(New Orleans)—The Loyola University New Orleans student newspaper, the Maroon, won a number of awards at the Society of Professional Journalists- Region 12 Mark of Excellence Awards last weekend. The honorees were presented certificates during the spring conference held at the University of Arkansas in Fayetteville, AR on March 31, 2007.

Collegiate journalists submitted more than 3,300 entries in 39 categories across the Society of Professional Journalism’s regions. First place regional winners will advance to the national round of judging, which takes place in early April. Winners will be announced in mid-May.

Daniel Monteverde won Breaking News Reporting for “’Pathways’ Unveiled” and first place in Online News Reporting for “’Pathways’ Protested.”

Kelly Brown and Jared Bailey won second place in Feature Writing for “Washed Away.”

Ramon Vargas won second place for Sports Writing for “Ties that bind” and Nicole Mundy won third place for Sports Writing for “Killer Instincts.” Ramon Vargas and Nicole Mundy jointly won first place for Online Sports Reporting for “Tulane vs. Loyola.”

Additionally, Catherine Cotton and Michael Nissman jointly won second place for Two or More Pages Photo Layout from the Columbia Scholastic Press Association. The award was given at Columbia University in New York City.

Loyola University New Orleans is a Jesuit-Catholic institution with a total student enrollment of 4,724 including 800 law students.

For more information, please contact the Office of Public Affairs at (504) 861-5888.