Chris Miller, the editor in chief of the Iowa State Daily during the past school year, was named winner of the 1997 William Randolph Hearst Foundation Journalism Awards Program National Print Championship.

A senior in journalism and mass communication from Marshalltown, Miller was named winner of the prestigious award in a ceremony held May 19 in San Francisco.

For winning the award, which is considered to be the college equivalent to professional journalism’s Pulitzer Prize, he received a medallion and a $3,000 scholarship.

Along with the seven other finalists, Miller spent three days in San Francisco this May reporting on three different stories assigned by the program’s judges, themselves all editors of major newspapers across the country. The three stories — an on-the-spot assignment, news story and personality/profile — were judged on a point system, and Miller emerged victorious.

Miller said that winning the overall award was a great honor for himself and ISU’s journalism department as a whole. “It’s nice for the department, and it’s nice for the Daily,” Miller said. “It’s a tribute to Iowa State and the programs we have. It’s easier to be recognized as a journalism student at Northwestern or at Minnesota — at some of the larger schools. It’s harder at Iowa State, but I think it’s changing, and this will certainly help.”

Now spending his summer as an intern for the Dallas Morning News, Miller said that winning this award will also give him a leg up in beginning his career after he graduates in December. “I needed to get my workout, and it paid off,” he said.

Giles Fowler, an associate professor of journalism and mass communication, said the award was a wonderful addition to Miller’s resume.

“He’ll be able to pick the paper that he wants to work at,” he said. “This captures the attention of professionals.”

Boasting a National Hearst Champion should also attract students to the ISU journalism program, Fowler said. “It’s a great recruiting tool. It keeps telling students that we teach writing; that it’s at the very center of what we do.”

In January, Miller won first place in Hearst’s national editorial writing competition, which qualified him for the competition in San Francisco. Miller wrote an editorial urging the university to rename the football stadium for Jack Trice.

Iowa State also had two other reporters place in the spot news category of the competition in April.

Tim Frerking, a senior in journalism and mass communication, placed fourth in the category for his story on the Office of Judicial Affairs ordering three black student leaders to leave their leadership positions as a result of their participation in the rally at Beardshear Hall.

Erin Walter, who has since graduated with a degree in journalism and mass communication, placed 14th in the spot news category for her coverage of the fire at Theta Chi fraternity.

Besides its individual winners, ISU also fared well in the intercollegiate portion of the contest. Each entry sent received points according to how high it placed, and at the end of the competition, the points were totaled and intercollegiate winners were announced.

Jan Watten, program director for the competition, said that Iowa State earned 119 points in this year’s competition, which was good enough for eighth place overall. Northwestern University of Illinois won the competition with 331 points.

The top three ranking schools receive cash awards. For its’ eighth-place finish, Watten said, Iowa State will be receiving a medallion.

For Miller’s win in San Francisco, the school will be receiving a $3,000 grant, matching his prize money.

ISU can also boast a pair of awards from the Society of Professional Journalists. The fall semester edition of the Daily received third place in the competition for “best all-around daily student paper” in the Midwest.

Additionally, Colleen Mullen received first place in the region for her story on Yvette Louisell, a former Iowa State student who murdered an Ames resident in 1987. Mullen’s story will now advance to the national competition.

Frerking, this summer’s editor in chief, said these awards help to prove the quality of the Daily.

“It says that the Daily this past year was the strongest it has ever been, and hopefully, this next year, we can maintain these high standards. Iowa State should be proud of the paper, even though it can be controversial at times.”

“We’re doing our job,” Frerking said, “and awards show that.”