����vlog���� Student Media, which publishes the Cornerstone newspaper, CUSP magazine and ecc-cornerstone.com, was honored for excellence across multiple categories.

����vlog���� Student Media walked away with the following awards:

Yearbook/Magazine Illustration/Infographic (All Colleges):
Honorable Mention: Taylor Greife

Division 4 (Two-Year Colleges):

First Place:
Entertainment Review: Ayden Marshall
Multimedia Package: Taylor Greife

Second Place:
Sports Writing: Taylor James
Editorial Writing: Ashlee West
Column: Brianna Salmond
News Photography: Student Media Staff
Multimedia Package: Taylor Greife

Third Place:
Sports Writing: Taylor James
Sports Page: Taylor James
Editorial Writing: Katie Oreskovic
News Photography: Taylor Greife
Multimedia Package: Taylor James
Page One Design: Student Media Staff
Website: Student Media Staff
Sweepstakes: Student Media Staff

Honorable Mention:
Sports Writing: Morgan Clubb
Sports Page: Student Media Staff

The 2025-2026 staff members include Taylor James (Cornerstone Editor), Taylor Greife (CUSP Editor), Katie Oreskovic, Ashlee West, Brianna Salmond, Bailey Weber, Drew Garner, Morgan Clubb, Lillian McDonald, Lexi Yochim, Carter Kellock, Paytan-Mae Ruppel, and Audrey Thompson.

Full list iof ����vlog���� Awards:

Editorial Writing 

Ashlee West, 2nd Place- “The Dangers of Overconsumption” 

Katie Oreskovic, 3rd Place- “The Problems between the Racing Industry and Horse Slaughter” 

Sports Writing 

Taylor James, 2nd place- “Soccer struggles first season with coaching changes” 

Taylor James, 3rd place- “Inside ����vlog���� Softball” 

Morgan Clubb, Honorable Mention- “Softball coach enters second year with Falcons” 

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Brianna Salmond, 2nd place- “What’s better for class, technology or paper” 

Entertainment Review 

Ayden Marshall, 1st place- “Together Film Review” 

News Photography 

Taylor Greife, 3rd place- “College Fair photos” 

Student Media Staff, 2nd place- “Student Involvement Fair photos” 

Page One Design 

Student Media Staff, 3rd place- “Cornerstone front page fall 2025” 

Sports Page 

Taylor James, 3rd place- “Sports page 9”  

Student Media Staff, Honorable Mention- “Spring Pages 2025” 

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Student Media Staff, 3rd place- “Cornerstone Website” 

Multimedia Package 

Taylor Greife, 1st place- “����vlog���� Hosts Spring Fling on the Quad” 

Taylor Greife, 2nd place- “Framing Up for Falcon Fest” 

Taylor James, 3rd place- “Franklin’s Fun and Games (Fall 2025) 

Yearbook/Magazine Illustration/Infographic 

Taylor Greife, Honorable Mention- “Travel with London Underground” 

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Student Media Staff, 3rd place 

Division 4 Newspaper Editorial Writing Second Place ����vlog���� The Dangers of Overconsumption Ashlee West 

Division 4 Newspaper Editorial Writing Third Place ����vlog���� The Problems Between the Racing Industry and Horse Slaughter Katie Oreskovic 

Division 4 Newspaper Sports Writing Second Place ����vlog���� Soccer struggles in first season with coaching changes Taylor James 

Division 4 Newspaper Sports Writing Third Place ����vlog���� Inside ����vlog���� Softball Taylor James 

Division 4 Newspaper Sports Writing Honorable Mention ����vlog���� Softball coach enters second year with Falcons Morgan Clubb 

Division 4 Newspaper Column Second Place ����vlog���� What’s better for class Technology or Paper? Brianna Salmond 

Division 4 Newspaper Entertainment Review First Place ����vlog���� Together Film Review Ayden Marshall 

Division 4 Newspaper News Photography Second Place ����vlog���� Student Involvement Fair photos 

Division 4 Newspaper News Photography Third Place ����vlog���� College Fair photos Taylor Greife 

Division 4 Newspaper Page One Design Third Place ����vlog���� Cornerstone Front Page Fall 2025 Staff  

Division 4 Newspaper Sports Page Third Place ����vlog���� Taylor James Sports Page 9 

Division 4 Newspaper Sports Page Honorable Mention ����vlog���� Spring Pages 2025 Staff  

Division 4 Newspaper Website Third Place ����vlog���� Cornerstone Website Staff  

Division 4 Newspaper Multimedia Package First Place ����vlog���� ����vlog���� hosts Spring Fling on the quad Taylor Greife 

Division 4 Newspaper Multimedia Package Second Place ����vlog���� Framing up for Falconfest Taylor Greife 

Division 4 Newspaper Multimedia Package Third Place ����vlog���� Franklin’s Fun and Games (Fall 2025 Version) Taylor James 

NA Yearbook/MagazineIllustration/Infographic Honorable Mention ����vlog���� Travel With London Underground Taylor Greife 

Division 4 Newspaper Sweepstakes Third Place ����vlog���� Division 4 Sweepstakes Staff  

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The ����vlog���� Campus Life and Leadership’s annual Student Achievement Night on May 4 was an opportunity to recognize students for leadership, academic excellence, club engagement, success in the classroom and as student employees.

Academic Excellence Award

The Vice President’s Academic Excellence Award was presented to Caroline Miller. This prestigious award recognizes one student each year who demonstrates exemplary academic excellence during their time at ����vlog����.

The recipient must maintain a minimum of a 3.4 GPA, and they must be nominated by a department chair. All nominations were submitted to the College vice presidents for consideration.

Outstanding Student Leader

Maggie Sikes was chosen as the 2023 Outstanding Student Leader. She was nominated by Lisa Hanneken, Business/Accounting faculty member and the club advisor for the Christian Club.

The award recognizes one student for exceptional leadership skills and abilities. Sikes also was chosen as the recipient of the Collaborative Excellence Award, nominated again by Hanneken. This award highlights a student leader who may not always want to be at the forefront as a leader, but whose collaborative spirit proves essential to the success of the club and the maintenance of an encouraging environment.

Club Officer Awards

The awards for club officers are given to student leaders for their contributions as stewards of student engagement on campus. Students are nominated by club advisors.

The following students were recognized for their service as club officers:

• Brooklyn Hyatt, Student Government Association President
• Theo Krummel, Student Government Association Vice President
• Megan Pritchard, Student Government Association Public Relations Officer
• Taylor Sikes, Student Government Association Recording Secretary
• Augast Haddad, Outstanding Student Government Association Member
• Parker Williamson, Art Club President
• Abby Stanfield, Art Club Vice President
• Lacy Buchanan, Art Club Secretary
• David Braun, Art Club Treasurer
• Carolyn Horst, Art Club Social Media Representative
• Maggie Sikes, Christian Club President
• Carly Hamlyn, Phi Theta Kappa President, Chi Delta Chapter
• Victoria Plocinski, Phi Theta Kappa Executive Vice President, Chi Delta Chapter
• Kaitlynn Myers, Phi Theta Kappa Vice President for Public Relations, Chi Delta Chapter
• Annika Brunner, Phi Theta Kappa Vice President for Recording & Finance, Chi Delta Chapter
• Riley Klekamp, Phi Theta Kappa Distinguished Chapter Member, Chi Delta Chapter
• Annika Brunner, Rotaract Club Vice President
• Hunter Sperry, Rotaract Club Secretary & Treasurer

Academic Distinction

Awards of academic distinction are given by faculty members for students exhibiting excellence in academic.

Though these students will likely have a high mark in the gradebook, a student chosen for this award should also demonstrate an understanding of the course material, be an active participant in class, and contribute to the larger culture of succeeding and high-level thinking in the classroom.
The following students were given awards for academic distinction:

• Nathaniel Wissman, Nursing
• Joelle Phillips, Welding
• Jacob Feth, Welding
• William Herbst, Business
• Katarina North, Accounting
• Terry Ahrenhoersterbaeumer, Accounting & Business
• Michael Buhr, Business
• Sean Merriman, Accounting
• Shane Kearbey, Business
• Stephen Casey, Music
• Joshua Liebhart, Music
• Madalyn Montgomery, Music
• Owen Borcherding, Business
• Ian Meyer, Business
• Olivia Vandegriffe, Business
• David Kelch, Accounting
• Grace Hoerstkamp, Business
• Adam Creasy, Media Studies
• Riley Klekamp, Humanities
• Caroline Miller, Humanities
• Emma Thomas, Humanities
• Max Johnson, Humanities
• Adam Vancil, Humanities
• Zack Hill, English Composition
• Katarina North, The Doyle Stricklin Memorial Award for Outstanding Performance in Accounting
• Brianna Gildehaus, Outstanding Performance in Business Award

Spirited Falcon Award

The ����vlog���� Spirited Falcon awards are given to students in recognition of perseverance, a consistent willingness to learn and improve, and measured improvement.

This award is designed to honor students who, despite any obstacles they may face during their semester, demonstrated a continued commitment to their education and success as a student.
The following students were given Spirited Falcon awards:

• MacKenzie Rolf, Nursing
• Rose Adams, Reading Composition
• Sean Merriman, Accounting
• Kevin Corley, Humanities
• Crystal Smith, Humanities
• Julia Sampson, Business

Student Employees

The student employees at ����vlog���� go above and beyond in their efforts to balance coursework and their student work opportunities.
The following students were recognized as Outstanding Student Workers:

• Hugh Steinman, The Learning Center
• Kyley Henry, The Learning Center
• Chase Schroeder, The Learning Center
• Ian Meyer, The Learning Center
• Julio Gonzalez, The Learning Center
• Miguel Gonzalez, The Learning Center

NAE Honor Society

Adult Education and Literacy students who were recently inducted into the were honored at Student Achievement Night.
The following students were inducted into NAEHS:

• Arellana Zepeda
• Ashley Watson Carrell
• Athena Burke
• Christina McKean
• Gorette Nyirasebura
• Griselda Gonzales
• Heather Mertell
• Jagdish Prasad
• Lauren Hoey
• Mikela Lackey
• Mirwais Amiri
• Mukesh Lnu
• Naresh Jatav
• Rajpoot Lnu
• Rita Mauer
• Shelly McMullin

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Guile, of Washington, and Stanfield, of Union, were selected by the ����vlog���� Art Department to show at the “Varsity Art XXVII,” a multi-media invitational visual art exhibition. Varsity Art opened March 3 and will run through March 30.

Guile and Stanfield were selected to show their pieces alongside 41 other regional artists at the multi-media exhibition. The artists all are undergrad and grad level art students representing 22 St. Louis regional colleges and universities from Missouri and Illinois.

This year’s exhibit presents contemporary themes and the works were created in ceramics, digital art, drawing, graphic design, mixed media, painting, paper, photography, printmaking, sculpture, textiles and video.

The Gallery, located at 1223 Pine Street St. Louis, is open Mondays through Fridays, from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m., and Saturdays, from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m.

View all the artworks in an album on the Art Saint Louis Facebook page or see the Virtual Gallery Exhibit at www.artstlouis.org/index.php/exhibitions/in-the-gallery.

Milo Guile

“Forest Walk” was created digitally by Guile using Clip Studio Paint.

“For this piece, I aimed to create an atmospheric and whimsical environment,” he said. “A forest at night is the perfect setting for this, as walking through the woods after sundown is an unnerving yet almost unworldly experience.

“I wanted to capture this feeling by using purples and blues for the scenery while giving the child contrasting colors to make them feel out of place, as if they don’t belong in the world that they stumbled into,” Guile added.

He said he’s incredibly honored to be selected for this gallery.

“I am so grateful for my instructors who helped me improve and got me up to this point,” Guile said. “This show has been an amazing opportunity to challenge myself and to meet so many other talented students and learn about their schools.

“This whole experience has made me excited for the future and has inspired me to continue to pursue this path,” he commented.

Abby Stanfield

“The Boogeyman,” exhibited by Stanfield, was created in watercolor.

“’The Boogeyman’ is my own depiction of the creature from my childhood,” she said. “I chose to elongate the figure and use dark blues and purples to emphasize the sinister nature of the subject.

“The creature is placed in a young girl’s bedroom, suggesting that this could possibly be a figment of her imagination,” Stanfield commented.

She added that displaying her work at Art Saint Louis has been a rewarding and exciting experience.

“I’m extremely thankful for my instructors and all the help they provided every step of the way, and for giving me this opportunity,” Stanfield said. “I definitely learned a lot from this experience, and it was great meeting other art students in the area.”

Collaboration

This annual exhibit is a collaboration between Art Saint Louis and the participating collegiate institutions, their art faculty and students.

Art Saint Louis’ Artistic Director works closely with art professors and faculty at the area’s colleges and universities, inviting the professors to select two outstanding art students to represent their art department and institution in its annual show.

To learn more about ����vlog����’s art and design program, visit .

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The team won gold Medallions in the following categories: social media page, video shorts and excellence in writing-long form. The college was awarded a bronze Medallion in the college website category.

“What makes these awards so special is they are representative of the many facets of work that the communications team does,” said Gregg Jones, director of communications and marketing. “We put a lot of hard work into what we do, and it is a very satisfying when those efforts are recognized by our peers in a well-respected organization like NCMPR.”

In addition to the medallions, Jones received the 2022 Rising Star Award for District 5.

The Rising Star Award recognizes newcomers to NCMPR and their fields. The Rising Star recipients demonstrate special creativity or ability in marketing and public relations; and show evidence of a promising future in the field.

Jones is now one of seven candidates in consideration for the national Rising Star Award which will be presented in March 30 through April 1, 2023, at the NCMPR National Conference.

Medallion Awards

This year is the third consecutive year the college’s Facebook page was recognized with a Medallion Award. This year, the , nabbed first place in the overall Social Media category.

The Gold Medallion awarded in the video shorts category was for the college’s commercial promoting 2022 fall registration that was shown on YouTube, Hulu and other streaming services. View the .

The third Gold Medallion ����vlog���� earned, in the writing-long form category, was for “Cuba Resident Finds Calling in ����vlog���� Welding Lab.” The story features a welding student from Cuba, Mo., who enrolled in the program after reading a story about a mother and son taking Welding courses.

The college’s website was recognized with a Medallion Award for the second straight year.

Communications & Marketing Team

����vlog����’s communication and marketing team is comprised of Jones, Joel Doepker, vice president of external relations; Amanda Studdard, multimedia specialist; Andy Kolb, coordinator of web services; Cynthia Cubas, external relations executive administrative assistant; and Abby Stanfield, multimedia assistant.

The NCMPR is the leading professional development association exclusively serving those working in communication at two-year community and technical colleges.

The organization provides professional development opportunities, advocates on behalf of the profession and the institutions it serves and recognizes professional excellence. NCMPR has more than 1,700 members from nearly 650 colleges across the United States and Canada.

Cutlines:

����vlog����’s Communications and Marketing Department received four Medallion Awards at the National Communications, Marketing and Public Relations (NCMPR) District 5 conference last month. Pictured, from left, are Joel Doepker, vice president of external relations; ; Andy Kolb, coordinator of web services; Gregg Jones, director of communications and marketing; Amanda Studdard, multimedia specialist; and Cynthia Cubas, external relations executive administrative assistant.

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����vlog����’s Campus Life and Leadership annually holds a Student Achievement Night awards ceremony to celebrate the outstanding accomplishments of students.

Students are nominated for awards by faculty who recognize academic excellence, perseverance, and contributions to a culture of student success both in and out of the classroom.

Club Officer Awards

These awards are given to student leaders to recognize their contributions as stewards of student engagement on campus. Students are nominated by their club advisors.

The following students were honored for their service as club officers:

• Brooklyn Hyatt, Student Government Association, President
• Alexis Johnson, Student Government Association, Vice President
• Sage Sparkman, Student Government Association, Public Relations Officer
• Theo Krummel, Student Government Association, Chief Recording Officer
• Dora Bell, Past Student Government Association, Public Relations Officer
• Kylee Vawter, Art Club, Secretary
• Abby Stanfield, Art Club, Treasurer
• Sarah Mier, Phi Theta Kappa, President
• Donna Hall, Phi Theta Kappa, Vice President
• Caroline Dunne, Phi Theta Kappa, Vice President of Recording and Finance
• Dora Bell, Phi Theta Kappa, Vice President of Public Relations
• Adrian Smith, Rotaract, President
• Samantha Peterson, Rotaract, President and Vice President
• Brianna Sullivan, Psychology Club, President
• Emma Weston, Psychology Club, Vice President
• Alik Callahan, Student-Missouri State Teachers Association
• Jennifer Shaw, Student-Missouri State Teachers Association.

Academic Awards

Awards of academic distinction are given to students by faculty members in recognition of academic excellence.

Though these students will likely have a high mark in the gradebook, a student chosen for this award should also demonstrate an understanding of the course material, be an active participant in class, and contribute to the larger culture of succeeding and high-level thinking in the classroom.

The following Union students were given awards for academic distinction:

• Ashley Foster-Jungfermann, Health Information Management
• Julie Krull, The Learning Center/Mathematics
• Sarah Harris, The Learning Center/Chemistry
• Joe McInnes, The Learning Center/English
• Malorie Smiley, Nursing
• Ruby Mitchell, English
• Vickie Gumpenberger, Business
• Candice Whistler, Doyle Stricklin Memorial Award for Outstanding Performance in Accounting
• Samantha Loddeke, Reading Comprehension
• Emily Moody, Music
• Zach Southard, Music
• Manny McQueen, Art & Design
• Abby Stanfield, Art & Design
• Miriam Bondor, Art & Design
• Ash Dodson, Art & Design
• Chloe Eades, Art & Design
• Emma Brown, Art & Design
• Emily Knoppe, Art & Design
• Donna Hall, Technical Writing
• Kar Meyer, English & Humanities
• Emma Thomas, English
• Riley Klekamp, English
• Collin Immekus, Humanities & Media Studies
• Dora Bell, Media Studies
• Tyler Melvin, English & Media Studies
• Emrhys Bradley, English & Humanities
• Taylor Duvel, Industrial Engineering Technology
• Emrhys Bradley, Philosophy Department Student of the Year

Spirited Falcon Awards

Spirited Falcon awards are given to students by faculty members in recognition of perseverance, a consistent willingness to learn and improve, and measured improvement as deemed appropriate by the faculty nominator.

This award is designed to honor students who, despite any obstacles they may face during their semester, demonstrated a continued commitment to their education and success as a student. The following Union students were given Spirited Falcon awards:

• Pierocarlo Previte, The Learning Center/Learning & Athletics
• Julio Gonzalez, The Learning Center/Tutoring & Athletics
• Miguel Gonzalez, The Learning Center/Tutoring & Athletics
• Charlena Borges, Nursing
• Lyndsey Graczyk, Nursing
• Taylor Kelley, Reading Comprehension
• Marin Muster, Art & Design
• Sara Carter, Art & Design
• Gabby Girardier, Art & Design
• Kylee Barton, English
• Justin Todd, Philosophy
• Claire Smith, Philosophy
• Theo Krummel, Philosophy
• Abby Stephens, Philosophy
• Sarah Sartorius, Paramedic Technology

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This prestigious award recognizes one student annually who demonstrates exemplary academic excellence during their time at ����vlog����. It was presented by Dr. Robyn Walter, vice president of academic affairs.

The award was presented to Immekus, of Sullivan, May 11 at the Office of Campus Life and Leadership’s Spring 2022 Union Student Achievement Night.

Academic Excellence Award recipients must maintain a minimum of a 3.4 GPA, and they must be nominated by a department chair. All nominations were submitted to the vice presidents for consideration, and one student is chosen.

Immekus was nominated by Leigh Kellmann Kolb, associate professor of English; and Josh Stroup, English and humanities department chair.

“Collin has been an exemplary student in his time at ����vlog����. His transcript and GPA illustrates his consistent and impressive class performance,” Kolb said.

“In the humanities classrooms, he was always curious, studious, analytical, and thoughtful.”

According to Kolb, she noticed right away that Immekus has a great interest in, and knowledge of, film.

“His passion for film and film history was one of the first things that stood out about him,” Kolb said. “His knowledge and interest were such that I assumed that he had taken a class in high school or had some other kind of formal academic experience.”

However, she added, he had “independently devoured a CNN series on film history” and was inspired to watch and learn so much, by his first semester in college, he was “engaging in a way that one might expect from a long-time film student.”

“Too often, students who are passionate about a discipline are not always excited about learning more about what they don’t know,” Kolb said. “It has been such a pleasure and privilege to work with Collin over the years, because he wants to read more and watch more so he can engage with the humanities on a deep and holistic level.”

Immekus graduated Cum Laude May 14 with an Associate of Arts. He also is a member of the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society.

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In the poetry category, Christian Emory received first-place honors for, “Well-done.”

In the research essay category, Jillian Stigge’s, “Dangerous New Censorships in Education,” was the first-place winner.

First-place recipients received $100 in prize money. Second-place winners were given $50, and third-place winners received $25.

Josh Stroup, instructor and English department chair, thanked Katie Holtmeyer for assisting in judging the contest, as well as everyone who submitted to this contest, and those who helped spread the word about the contest.

“If you know any of these students, please reach out and give them a rowdy congrats! They deserve it,” Stroup said. “The Literary and Art Review will be out soon, so you too can read these award-winning works.”

In addition, the English department will host a Fiction and Creative Non-Fiction contest in the fall.

Listed below are the winners in both categories, followed by the title of the work.

Poetry Winners

First place — Christian Emory, “Well-done.”

Second place — Jacy DeLoach, “infinitesimal.”

Third place — Emrhys Bradley’s, “What is a woman? (An American Sonnet).”

Honorable Mention — Paxton Ludwig, “Home Depot Misgivings.”

Research Essay Winners

First place — Jillian Stigge, “Dangerous New Censorships in Education.”

Second place — Emma Thomas, “One Bullet.”

Third place — Sarah Harris, “Caffeine: Why It Should Have More Restrictions.”

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