22 Alumni Secured Nominations for New England Academy Television Arts and Sciences Awards (NATAS)
Lyndon, Vt. – Alumni of Vermont State University’s Lyndon campus took home twelve awards at the New England Emmy Awards, a division of the National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences, which took place on June 10, 2023. In total, twenty-two alumni were nominated and eight garnered awards. Also in attendance were six Vermont State Lyndon students who earned recognition at the 2023 Student Production Awards.
NEW ENGLAND EMMY AWARD WINNERS
- Joe Carroll ’85 (three nominations; one win)
- Kirk Cratty ’99 (two nominations; one win)
- Chris Gobeille ’95 (one nomination; one win)
- Jarryd Guinard ’11 (three nominations; two wins)
- Thomas Korsak ’02 (three nominations; three wins)
- Rick LeBlanc ’01 (one nomination; one win)
- Danielle North ’96 (one nomination; one win)
- Chris Shepherd ’93 (four nominations; two wins)
NEW ENGLAND EMMY AWARDS – FULL NOMINEE LIST OF LYNDON ALUMNI
- Brayton Beardsley ’97 (two nominations)
- Charlie Berg ’99
- Joe Carroll ’85 (three nominations)
- Alex Conroy ’17
- Kirk Cratty ’99 (two nominations)
- Kyle Dubreuil ’09
- Cindy Fitzgibbons ’95 (six nominations)
- Jarryd Guinard ’11 (three nominations)
- Jessica Gullbrand ’17
- Chris Gobeille ’95
- Brad Hickox ’14
- Jared Higginbotham ’05
- Thomas Korsak ’02 (three nominations)
- Rick LeBlanc ’01
- Anthony Macari ’16
- Danielle North ’96
- Kelly O’Brien ’15
- Amanda Post ’03
- Steve Shannon ‘09 (two nominations)
- Chris Shepherd ’93 (four nominations)
- Angela Tetreault ‘97
- Dan Valente ’08
STUDENT PRODUCTION AWARD WINNERS AND HONORABLE MENTIONS
Vermont State Lyndon alumni and students won in the College/University-Music Video category for Not to Think by Autumn Chamberlain ‘22, artist; Jacob Before ‘22, videographer; Jared Hazelton ‘22, producer; Campbell Gillette ‘24, set design and bassist; Ben Lebeau ‘22, set design and drummer; and Ellen Tierney ‘22 graphic design.
The students are all currently matriculated or graduates of the Lyndon campus Music Business and Industry program in which students may concentrate in Audio Production, Music Management, or Music & Self-Promotion. The program is directed by Brian Warwick, a Grammy award-winning audio engineer who worked with Big Sean, Ludacris, Deftones, Slayer, Michael Bublé, and “Weird Al” Yankovic.
Two Lyndon campus Communications students, now graduates of the program, also took home honors.
Alexandra Huff ‘23 was awarded two honorable mentions in the College/University-News Report-Serious News category for her multimedia news reports Homelessness in the NEK and A Look at Vermont’s Lieutenant Governors’ Race, and one honorable mention in the College/University-Multimedia Journalist category for Beating Parkinson’s With Boxing. John Habershaw ‘23 also received an honorable mention in the same category for Changes in Special Education Funding.
COMMUNICATIONS AT VERMONT STATE UNIVERSITY
Students in the Communications program have access to industry-standard technology throughout, and those who choose to focus on a Broadcast Journalism track will create on-air shows in the News7 studio. This hands-on experience drives student success, and program alumni work in 25 percent of national media markets.
“When I started in the program, I didn’t know what kind of stories I wanted to tell or what my beat would be,” said Huff. “News7 not only helped me figure out my niche style of reporting, but challenged me to take it further and try different things. I am well-rounded because of it, and to have three of my stories recognized this year speaks to how well the program prepares students for a future in journalism.”
Huff also received honors this year for her work on The Critic, a student-run newspaper. The Critic took home two awards from the New England Newspaper and Press Association in May 2023 — a first place in the sports category (a tie) and a second in the Multimedia Journalist category. Both pieces were written by Huff.
“Lyndon’s showing both on the student production award level and the national academy level are a true testament to our program’s 45+ year history in the communications and journalism industries,” said Meaghan Meachem, professor and chair, Journalism and Communications. “We are incredibly proud of our current students for competing at the national level and shining among some stiff collegiate competition, and of our alumni for what is certainly a banner year of wins and nominations in the New England chapter of the National Academy. We are simply beaming with pride at the showing Lyndon had this year within the National Academy.”
