College Media Association and the Student Press Law Center are excited to announce the 2026 Louis E. Ingelhart award recipients.
The awards were made possible by a grant CMA and SPLC received from the Society of Professional Journalists Foundation in 2024.
CMA and SPLC are able to award a total of $3,000 in grants this year. The Louis E. Ingelhart First Amendment Program was established to provide funding for advisers to plan programs for Student Press Freedom Day in 2026.
This year’s recipients and amounts are:
- Julie Largent-Kuttler of McPherson College $150 for the “What Would You Have Done” exhibit
- Marie Loggia-Kee of the California State University Fullerton $350 for the “Press under Pressure” event
- Derek Malone at Rollins College $500 for the “Speak Freely” event
- John Francis Tomasik University of Washington $500 for the “Songs of Freedom” event
- David Simpson for the University of Central Oklahoma $500 for a special First Amendment edition
- Emily Sendin of Miami Dade College Kendall campus $500 for an escape room experience focused on First Amendment
- JuJu Spray at the University of Colorado Denver $500 for the “Use your Voice” event
We received 16 applications for the Ingelhart Award, and there were many worthy candidates. Our funding only allowed us to award seven grants this year.
Congratulations to everyone who will receive funding from the Ingelhart First Amendment program. Those who won awards will be getting an email with more details.
