Published since 1883, The Vermont Cynic is one of the oldest university weeklies in the country. And among the most lauded.
In the past decade, the paper has seen tremendous growth. Membership has quadrupled to more than 100 staff members, who together form this news organization, doing everything from reporting to photography to ad sales and more. A tight-knit, well-trained leadership team sets the agenda and supervises the staff.
Though the University of Vermont has no journalism program, this student-led organization has racked up impressive awards, including:
- Second-place national winner in 2018 for a major Photo of the Year award and a four-place finisher that same year for Advertisement of the Year.
- Finalist for the 2017 Newspaper Pacemaker, considered the Pulitzer Prize of college journalism.
- Winner of the 2016 Diversity Story of the Year competition, in which the Cynic journalists placed better than their peers at Pepperdine, Drake, UNC-Chapel Hill, Northwestern and the Graduate School of Journalism at CUNY.
- Runner-up for the 2015 National Story of the Year award from Associated Collegiate Press.
- A Princeton Review 2014 Top 20 College Newspaper.
- Winner of the 2012 Online Pacemaker, recognizing website excellence.
- Winner of the 2011 Newspaper Pacemaker, recognizing print excellence.
Recent Cynic students have landed internships and jobs at The Jerusalem Post, USA Today, The Boston Globe, The Arizona Republic, ABC News and many others.
As a lifelong journalist and, since 2006, the Cynic’s adviser, I’ve sought to teach students the journalistic and leadership skills that they need to succeed. A focus on diversity and social justice helped to transform newsroom leadership from 85 percent male to predominantly female, paving the way for the first female editor-in-chief in 20 years. We’ve had many since.
Learn more about The Vermont Cynic at vtcynic.com.
Chris Evans 