresh through learning, sharing, and networking with the premise that local boards lead, delegate and inspire.

Good presented her masters project, which includes templates, tools and tips for local nonprofit boards to create and modify board manuals, bylaws, and orientations. Good was formerly a board president and is currently the secretary of the Humboldt Area Center for Harm Reduction (HACHR) board.

"It was such a wonderful experience," says Bobbie. "The board round table was attended by almost twice as many people as usual. I was presented with a gift from HACHR at the event as a thank you for my consulting for their agency related to my project. It was a magical day in my world."

Good's guide is available at the Humboldt Area Foundation resource library or can be requested in PDF.

Adjunct faculty members, Drs. Sheila and Steven Steinberg published a new book with Esri Press, “GIS Research Methods: Incorporating Spatial Perspectives”. This book shows researchers how to incorporate spatial thinking and geographic information system (GIS) technology into research design and analysis. Topics include research design, digital data sources, volunteered geographic information, analysis using GIS, and how to link research results to policy and action. Concepts presented in the book can be applied to projects in a range of social and physical sciences by researchers using GIS for the first time and experienced practitioners looking for new and innovative research techniques.

Social Work Lecturer Holly Scaglione recently partnered with Redwood Equine Partners and Healing Strides Psychotherapy, Inc. to offer an equine-assisted growth and learning demonstration at Redwood Acres. Social work students, staff and faculty attended the demonstration.

“Attendees learned from professionals in the field what it is like to do this work and how it is effective for clients (individuals, couples, families, and groups) seeking change in their life," said Holly. "The event was a great success for all involved, including the horses!”

EAGL incorporates horses experientially for emotional growth and learning. It is a collaborative effort between facilitators, clients, and horses to address personal or treatment goals. Participants learn about themselves and others by engaging in activities with the horses, and then processing or discussing feelings, behaviors, and patterns. The approach has been compared to ropes courses used by therapists, treatment facilities, and human development courses. For more information, visit "http://redwoodequinepartners.com/":http://redwoodequinepartners.com/.

Math student Camille Skweir won the National Disc Golf Championship in Augusta, Georgia on April 17th. For more, visit http://www.pdga.com/tour/event/20981.

Matthew Derrick, assistant professor in the Department of Geography, recently published a chapter titled “Territoriality and the Muslim Spiritual Boards of Russia” in The Changing World Religion Map (New York: Springer), edited by Stan Brunn.

Humboldt State has received a 2014-2015 Campus as a Living Lab grant from the California State University. HSU will use the grant to redesign Energy, Technology & Society (ENVS 370), an upper level course that explores technical, economic and policy changes concerning energy generation and use.

The Campus as a Living Lab Grant Program provides funds for teams of faculty and facilities staff to develop or redesign of a course that ties elements of sustainability into opportunities for learning using the campus physical plant. Funds of up to $12,000 are awarded to support the teams in the preparation of the proposed course.

Jesus Perez’s senior thesis “Latina/o Self-Identified Students at HSU: Beyond Their Freshmen Year” was selected for the 2015 Distinguished Undergraduate Student Paper Award from the Pacific Sociological Association (PSA).

Professor Gil Cline, Department of Music, has been recognized by the international music world via inclusion of his biography in the recent German publication "Das grosse Buch der Trompete" ("The Big Book of the Trumpet") A survey of accomplished, leading trumpet performers from around the globe, this honor stems in large part to his practical research on renaissance and baroque trumpets, which have led to performances of historic music on the natural trumpet, without valves, having no additional tuning conveniences. Locally, his Trumpet Consort von Humboldt, comprised of Cline, HSU undergrads, and recent graduates, explores the performance of music from 1500 - 1850 in a variety of settings, from concert hall to outdoor amphitheater, and from land to sea. TCvH was a hit in New York City at the 2012 Second International Symposium of the Historic Brass Society.

Professor Marcy Burstiner, chair of the Department of Journalism & Mass Communication, was accepted as one of 12 journalism instructors from Hispanic Serving Institutions to attend the Dow Jones Multimedia Training Academy. The intensive workshop in El Paso, Texas, is scheduled for May.

Shannon Childs, Stephanie Lane and Tom Trepiak, along with three student-athletes, received a grant from the NCAA to attend the APPLE Conference in Myrtle Beach, SC, on April 17-19. The APPLE conference identifies seven areas where athletics departments can impact substance abuse among student-athletes: recruitment, expectations & attitudes, policies, education, drug testing, sanctioning and counseling & referral. The goal of the conference is to promote student-athlete health and wellness by empowering teams of student-athletes and administrators to create an institution-specific action plan.

Directing "Slipping". Gist Hall Theatre, April 23-26, April 30, May 1-3

James Floss (Communication Department) has directed “Clybourne Park” opening on April 30 at Redwood Curtain Theatre in Eureka. Clybourne Park is a contemporary, Pulitzer Prize winning follow-up to Lorraine Hansberry’s “A Raisin in the Sun”. Act One takes place in 1959, as nervous community leaders anxiously try to stop the sale of a home to a black family. Act Two is set in the same house in the present day, as the now predominantly African-American neighborhood battles to hold its ground in the face of gentrification.

Art major Maggy Waurin has received an assistantship as a studio technician in the Jewelry & Metals Studio for the Idyllwild Arts Summer Program 2015 for Adults. More information at:
http://www.idyllwildarts.org/page.cfm?p=722

Each winter, the Consortium for Mathematics and Its Applications (COMAP) sponsors the annual Mathematical Modeling Contest (MCM) and Interdisciplinary Contest in Modeling (ICM). As they have for many years, student teams from the HSU Environmental Resources Engineering (ERE) department participated in this four day long contest. Competing against thousands of universities, each team produced a report summarizing their solution to one of four possible problems.

This year, four ERE student teams entered in the competition that began on Thursday evening, February 5 and ended on Monday evening, February 9.

The team consisting of Logan Baumgartner, Alan Ramirez, and Xuesi Feng selected a problem that required they build a mathematical model to analyze the quantity of the medicine needed, possible feasible delivery systems, locations of delivery, and the speed of manufacturing of a vaccine or drug to optimize the eradication of Ebola. Logan, Alan, and Xuesi competed against 5,356 teams and were awarded a ranking of Successful Participant.

The team consisting of Friedel Pretorius, Zachary Ruiz, and Tahsa Sturgis selected a problem that required modeling churn in an organization with the intent of aiding managers and decision makers to build successful systems for recruiting, hiring, training, and evaluating employees. The team's report was awarded the score of Meritorious. Only 12 (2%) of the 641 teams working on this problem scored higher, and 88% of the teams received lower scores.

The team consisting of Dustin Fredricey, Matti Nylander, and Julian Quick selected a problem that required building a model for sustainability and a 20-year sustainable development plan for one country on the United Nations Least Developed Countries list. The teams used their model to evaluate the effect of their 20-year plan on the country's sustainability. Teams searched for pertinent data and grappled with how economic development must consider ecosystem health and social equitability. Dustin, Matti, and Julian competed against 1,496 teams and were awarded a ranking of Successful Participant.

The team consisting of Joanna Murphy, Jacob Rowe, and George Corbett also selected the economic sustainability problem. Their team was awarded the ranking of Outstanding Winner. This ranking was only awarded to 4 of the 1,496 teams working on this problem. Joanna, Jacob, and George also received two additional honors. Their submission was selected to receive the Rachel Carson award, which honors an American conservationist whose book "Silent Spring" initiated the global environmental movement and whose work spanned many disciplines concerned with the local and global environments. This award is presented to a team for excellence in using scientific theory and data in its modeling. Finally, the team only one of two teams that was given the Two Sigma Scholarship Award, which provides a stipend of $3,000 for each of the three team members and a $1,000 award to the ERE department.

Congratulations to the members of all four teams for their high achievement in this event. We appreciate your efforts which bring recognition to the Environmental Resources Engineering Department and to Humboldt State University.

Philosophy Professor John Powell presented an invited paper to the April 2015 meeting of the North American Wittgenstein Society, in Vancouver, British Columbia. The paper title is "Just War Theorists and Pacifists As Ships Passing in the Night." Powell argues that it's too soon to declare just war theorists as victors (as many have done) and that better-grounded arguments and a clearer view of global stakes may renew this crucial debate.

Since completing service as a Peace Corps volunteer teacher-trainer in the Federated States of Micronesia in August 2014, English student Benjamin Ryan Taylor has traveled the country sharing his experiences. In October 2014, he spoke at a Peace Corps recruiting event at his undergraduate alma mater, Knox College in Galesburg, Illinois; and in February, gave two recruiting presentations at Humboldt State. He was also featured on KIEM News Channel 3, Eureka. In March, Taylor presented his work at the TESOL 2015 convention in Toronto, Canada, and in April, he will participate in HSU’s IdeaFest.

Based on their demonstrated potential to contribute to strengthening the vitality of the US science and engineering enterprise, Keith Parker and Anthony Barella of the Indian Natural Resources have been selected to receive 2015 National Science Foundation (NSF) Graduate Research Fellowship Program (GRFP) Fellowships.

The award covers $34,000 per 12-month Fellowship Year for Parker's and Barella's pursuit of graduate degrees. The GRFP Fellowship period is 5 years, or less if a student graduates and complete the fellowship before the 5-year period ends. Financial support is provided for a maximum of three years. Humboldt State will receive a $12,000 Cost of Education Allowance in lieu of all required tuition and fees for each of the three years selected by the students for fellowship funding.

Carlrey Delcastillo and Noemi Pacheco have received a College of Arts, Humanities & Social Sciences award to conduct research on campus this semester on Latin@s and Sustainability at HSU. Professor Sarah Jaquette Ray will present their research at the Association for the Study of Literature and Environment conference, at "Latin@ Environmentalisms: A Pedagogy Workshop" in Moscow, Idaho in June.

Education Professor Marisol Ruiz recently authored a chapter in the book "Immigration and Schooling: Redefining the 21st Century America" edited by Touorizou Hervé Sommé and Pierre Orelus. The chapter is titled: Why are the Spanish Speakers in the Back of the Room in a Dual Immersion Setting?

Alison Holmes, Program Leader of International Studies, has been named a Visiting Scholar to the Roosevelt Study Center in Middelburg, The Netherlands where she will work in the archive on European diplomacy.

Environmental sciences student Brenden Green has received a $1,000 scholarship from the National Ground Water Research and Educational Foundation. Scholarship recipients are entering a field of study that serves, supports, or promotes the groundwater professions.

Master's student Barbara Klessig, and Dr. Isabella von Holstein with Christian Albrechts University, Kiel, Germany will be co-chairing a round table discussion at this year’s EAA conference in Glasgow, Scotland. The session, titled “Integrating Textiles Studies into Mainstream Archaeology/Anthropology Curriculum” brings archaeologists, educators and researchers together to address the lack of textiles studies at the university level and how to better integrate them into the teaching of archaeology and anthropology at universities. Discussion will explore the teaching of textile studies, use of experimental archaeology & making textiles studies relevant.

The Office of Research, Economic and Community Development's Planning Committee for Research, Scholarship and Creative Activities has selected six outstanding student researchers to represent HSU at the 29th Annual California State University Student Research Competition. The annual statewide competition brings outstanding student researchers from the 23 CSU campuses to compete for research awards in discipline-based categories. Following a competitive review of applications, the students selected to represent HSU at CSU San Bernardino May 1-2 are:

Joao Paulo De Sordi Curti, Undergraduate in Forestry & Wildland Resources, “Virtual Interpretive Forest Recreation Project”; faculty advisor – John-Pascal Berrill, Professor, Forestry & Wildland Resources

Haley du Bois, Undergraduate in Biological Sciences, “Dissecting the Role of MAPK Signaling in the Tumor Promoting Properties of Lethal Giant Larvae 1 (Lgl1) in Primary Neural Progenitor/Stem Cells”; faculty advisor – Amy Sprowles, Assistant Professor, Biological Sciences

Nathan A. Graham, Undergraduate in Geology, “Determining Magma Mixing Duration and Dynamics Through Analysis of Reaction Rims on Olivine Crystals in Natural Samples of Black Dacite From the 1915 Eruption of Lassen Peak, CA”; faculty advisor – Brandon Browne, Lecturer, Geology

Jairo Luque Villanueva, Undergraduate in Environmental Resources Engineering, “Forward Osmosis-Direct Contact Membrane Distillation Sewer Mining Waste to Resource System”; faculty advisor – Andrea Achilli, Assistant Professor, Environmental Resources Engineering

Sylvia Nicovich, Graduate candidate in Geology, “Latest Pleistocene to Holocene River Terrace Deformation within the Southeastern Extent of the Little Salmon Fault Zone: Geomorphic Insights to Fault Termination and Rupture History, Van Duzen River, Northern California”; faculty advisor – Mark Hemphill-Haley, Professor and Chair, Geology

Madelinn Schriver, Graduate candidate in Forestry and Wildland Resources, “Establishment and Growth Patterns of Oregon White Oak and California Black Oak Woodlands in Northwestern California”; faculty advisor – Rosemary Sherriff, Associate Professor and Chair, Geography

These students will serve as exemplars of how student research is produced, supported, and promoted at HSU and compete based on their written summaries and oral presentations of their research.

Students Ivan de Soto and Paradise Martinez Graff have been chosen to attend the California Forum for Diversity in Graduate Education at Sonoma State on April 18-20, where they'll learn about the challenges and opportunities of pursuing grad school. They also received a competitive CAHSS research award to attend the Association for the Study of Literature and Environment Conference in Idaho in June with ENST Program Leader Sarah Jaquette Ray, where they'll be participating in "Latin@ Environmentalisms: A Pedagogy Workshop." Ivan has also been elected co-director of CCAT.

HSU's Business Internship program will be honored at the Arcata Economic Development Corporation's Spotlight on Success event Tuesday, March 31 at the Arcata Theater Lounge. The free event includes an opportunity to learn about small businesses that the local economy, and organizations that provide business support to local entrepreneurs.

The HSU Social Work Student Association (SWSA) recently participated in the 32nd annual Bowl for Kids' Sake "Jungle Bowl" event, which took place March 6-7, 2015 at Harbor Lanes in Eureka.

The SWSA was one of 134 funding teams and raised $650 (of the $100,000 raised at the event this year) that will go to help with the year’s operating costs at Big Brothers Big Sisters of the North Coast.

Disguised as bananas, the SWSA also won a trophy for costumes and enthusiasm.

Politics Professor John Meyer's book, "Engaging the Everyday: Environmental Social Criticism and the Resonance Dilemma," has been published by MIT Press. http://mitpress.mit.edu/books/engaging-everyday

In the book, he argues that an environmental agenda that emerges from everyday concerns would resonate more deeply with ordinary citizens.He will be giving a talk based on the book as part of the Sustainable Futures speaker series, Thursday, April 9th, 5:30pm, BSS 166.

An article titled, _The Western Thatching Ant,_ his photographs, and artworks were published in the Spring 2015 issue [Volume 34(1): 6-7] of _Dunesberry_, a publication of Friends of the Dunes. The western thatching ant (_Formica obscuripes_) gets its name from the mound of plant material at the top of its nests. In Humboldt County coastal areas, these ants are keystone species and have a large effect on its coastal dune environment. Wood has previously published research on the formic acid defensive spray of this ant.

The HSU Range Plant Identification Team competed in the 2015 Society for Range Management plant identification exam located in Sacramento, Calif., in February. The competition involves the sight identification of 200 grasses, forbs, shrubs and trees to species. The HSU Plant Team placed 6th out of 23 schools hailing from Canada, Mexico and United States. The University of Alberta placed first, followed by Texas A&M, Universidad Autonoma Agraria Antonio Narro, Utah State University, Universidad Autonoma de Chihuahua, and HSU, respectively. Advanced Rangeland Plants (RRS 475) prepares students for the annual exam and in preparation for related field work.

Social Work student Sophia Gang-Halvorsen has won the HSU Book of the Year Essay Award. The writing contest celebrates the HSU/CR Book of the Year, "War Dances" by Sherman Alexie. Sophia explains, "My writing piece is a series of haikus that speak of Indigenous People in an environment that has been drastically altered over time. This destruction has changed the balance of nature's gifts to life for indigenous people in their upriver homes of spirituality and physicality. The salmon is a community member struggling for survival today." To view her award winning piece, please visit: http://www2.humboldt.edu/socialwork/about/news.

Fisheries Biology Professor Darren Ward has received a 2015 Special Focus Award from California Sea Grant to study state and federally endangered Coho salmon. Ward will work with graduate student Molly Gorman to track the fate of large numbers of juveniles who disappear.

Humboldt State's Society of Women Engineers took home four awards at this year's SWE Region A conference at the University of Pacific February 21-22. SWE members won awards for the Best Outreach Event, Best Professional Development Event, Best Inclusion and Diversity Event, and Greatest Membership Retention. The Region A conference provides attendees the opportunity to participate in a career fair and professional development workshops, as well as network with professional engineers and SWE leaders.

The El Leñador student newspaper took three second place prizes at a competition of California student newspapers held by the California College Media Association. Student Manuel Orbegozo won for Best Features Photograph and Best Photo Series while Jefferson Posadas won for Best Infographic. El Leñador Editor Manuel Orbegozo accepted the awards at an awards banquet at the Sheraton Universal in Los Angeles Feb. 28.

The Lumberjack newspaper took top prizes at a competition of California student newspapers held by the California College Media Association. The Lumberjack staff beat out publications in all divisions for first place in Best Use of Social Media. It also took first place in the weekly division for Best News Series. The staff won second place for Best Special Issue for its coverage of last year’s Spring Break bus tragedy. Students Sebastian Hedberg and Manuel Orbegozo won third place for Best Photo Series and Best Features Photograph respectively. Finally, student Nicole Willared took an honorable mention for Best Feature story for her profile of Art Professor Don Anton.

Matt Brinkmann and Stephanie Leja received first and third place, respectively, in the student competition for best oral papers at the Western Section of The Wildlife Society meeting in Santa Rosa in late January 2015. Stephanie also received third place in the poster competitions. Both students work with Dr. Mark Colwell on Snowy Plovers.