The Rock County Star Herald brought home seven awards from the Minnesota Newspaper Association Annual Convention last week.
The Star Herald was recognized for excellence in seven categories of the MNA Better Newspaper Contest, conducted annually to recognize the talent of news and design staff at newspapers statewide.
“We have always been an award-winning community newspaper,” Star Herald managing editor Lori Sorenson said Monday.
“But it’s particularly satisfying to bring home this much hardware from MNA’s Better Newspaper Contest, judged by our professional peers. I’m so proud of our staff and the work we do.”
The Star Herald earned first-place recognition in the categories of Best Self Promotion House Ad, Best Advertisement, Best Use of Information Graphics and Graphic Illustrations and Best Design Portfolio.
The Star Herald received third-place honors in the categories of Best Use of Information Graphics and Graphic Illustrations, Best Hard News Story and Best Magazine.
The 2023-24 contest was judged this year by newspaper professionals in the Illinois Press Association, some of whom shared remarks with their judging assignments.
“Simply WOW,” judges wrote about the first-place design entry by Star Herald Sports Reporter Greg Hoogeveen.
He submitted Star Herald pages that he designed for a 2023 year-in-review page and front pages of baseball and hockey state tournament special sections.
“A lot of work went into those cut-outs and a lot more to achieve the balance that you did. These are the types of designs that readers will pull out and hang on the wall. Outstanding.”
Judges also had a lot to say about Heather Johnson’s first-place graphic illustrations entry, a community page for Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October.
“What a compelling graphic -- so much text and statistics, yet you made it digestible with your clever use of force justification and sprinkled in just the right amount of simple graphics,” the judges wrote.
“I love the simple color palette, yet still feels sophisticated. The ribbon and the curved background on the top left really opens it up. Really well done.”
Johnson’s other first-place entries were a Star Herald gift subscription for Christmas advertisement and a Pepsi advertisement featuring a crossword puzzle about Pepsi products.
They also remarked on Brooke Huisman’s third-place graphic design entry of her Star Herald Community page for June is Dairy Month.
“Nice work,” they wrote about Huisman’s entry. “Graphics set your mind to the subject immediately. … Informational and fun.”
Star Herald reporter Mavis Fodness entered her coverage of the Elk Creek Solar Farm public hearing in the “best hard news” MNA contest category.
“Interesting juxtaposition between farming and green energy,” judges remarked about her third-place entry.
They wrote that the Star Herald’s third-place winning “Welcome to Luverne” magazine was a “very nice magazine, great design.”
Johnson and Fodness attended the 2025 MNA Convention in Bloomington Jan. 29-31 to accept the awards on behalf of the Star Herald and to participate in convention training and industry information seminars.
Star Herald production manager and designer Heather Johnson earned three separate first-place awards at the MNA Convention last week. Judges were particularly impressed with her Community Page with information about Breast Cancer Awareness Month in October.
