An ISU student was recognized nationally for his outstanding reporting skills in a five-part narrative series that profiled the life and death of former ISU student Danny Peterson.

Dan Nguyen, senior in computer engineering and journalism and mass communication, flew to Dallas, Texas, last week to accept the Associated Collegiate Press Reporter of the Year Award and a $1,000 scholarship. Nguyen won the award based on his series of articles on Peterson, who died on June 8, 2002, six days after he was struck from behind in a hit-and-run car accident.

Nguyen said he was “shocked” by the announcement he had won the award.

“I felt pretty numb,” he said. “I walked up in a daze and was like, ‘I don’t understand what’s happening.’ I thought I would trip.”

The five judges base their decisions on significance of the story, quality and depth in reporting, effective interviewing skills by the reporter, quality of writing and quality of editing, said Jessica Hampton, Associated Collegiate Press contact and critique coordinator.

Hampton said the judges felt Nguyen’s story “was absolutely number one.”

Entrants are judged by their body of work through the submission of five stories, said Mark Witherspoon, lecturer in the Greenlee School of Journalism and Communication and adviser for the Iowa State Daily. He said it’s likely Nguyen competed against at least 1,000 entrants.

“It was a great piece of journalism,” Witherspoon said. “It told the story in a narrative format, but it read like a murder mystery. It not only had the Iowa State family, but it was also about a detective’s quest to find the killer before he retired.”

Nguyen, who is a member of the Iowa State Daily Editorial Board, said he learned about the Peterson hit-and-run accident from a brief that ran in the Iowa State Daily. He said his instincts played a big role in his pursuit of the in-depth story.

“A couple of weeks before spring break last year, I decided I would drop what I was going to do for spring break and go up to Minnesota and talk to the family,” he said. “I’m very thankful for that gut feeling and that I was able to follow it.”

Nguyen, who was also named Best Columnist of the Year by the National Society of Newspaper Columnists last summer, said the most difficult thing about writing the story was encountering tragedy.

“It’s something I haven’t experienced, and it was kind of daunting,” he said. “The Peterson family was very willing [to talk]. They loved their son so much that they wanted to tell who he was and what had happened to him.”

Nguyen said he’s not sure which field he’ll pursue as a career.

“This award gave me a little more motivation to go into the journalism field,” he said. “It’s still difficult to decide, though.”

Nicole Paseka, senior in journalism and mass communication and editor in chief of the Iowa State Daily, said Nguyen brings a broad perspective to the newspaper.

“Dan’s just a really talented guy,” she said. “It’s a huge asset to us to have someone who is equally strong in journalism and engineering.”

Paseka described Nguyen’s compassionate nature as a quality that shines through in his reporting.

“With the Danny Peterson series, I think he was able to get the family to open up to him in ways I don’t think most reporters would have been able to,” she said.

Second place in the category went to Chris Korman of the Daily Collegian at Pennsylvania State University. Third place was awarded to ISU student Paul Kix, a former Ethos editor and Iowa State Daily staff writer. Kix is currently completing an internship at the Phoenix New-Times. He also writes for ESPN The Magazine.