WKU Student Publications honored three people with a passion for journalism as part of 2017 homecoming activities at Western Kentucky University:
TOM CAUDILL
Tom Caudill, who retired in August as managing editor of the Lexington Herald-Leader, was named Volunteer of the Year for 2017 on Oct. 12 by WKU Student Publications at the university’s annual Summit Awards for honoring volunteerism.
Caudill, who lives in Lexington, is chairman of the Student Publications Advisory Board, a position he has held since 2012. In that role, he and other members of the board offer professional advice, coaching and support to ensure WKU’s two student publications — the College Heights Herald newsroom and the Talisman magazine — provide students with experience relevant to building a career in professional news organizations.
For Caudill, who was editor-in-chief of the College Heights Herald in 1975, it was his second time to be honored as Volunteer of the Year. Caudill previously won the award in 2008, when he also was selected to receive the Distinguished Service Medal, WKU’s top honor for volunteers.
CHRIS POORE
Chris Poore, adviser to the Kentucky Kernel at the University of Kentucky, was given the 2017 College Heights Herald Award for Outstanding Contributions in Journalism on Oct. 14 during the 67th annual Student Publications Homecoming Breakfast.
Poore, who lives in Lexington, has been adviser to the Kernel for 17 years, during which the Kernel has won three national Pacemaker awards, the top honor given to a student-run college publication. Poore, who was editor-in-chief of the College Heights Herald in Spring 1991, previously worked for the Lexington Herald-Leader and for The Ledger-Enquirer in Columbus, Georgia.
He is the 66th winner of the Herald Award, which honors outstanding professional work by a member of the WKU Student Publications family.
BRAD HUGHES
Brad Hughes, who retired this year as director of communications for the Kentucky School Boards Association, was given the 2017 Talisman Award for Outstanding Contributions in Communications on Oct. 14 during the 67th annual Student Publications Homecoming Breakfast.
Hughes, who lives in Louisville, started his career in 1973 as a broadcast journalist at WFKN in Franklin, Kentucky, and spent the next decade in radio and television in the region. In 1983, he was appointed director of communications for the Kentucky Cabinet for Human Resources, where his office was named the nation’s top state government public affairs unit in 1991. In 1993, Hughes joined the school boards association, from which he retired this year.
He is the 21st winner of the Talisman Award, which honors outstanding professional work by a member of the WKU Student Publications family.
ABOUT WKU STUDENT PUBLICATIONS
WKU Student Publications is an office within Western Kentucky University that oversees two professional publications run by students, the College Heights Herald and the Talisman. The office has six professionals who advise students on journalistic matters and manage the publications’ business operations. Chuck Clark, a 1983 graduate of WKU with 29 years of experience in professional newsrooms, has been director of WKU Student Publications since 2012.
ABOUT THE COLLEGE HEIGHTS HERALD
College Heights Herald, founded in 1925, is the student-run news organization serving Western Kentucky University. The Herald appears in print twice weekly, on Tuesdays and Thursdays, and is available and updated around the clock at WKUHerald.com. The Herald is editorially independent; it is funded entirely by advertising sales and receives no operational funding from WKU. The College Heights Herald is known as one of the nation’s best student-run news publications, winning the national Pacemaker Award, the top honor for a student publication, 15 times. The Herald also is a member of the Associated Collegiate Press Hall of Fame. Carrie Pratt, a 1997 WKU graduate, has been adviser to the Herald since 2013. Will Hoagland, a 2012 WKU graduate, has been advertising adviser and sales manager for the Herald since 2016.
ABOUT THE TALISMAN
Talisman was first published in 1924 as the yearbook for Western Kentucky State Normal School. It published continuously until 1996 and again from 2003-2016 as a yearbook, building a reputation as the most innovative publication of its kind. In 2016, at the urging of students on its staff, Talisman became a life and culture magazine issued once a semester and a companion popular culture website at WKUTalisman.com. Throughout its history, first as a yearbook and now as a magazine, Talisman has been noted for its creativity and editorial excellence, winning the national Pacemaker Award 18 times. Talisman is a member of the Associated Collegiate Press Hall of Fame. Sam Oldenburg, a 2013 WKU graduate, serves as adviser to Talisman.