♦ 2015 Burton W. Marvin Award. The award honors journalists for enterprising and significant news stories. I developed the series and directed the team that included the Salina Journal and The News, which delved into Kansas’ water issues – including the depleting Ogallala Aquifer. We also looked at history and solutions.
♦ 2016 Burton W. Marvin Ward. Part of a two-reporter team looking at the causes and implications of earthquakes in the south central part of the state and neighboring Oklahoma,
♦ 2013 first-place award from the North American Agricultural Journalists for a story on immigration
♦ Recognized in 2012 as a Kansas Sampler Foundation WeKan recipient for promotion of rural Kansas.
Several first-place Kansas Press Association awards, including
2017
Ag story on water solutions in Sheridan County, 2017
Environmental story on water solutions in Sheridan County, 2017
2016
Agricultural writing for a story on a young farmer who survived an electrical shock, and the community that rallied around his family through support and prayer
Government/political writing for story on “Taxing Uncertainty” – looking at how taxing agricultural land to help cover Kansas budget woes would impact the state’s farm economy
2015
Agricultural story on the making of a new farm bill and the battle Kansas congressional leaders, others regarding the food stamp program
Environmental story on the declining Ogallala Aquifer, causes and a family who had to stop irrigation as the water table declined
2013
Agricultural story on immigration and the farming industry
Community service award for The News scholarship program
2012
Ag story on the drought and its impact on agriculture
2010
Ag story on the dairy industry’s troubled times
2009
Ag story centered on family elevator chain’s bankruptcy and the farmers who lost money in the ordeal
— This story also won KPA’s Golden Wheat Award for agricultural reporting
2005
Agricultural story on a woman keeping the farm after the death of her husband
2004
Agricultural writing for a story about the potential effects of a foot-and-mouth disease outbreak in southwest Kansas
— This story also won KPA’s Golden Wheat Award for agricultural reporting
Series reporting on the depleting Ogallala Aquifer and its economy in southwest Kansas
2001
In-depth agriculture report on rails to trails program and its impact on landowners
Other honors
Also received honorable mention in 2012, 2015, 2016 from the North American Agricultural Journalists for agricultural reporting, and several other KPA honors.