Aggies in Texas A&M Student Media won 45 honors at the Spring National College Media Conference in Long Beach, California, in early March, including three first-place awards in national competitions and the finalist title for three Associated Collegiate Press Pacemakers, the top accolade in college media. A&M was the only university in the U.S. that was a finalist for the online website, yearbook and student business Pacemakers.
“It’s incredible to see three different areas of our student media program become a Pacemaker finalist this spring,” said Spencer O’Daniel, the associate director of student media. “There’s a culture of excellence with this group of creators and student journalists. I’m just lucky enough to be on the ride with them and am so proud of their accomplishments.”
The awards, celebrating content produced in 2024 that ranges from in-depth feature stories to designs and photos, are the most won in several years by Student Media’s publications: The Battalion, The Aggieland Yearbook and the Maroon Life magazine. Led by a handful of student editors, the magazine became independent late last year after separating from The Battalion.
Among the list are several business-focused accolades, including third place for best engagement event and fourth for best digital advertisement. Marketing senior Hamsini Mahadevan took home fifth for best advertising representative nationwide.
“It’s truly an honor for our publication to be recognized for these awards,” said supply chain management junior Hayden Arevalo, Student Media’s business manager. “I see not only my team but everybody in this organization put in countless hours to create something they’re proud of. It’s nice to know that we’re doing something right.”
Journalism sophomore Ian Curtis, the managing editor of The Battalion, won first place for feature reporting. Maroon Life editors business junior Hudson Elkjer and journalism senior Laura McClintock alongside writer Shalina Sabih ’24 won first for best magazine page/spread, and journalism senior Cara Hudson, The Aggieland Yearbook’s editor-in-chief, won first for best yearbook spread with industrial distribution senior, Adriano Espinosa, the newspaper’s photo chief.
While in California, student journalists attended workshops, networked with industry experts in multiple industries and sat on panels.
The full list of awards earned by Student Media’s three publications is below.
2025 ACP Pacemakers
Student Business Finalist — Hayden Arevalo, Hamsini Mahadevan, Emma Moser, Julius Sjolie
Yearbook Finalist — Emily Escobedo, Hannah Harrison, Cara Hudson, Rachel Reyes, Julius Sjolie
Online Finalist — Nicholas Gutteridge, Amy Steward
2024 Fall Clips and Clicks — Individual Winners
1st Place — Magazine Page/Spread — Hudson Elkjer, Laura McClintock, Shalina Sabih
1st Place — Yearbook Spread — Cara Hudson, Adriano Espinosa
2nd Place — Sports Photo — Chris Swann
2nd Place — Yearbook Spread — Cara Hudson, Kyle Heise
2nd Place — Sports Story — Ian Curtis
2nd Place — Informational Graphic — Sophie Villarreal
3rd Place — Magazine Page/Spread — Hudson Elkjer, Jackson Stanley, Maryhelen Guerrero
3rd Place — Informational Graphic — Sophie Villarreal
4th Place — News Photo — Chris Swann
4th Place — Newspaper/Newsmagazine — Pranay Dhoopar, Nikhil Vadi
5th Place — Feature Story — Ian Curtis
5th Place — News Story — J.M. Wise
Honorable Mention — News Photo — Hannah Harrison
Honorable Mention — Feature Photo — Armani Jones
Honorable Mention — Feature Photo — Hannah Harrison
Honorable Mention — Sports Photo — Hannah Harrison
Honorable Mention — News Story — J.M. Wise
ACP Business and Advertising Awards
Honorable Mention — Video Advertisement — Pranay Dhoopar
4th Place — Digital Advertisement — Julius Sjolie
Honorable Mention — Digital Advertisement — Hamsini Mahadevan
Honorable Mention — Audio Advertisement — Sophie Villarreal
3rd Place — Audience Engagement Event — Cara Hudson, Nicholas Gutteridge, Amy Steward
Honorable Mention — Social Media Campaign — Julius Sjolie
5th Place — Best Advertising Rep — Hamsini Mahadevan
Honorable Mention — Newspaper Advertising Special Section (Maroon Life) — Anna Deardorff, Hudson Elkjer, Maddie Townsend, Hayden Arevalo, Hamsini Mahadevan
2025 ACP Long Beach — Best of Show
8th Place — Newspaper Design — Pranay Dhoopar
8th Place — Yearbook Design — Rachel Reyes
2nd Place — Yearbook Design — Rachel Reyes
5th Place — Print, Online, Digital Advertisement — Julius Sjolie
2nd Place — Print, Online, Digital Advertisement— Hamsini Mahadevan
2nd Place — Photojournalism Sports — Laura McClintock
9th Place — Magazine Design —Laura McClintock
4th Place — Magazine Design — Laura McClintock
5th Place — Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Reporting — Theresa Lozano
2nd Place — Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Reporting — Ian Curtis
8th Place — Feature Reporting — Theresa Lozano
1st Place — Feature Reporting — Ian Curtis
5th Place — Newspaper — The Battalion
6th Place — Media Kit — Texas A&M Student Media business team
10th Place — Feature Magazine — Maroon Life magazine
2nd Place — Yearbook — The Aggieland Yearbook
4th Place — Website — The Batt Online
