Written by James Brown, Entertainment Editor.

The VSU Spectator took home several awards in writing, reporting and photography excellence, including the coveted “Watchdog” award, at the 2025 Georgia College Press Association’s Better Newspaper Contest in February in Athens, Georgia. 

GCPA is an organization that prides itself on benefitting newspapers and journalists across various colleges in Georgia. The organization helps colleges by sharing information and tips to better students’ reporting skills. 

Every year the GCPA holds its annual Better Newspaper Contest. The contest allows all Georgia collegiate newspapers to submit their best work to compete for many different award categories. 

This year, the Spectator left the competition with an astonishing eight awards. The awards given at the ceremony include: 

–Best Campus Community Service Award – News 

-Best Campus Community Service Award – Sports Coverage 

-Best Campus Community Service Award – Editorial Excellence 

-Layout & Design Excellence 

-General Photography Excellence 

-Improvement Award 

-Best News Article Based on Investigative Reporting 

Aside from the general award ceremony, the Spectator won the prestigious “Watchdog” award for the first time in history. The award is given to the school that writes the most relevant, newsworthy and impactful story that has been proven to have had influence on their school’s community. 

The award was measured democratically by applause from other universities. the Spectator won against UGA’s newspaper The Red & Black in the final round. 

The award-winning stories were presented by the Spectator’s Editor-in-Chief Jenna Arnold and Managing Editor Bailey Wilson. 

The official trophy for the award is a small plush dog named “Watchy.” Watchy now resides in The Spectator office at VSU. 

Staff members of the Spectator feel great about the event’s outcome. The editors are grateful for each member of the team and their ambitious reporting. 

“Since this is my last time going to GCPA because I am a senior, I am absolutely proud of our team. Also, the fact that we were able to win the watchdog for the first time made it even more special,” Jasmine Hightower, Copy Editor for the Spectator, said. 

Arnold said the awards come from a team effort. 

“I am so incredibly proud of this staff. So much work was poured into this year and I was so happy to see their effort recognized. This is an amazing group of journalists and I can’t wait to see what each of them will accomplish in the future,” she said. 

Wilson agreed that this year’s group is exceedingly strong. 

“This is the most rewarding conference I have been to in my four years here,” she said. “The camaraderie and energy within the staff made me so proud.” 

Photo by Greg Brown.