UC Journalism department announces first-ever Young Alumni Award honorees

The University of Cincinnati Department of Journalism is proud to announce its first-ever class of “Young Alumni Award” honorees. The award recognizes UC Journalism alumni whose news media careers are on the rise with notable achievements approximately 10 years after graduation. 

Journalism first became a degree program in the College of Arts and Sciences' Department of English & Comparative, issuing its first ever B.A. to Saleha Mohsin in 2005, before separating into a stand-alone Department of Journalism in 2012. 

The 2019 inaugural class of UC Journalism Young Alumni Awardees includes seven members: Saleha Mohsin (A&S Journalism, 2005); Maija Zummo (A&S Journalism, 2006); Tom Demeropolis, Rachel Richardson and Meghan Wesley (A&S Journalism, 2007); as well as Keith Jenkins and Emily Maxwell (A&S Journalism, 2008).

Mohsin has covered the White House and the U.S. Treasury since 2016 for Bloomberg News. She has also been a contributor for the Associated Press, Newsweek and The Wall Street Journal. Previously, she covered Scandinavian monetary policy for Bloomberg in Oslo, Norway. Mohsin received a master’s degree in Journalism from the University of the Arts London in England.

Zummo is editor-in- chief of CityBeat, Cincinnati’s alt-weekly, and previously served as its managing editor from 2013-2018. She was also the co-founder and editor-in-chief for an independent Cincinnati women's magazine A-Line. As a freelance writer and copyeditor, Zummo has worked with North Light Books, Writer’s Digest and PRINT, as well as other outlets.

Demeropolis is a senior reporter with the Cincinnati Business Courier. Previously, he was a reporter for the Dayton Business Journal, and the Cincinnati Post. Demeropolis also earned an M.A. in Journalism from Ball State University, and served as a term adjunct for UC Journalism.

Richardson is currently a public information officer for the University of Cincinnati after working as a reporter and graphics designer for The Cincinnati Enquirer for 10 years.  She also does freelance reporting for WCPO-TV in Cincinnati and after several years of reporting on crime and the courts, is now pursuing a J.D. at Northern Kentucky University.

Wesley has been with WCPO-TV in Cincinnati since 2015 where she is a senior manager of enterprise and investigative reporting. She also earned an M.S. in Journalism from Columbia University in 2008, and previously worked as an associate editor for The New York Times Syndicate. Wesley held various positions in digital content management, editing and coaching at The Cincinnati Enquirer from 2009-2015.

Jenkins is a sports reporter for The Associated Press and is based in Milwaukee where he covers the NBA’s Bucks, MLB’s Brewers and the NFL’s Packers, as well as University of Wisconsin and Marquette University athletics. He previously worked as an editorial graphics producer for ESPN.

Maxwell has worked for WCPO-TV in Cincinnati since 2010, first as a web editor, and now as a videographer and photojournalist. She has won multiple Emmy Awards for long-form digital and broadcast journalism projects. She is moving to Colorado to work as a multimedia journalist and video producer for a new storytelling initiative for the city of Denver, where she will be making documentaries about the people, places and history of the city.

The first class will be honored on Tuesday, February 18th from 6 p.m. – 7:30 p.m. at the Taft Research Center in Edwards 1, Suite 1110 on University Cincinnati’s uptown campus. 

Reception with Hors d’oeuvres will start at 6 p.m. with the program beginning by 6:45 p.m., featuring a keynote address from UC Journalism’s very first graduate – Saleha Mohsin. 

For more information or to RSVP, please contact Jeffrey Blevins, head of the Journalism Department at Jeffrey.Blevins@UC.edu. 

Featured image at top: Mick and Mack, the iconic mascots for UC's College of Arts and Sciences. Photo/Anne Bowling