The Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communication Announces Winners of Hubbard Honors Alumni Awards

The Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Minnesota announces its roster of annual alumni awardees being celebrated on Thursday, Sept. 24 at Hubbard Honors, the school’s annual fundraising alumni dinner.

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Reed Anfinson

Reed Anfinson honored with Award for Excellence

Winning the school’s most prestigious honor, the Award for Excellence, is Reed Anfinson, a 1977 graduate who now co-owns the Swift County Monitor-News in Benson, MN; The Stevens County Times in Morris, MN; and the Grant County Herald in Elbow Lake, MN, with his wife, Shelly. He is also a partner in Quinco Press, a newspaper printing plant in Lowry that prints 43 community newspapers. Anfinson has played a pivotal role in advocating for the newspaper industry in Minnesota and nationally, having served as president of the Minnesota Newspaper Association, the National Newspaper Foundation and the National Newspaper Association (NNA) — the main lobby group for rural newspapers in Washington, D.C.

In nominating Anfinson for the prize, Professor Emeritus Al Cross from the University of Kentucky wrote, “There is no more authoritative and energetic advocate for community journalism in the United States than Reed Anfinson, who frequently uses his experiences as a rural editor and publisher to help those in the news media and other businesses understand the existential challenges faced by rural journalists and their paymasters.”

The Hubbard School will be honoring a total of ten alums across three categories of award.

Awardees

Award for Excellence

The Hubbard School's most prestigious award, presented to an alum of considerable impact over the span of their career:

Reed Anfinson, Swift County Monitor-News (BA '77)

Pathfinder Awards

For established alumni leaders in their professions who have carved a path of creative excellence, leadership and community-mindedness:

Jaime Chismar, Super Deluxe Design Studio & All Are Welcome Here (BA ‘00)

Kent Erdahl, KARE 11 (BA ‘05)

Brandon Miller, Land O' Lakes (BA ‘07)

Above the Fold Awards

For recent graduates who are already making an impact in their field:

Genevieve Benson NiCheallachain, AmTrust Financial (BA ‘21)

Maria Hayden, Minnesota State Fair (BA ‘20)

Tyrese Leverty, Colle McVoy (BA ‘21)

Gracie Stockton, WCCO News Talk 830 (BA ‘21)

Zach Warfel, Fallon (BA ‘20)

Lauren Wetzsteon Tufo, Gates Foundation (BA ‘18)

Program: Women's Sports in Minnesota

The evening will also feature a panel discussion on Women's Sports in Minnesota, inspired by the Hubbard School’s new Sports Media and Promotion Minor. Our distinguished panelists include: Dr. Dunja Antunovic, associate professor of sport sociology and an affiliated scholar with the Tucker Center for Research on Girls & Women in Sport at the School of Kinesiology will moderate a conversation with sports industry professionals, including Chelsey Falzone, manager of Youth Engagement for the Minnesota Twins; Andrea Graham, VP of Community Engagement for Minnesota Sports and Events; Coach Greg "Boom" May, head coach of the Gopher women's hockey team; and Andrea Yoch, president of Andrea Yoch & Co. and co-founder and board member of Minnesota Aurora FC.

Fundraising

In addition to celebrating our accomplished alums and hearing from experts on the importance of women’s sports and its coverage in Minnesota, Hubbard Honors is also a fundraiser for the Journalism and Mass Communication Fund, directly impacting student experience. This discretionary fund has many applications throughout the school year, including travel expenses for student groups (i.e., SPJ, the Maroon and Gold Sports Network, Ad Club, PRSSA), application fees for national student competitions, conference registration fees for student professional development, and emergency funding for students facing unexpected crises.

The goal of our fundraising is to open the gates and remove the barriers for our students to focus on their studies, share their talents with the world and engage in experiential learning both on campus and in the field. 

Thanks to our 2026-27 Event Partners for their generous sponsorship of this event:

Hubbard Broadcasting • The Minnesota Star Tribune • Knock • Padilla • Fast Horse • Target

About the Hubbard School

From immersive, real-world learning to invaluable industry connections, the Hubbard School of Journalism and Mass Communication at the University of Minnesota empowers aspiring journalists, strategic communication professionals and media entrepreneurs to lead with confidence and creativity. Founded in 1922 as the Department of Journalism, the Hubbard School has grown steadily over the past century to include more than 30 full-time faculty teaching context and professional skills courses across three undergraduate majors and three graduate programs. Students have access to immersive and experiential learning opportunities like Report for Minnesota, the Hubbard Reporting Experience, National Student Advertising Competition, AdFed’s The Show, Public Relations Student Society of America, the Maroon and Gold Sports Network and more.

The school is also home to three professional centers, creating programs, learning opportunities and connection points for students, working professionals and the community: the Minnesota Journalism Center, the Silha Center for the Study of Media Ethics and Law and the Strategic Communication Hub.