IDS takes top honors at ICPA awards; Hilkowitz named JOY
On Saturday, April 12, the Indiana Daily Student took top honors at the Indiana Collegiate Press Association awards, and junior Mia Hilkowitz received the Brook Baker Indiana Student Journalist of the Year Award. As an organization, the IDS won Division I Newspaper of the Year, Website of the Year, and Advertising Publication of the Year. The Arbutus received third for Yearbook of the Year.
ICPA represents dozens of college media organizations from across Indiana and recognizes student work at the annual convention. There were more than 700 entries this year. Held at the Indiana Memorial Union, the conference on Saturday included sessions for websites, newspapers, yearbook, magazine and literary journal staffs for students and advisors from across the state. A lunch and ceremony announcing 300 awards followed.
The IDS and Arbutus took home 56 individual awards for excellence. The top organization of the year awards are given for the highest accumulated point totals from the first, second, and third place individual awards in each category.
Hilkowitz is the 17th student from IU to be honored with the Brook Baker Award since its inception in 1999 — an IU student has won the last eight years in a row. The award is named for Baker who was killed while a student journalist at Vincennes University in the 1990s and is given to a student who exhibits leadership, courage and journalistic excellence. Hilkowitz is an IDS managing editor and will serve as co-editor-in-chief along with Andrew Miller during the fall 2025 semester.
Among the six stories entered with Hilkowitz’s nomination was a longform piece originating in the Words and Pictures class and coverage of Lt. Gov.-elect Micah Beckwith’s social media threat towards the IDS.
This year’s Brook Baker judge was Lynne Perri, Journalist-in-Residence at the School of Communication at American University and editor of The Investigative Reporting Workshop. Her comments: “Mia Hilkowitz’s courage and persistence in challenging the lieutenant governor-elect’s Tweet — and investigating whether he could make good on his threats to shut down a student newsroom — took my breath away. She showed herself a force to be reckoned with, even as she calmly interviewed him and then posted the transcript. Her news and feature stories showcased her versatility. This is an all-around outstanding portfolio.”