The Simpsonian, Simpson’s student-run newspaper, has long been touted as the nation’s oldest continuously published student newspaper. The newspaper now has a new title to flaunt — the Most Outstanding College Newspaper for 2005-2006.

The Simpsonian recently received the honor, which is given out by the American Scholastic Press Association. The association’s Scholastic Review and Contest judges the publications of high school and college association members that applied for the contest.

“The students work really hard each week,” said Chad Roberts, instructor of communication and adviser for The Simpsonian and other student publications. “This is a reflection on how hard they work.”

The Simpsonian received the first place honor with special merit within the 1,701 to 2,500-student population category. Simpson’s publication was among other noted publications such as the University of Illinois’ Daily Illini, the Etownian from Elizabethtown College in Elizabethtown, Penn., and the Juilliard Journal from the Juilliard School in New York.

The Simpsonian, which has a circulation of 1,700 each week throughout the school year, won because the publication proved to have outstanding design and content, as required by the contest rules. The association not only judges the publications, but provides advice on page design, story layout, graphics, photography and a variety of aspects of school publications. Last semester there were 35 students working on The Simpsonian, from selling advertising and designing to writing and editing.

By Emily A. Roush

Emily A. Roush is the news services manager and public relations specialist for Simpson College.