The Society of Professional Journalists has named three IDS staff members as the national winners of the 2025 Mark of Excellence Awards.
The Mark of Excellence Award is a national honor recognizing collegiate publications or broadcasts. Judges only name one national winner per category and note the runners-up as finalists. All winners and finalists had previously won first place in their regional competitions.
The Society of Professional Journalists notes, "judges were directed to choose only those entries which they felt were outstanding work worthy of a national honor. If the judges determined that none of the entries rose to the level of excellence, no award was given. Any category not listed has no winner."
Mia Hilkowitz and Andrew Miller received a joint award in the General Column Writing (Large School) category. They were awarded for three front-page Letters from the Editors. The first piece was initially published on October 14, 2025, and details Indiana University's termination of Jim Rodenbush in his role as the Director of Student Media. The second piece was initially published on October 15, 2025, and discusses the university's decision to cut the IDS's print newspaper. Published on October 30, 2025, the final awarded column outlines the reversal of the university's decision to cut print newspapers and takes a look forward to the future of journalism at Indiana University.
Additionally, Lauren McKinney was named the national winner in the Sports Photography category. Her photo, "Little 500 crash," depicts an on-course collision during the running of the Women's Little 500.
