Published: May 17, 2008 01:29 am            

SHSU senior

For the past four years of her life, Kristin Edwards has dedicated her time and energy toward two things — becoming an accomplished writer and an active member of the Huntsville community.

As a senior mass communication major at Sam Houston State University, Edwards looks forward to today’s graduation ceremony at 10 a.m. at Johnson Coliseum, but the Department of Mass Communication had a surprise in store that she did not expect.

Edwards received the outstanding student award for print journalism and public relations during the Graduate Recognition Ceremony for the College of Humanities and Social Sciences on Friday afternoon.

“I honestly didn’t know much about the award,” she said. “But after finding out more about it and what it meant, I was deeply honored and flattered.”

Edwards, 22, came from Spring to attend SHSU and immediately got involved with the university’s newspaper, The Houstonian, and eventually became a reporter for The Huntsville Item, where she has covered a variety of events for more than a year.

She served as associate editor of The Houstonian during the past year.

Her passion for writing and journalism has not faded in the least.

“I feel like Huntsville has been a good place for me,” she said. “Aside from my obvious love of writing, seeing the different facets of life and how they come together is very interesting and complex to me. I like this style of writing because it’s real — because the sentences you write mean something to someone.”

During her time at SHSU, Edwards said she has been challenged and encouraged by several faculty members.

“I was really inspired by some of the professors I have had while I’ve been at Sam,” she said. “Their experiences in the field and the personalities they have developed doing this kind of work really encouraged me to keep working so I could achieve anything near what they have done in the field.”

Although she is known as a hardworking student with plenty of enthusiasm, Edwards said working for two publications and focusing on school work has been a challenging task.

“I would say time management and personal sacrifices is what helped me balance my life,” she said. “For instance, having to choose between going to IHOP and studying or going out with your friends. Sometimes you have to choose the responsible alternative. I know it can seem like a drag and maybe you feel like you’re not getting the whole college experience, but I feel like I got twice the college experience, working on two incredible things at once.”

Receiving the award reminded Edwards that hard work does pay off.

“I was really happy that people noticed,” she said. “Everybody has complicated lives and does a lot. It feels good to know that what I was doing deserved recognition in the eyes of this department.”

As for the future, Edwards said writing will always be a part of her life.

“I plan to stay at the Item for at least another year — maybe longer,” she said. “I will write for the rest of my life and would love to be a novelist one day.”

According to Christopher White, interim chair for the Department of Mass Communication, Edwards will have no problem accomplishing her future goals.

“Kristin received this award for her good grades and hard work,” he said. “Everybody in the office had a great time working with her as well. Many things she did were often under the surface but they always came to fruition.

“She did a lot of community outreach and that’s important. We need more students who don’t mind getting their hands dirty doing a story.”

        

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