2026 Awards
Congratulations to our award-winning students and faculty!
Student Awards
March 2026
2026 Pacemakers
Yearbook – Ibis Yearbook Staff
Staff Awards
Best of Show: Feature Magazine (four-year campus) – Distraction Magazine
Best of Show: Newspaper/Newsmagazine (four-year campus, 15,000 or fewer) – The Miami Hurricane
Best of Show: Yearbook –
Ibis Yearbook
2nd Place: DESIGN: Yearbook – Ariella Green & Jake Sperling of Ibis Yearbook
2nd Place: PHOTOJOURNALISM: Sports Photo – Ava Stroshane of Ibis Yearbook
2nd Place: Website (four-year campus, 15,000 or fewer)
– Distraction Magazine
7th Place: Website (four-year campus, 15,000 or fewer)
– The Miami Hurricane
9th Place: Broadcast News Program (four-year campus)
– UMTV’s NewsVision
Individual Awards
Best of Show: BROADCAST: Sports Story – Taryn Jacobs of UMTV
Best of Show: DESIGN: Magazine – Charlotte DeAngelis & Ava Stroshane of Distraction Magazine
2nd Place: BROADCAST: Feature Story – Ava Kezirian of UMTV
4th Place: BROADCAST: Sports Story – Delanie Haddad of UMTV
5th Place: DESIGN: Magazine –Charlotte DeAngelis & Ethan Dosa of Distraction Magazine
5th Place: ADVERTISEMENT: Print, Online, Video, Audio – Jake Sperling of Ibis Yearbook
5th Place: BROADCAST: Feature Story – Kayla Butter of UMTV
5th Place: PHOTOJOURNALISM: News/Feature Photo – Ava Stroshane of Ibis Yearbook
6th Place: PHOTOJOURNALISM: News/Feature Photo – Jake Sperling of Ibis Yearbook
6th Place: BROADCAST: Feature Story – Allyssa Beatty of UMTV
6th Place: ADVERTISEMENT: Print, Online, Video, Audio – Julia Campbell & Jay Moyer of Distraction Magazine
6th Place: DESIGN: Yearbook – Jake Sperling of Ibis Yearbook
6th Place: BROADCAST: News Story – Gavin Bicho of UMTV
7th Place: DESIGN: Magazine – Julia Campbell & Jay Moyer
of Distraction Magazine
7th Place: DESIGN: Yearbook – Ariella Green & Jake Sperling of Ibis Yearbook
7th Place: PHOTOJOURNALISM: Sports Photo – Ava Stroshane of Ibis Yearbook
8th Place: DESIGN: Yearbook – Jake Sperling of Ibis Yearbook
9th Place: DESIGN: Magazine –Charlotte DeAngelis, Tierney Dennison, Ethan Dosa, Jake Sperling & Ava Stroshane of Distraction Magazine
9th Place: DESIGN: Yearbook – Amina Bilalova, Lois Park, Reese Putnam & Jake Sperling
of Ibis Yearbook
2nd Place
Best Magazine – Distraction Staff
Best Opinion Column – Jay Moyer of Distraction
Best Yearbook Spread – Jake Sperling of Ibis Yearbook
Best Yearbook Cover – Jake Sperling & Ava Stroshane of Ibis Yearbook
3rd Place
Best Feature Web Site – Distraction Staff
Best Single-Media Ad – Erica Kong Distraction
Honorable Mention
Best Magazine Cover – Valentina Gomez & Jay Moyer of Distraction
Best News Photography – Ava Stroshane of Ibis Yearbook
University of Miami School of Communication Top Student Paper Award
How Care-Oriented Supervisor Communication Shapes LGBTQ+ Employees’ Well-Being: The Roles of Diverse Climate and Perceived Sexual Stigma” by Zhengyan Li and Dongya Wang
Koichi Yamamura International Strategic Communication Award
“When National Crisis Hit the Workplace: The Role of Media in Promoting Female Employees’ Voice in South Korea” by Dongya Wang, Queenie Li and Yeunjae Lee
February 2026
Gold Winners
Tobacco Free FL
STC 434 Advertising Campaigns class taught by Professors Meryl Blau and Karen Udler Britell
Silver Winners
Own Every Second
Maya Bonham
Sans Libertad
Lucia Moscarella, Samantha Gautier and Charlie Goldman
Healband
Valentina Arboleda, Lucia Moscarella, and Avery Seibert
Punctuation for the Mind
Serafina Munno
Duolingo DuoLounge
Xiara Lemoine, Paige Mason, and Meghan Schorr
Holiday Bailout
Sara Kagan and Ben McKeon
Not Milk(Ed)
Ashley Seawall
Student Silver Winner
Take a dip into Sarita Dip House. At Sarita, we know that the best part of the meal is the people around the table. And the best foods are those shared amongst them. Our menu features shareable dips that will have you reaching across the table, double dipping, and playing musical chairs for your favorite scoops.
Sarita is more than just a place to eat; it’s a place to linger, laugh, and let go. Here, every bite is a reason to stay a little onger, laugh a little louder, and make memories that last.
Student Interactive Multimedia Competition – Emerging Media & Technology Category
Graduate Student Competition – Interactive Multimedia
1st Place: Saying their Names: The Virtual Experience Team; Saying their Names: The Virtual Experience Team, University of Miami
Student News Competition – Television Hard News Reporting Category
Student News Competition – Television Hard News Magazine Category
Student News Competition – Television Newscast (3 Days a Week or Less)
January 2026
Student Category Winners:
faculty Awards
Dr. Nick Carcioppolo, Associate Professor of Communication Studies, along with candidates and graduates of the Communication, Ph.D. program including Geyi Wang, Kaixu Yuan, Zixiao Yang and Dongya Wang published “When Humor Appeals Fail and When They Succeed: Using Latent Profile Analysis to Identify Audience Receptivity to Humorous Messages.” They received the Top Paper Award by the National Communication Association.
The research examines why humor works for some audiences but not others, identifying distinct audience profiles that help explain when humorous messaging persuades, and when it can backfire.