On New Year’s Day, most students wake up late, stuff their stomachs with leftover Chex mix and cast bloated gazes at the televised Rose Parade. On Jan. 1, Laurie Hekman, on the other hand, was soaking up her first good news of 2008: a check for $1,000 from the Michigan Press Association Foundation.

She is the first Cornerstone student ever to receive this scholarship.

Hekman, The Herald’s new managing editor, applied for the award, The MPA Foundation Community Journalism Scholarship, on Nov. 20 of last year. She recalls the day distinctly because of its stressfulness.

“I remember that was when I had… my huge final senior seminar paper due,” she said. “I was turning into a crazy person trying to get everything done.”

Alan Blanchard, assistant professor of journalism and The Herald adviser, was one of several of Hekman’s professors (including Judith Fabisch, professor of English, and Cynthia Beach, assistant professor of English) who recommended her for the scholarship.

“Laurie has several things going for her that made her an outstanding candidate,” Blanchard said. He listed “strong news writing story samples, leadership and editor roles on campus newspaper,” as well as a versatility of writing abilities, great interviewing and listening skills, and a solid work ethic.

Janet Mendler, the MPA Foundation representative, indicated that the scholarships are given only to students attending colleges with MPA memberships. “The private college students compete for only one scholarship; this year, four candidates were nominated by private colleges,” she said in an e-mailed response. “Laurie was the only one from a private college [to win].”

There were eight other winners from public universities. Coincidentally enough, Hekman shared that the Michigan State University scholarship recipient was a friend of hers from high school. “It was good to see her name on the list,” Hekman said.

When Hekman sent in her application, she said Mendler expressed enthusiasm to see a Cornerstone student going for it, because that had not happened in a while.

The application, said Hekman, consisted of a 500-word essay that explained (among other things) the applicant’s views on “community journalism, and previous and current experience in community journalism and campus publications.”

“It came at such a good time because I was … really praying about it,” said Hekman. “My dad is a pastor, not exactly made of money.”

Although Hekman said the award will help her finance her remaining semester at CU and will look great on her resume, she is mostly grateful for the recognition. “It’s just going to encourage me as a writer and as a journalist to know that someone outside Cornerstone University thinks that I have something of value in the journalism world,” said Hekman. “It just helped inspire me.”