Senior Lilly Asano, a Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ journalism minor, received The Denver Press Club’s top award this year for her student journalism.
She will accept the $3,000 John C. Ensslin Memorial Scholarship award at the Club’s 2026 Damon Runyon Award Banquet in Denver later this year.
Asano, who is from Davidson, North Carolina, served as during the 2025-2026 academic year where she also reported news stories and penned columns.
“I am immensely grateful and honored to have been selected for the John C. Ensslin Memorial Scholarship and for the opportunity to represent both the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Journalism Institute and The Catalyst newspaper,” Asano said.
She added that both and the Journalism Institute have had a “tremendous impact” on her college experience.
“I am a better student, writer, community member, and citizen because of these programs,” she said. “Through this award, I will continue pursuing Communication Studies and journalism at Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ. In my final year of college, I will be working on my senior thesis on historical forms of women’s media documentation of their college experience at Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ, and completing my journalism minor through an Independent Study block as a news intern.”
Marianne Goodland of Colorado Politics, the Press Club’s past president and the longest-serving reporter at the state Capitol, said the organization is pleased to award its top honor to a Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ student in recognition of Asano’s strong scholarship and portfolio.
“Lilly will make great contributions to journalism as she progresses with her academic work and her contributions,” Goodland said. “We also gave a Club scholarship to Sydney McGarr, who also demonstrated strong academic and journalistic potential.”
McGarr won a Damon Runyan Award scholarship from the Press Club and will also accept it at the upcoming awards banquet. She was also among multiple Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ students to win top awards from the Colorado chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists this year.
“The Colorado journalism community has opened so many doors for me during my three years at Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ, and this recognition encourages me to continue pursuing meaningful, community-centered reporting,” McGarr said. “This honor wouldn't have been possible without the support of the Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ Journalism Institute, my advisors Corey Hutchins and Steve Hayward, and my wonderful team at The Catalyst.”
The is the nation's oldest continuously operating press club, founded in 1867. The organization provides nine scholarships each year, ranging from $1,500 to $3,000, to students demonstrating “outstanding academic achievement and strong commitment to journalism,” Goodland said.
In 2019, The Denver Press Club's board voted to expand journalism scholarships for students at additional schools, including Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ.
Nearly every other year since then, a Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ student has won the Press Club’s top honor with the John C. Ensslin Memorial Scholarship award.
“The club is pleased to honor these two Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ students and look forward to their contributions to our profession in the future,” Goodland said about this year’s awards.
In 2020, Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ student Sam Sanson won the top award; in 2023, it was Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ’s Chloe Brooks-Kistler who won it.
This year, Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ students also won the highest honors from the state’s chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ tied for first place with Colorado State University for the number of students who won awards.
Ä¢¹½ÊÓƵ does not have a journalism major; its thematic minor last year graduated a record number of 18 students.
“Our program punches above its weight,” said Corey Hutchins, who oversees the Journalism Institute. “That’s because of our students who each year show how well they can implement the skills learned on our small liberal arts campus where we put a heavy premium on the importance of local news to our democracy and society.”
