Ballot issues education, video about Razorback mascot Tusk earn first-place honors at national contest
By The U of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture
Sept. 22, 2025
Fast facts:
- Contest drew nearly 2,000 entries from 39 states, D.C., one foreign country
- Higgins honored as state Communicator of Achievement
Download related art
(508 words)
GOLDEN, Colo. — The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture earned three
first- place honors at the National Federation of Press Women contest.
Kristin Netterstrom Higgins, of the Division of Agriculture’s Public Policy Center, won first place for her 2024 Arkansas Ballot Issue Education Program, which was entered in the public service program or campaign. Co-entrants included: Julie Thompson and Chris Meux, both graphic designers for the Division of Agriculture’s Cooperative Extension Service, and Kerry Rodtnick, extension videographer.
Netterstrom Higgins was also honored at the national meeting as the Arkansas Communicator of Achievement, the highest honor given by the Arkansas Press Women organization. Donna Bryson, former AP bureau chief in South Africa, was named national Communicator of Achievement at the meeting. Bryson began her AP career as an intern in Columbus, Ohio, and worked at the company’s Kansas City bureau, Springfield, Missouri, correspondency; New Delhi; Cairo and London bureaus, and the world desk in New York before heading up the South Africa bureau.
“I’m honored to be on the same slate as these amazing women from other states,” Netterstrom Higgins said. “This recognition cements the joy I have writing for the public.”
Mary Hightower, chief communications officer for the Division of Agriculture, had two first-place wins for “Tusk VI: Ag is Big in Arkansas,” in the Video for Web, special interest video category, and for headline writing. The headlines included “USDA’s latest farm income estimate a tale of black swans, record yields, tenant farmers;” “‘Cicadapolcalypse Now’ as emergence begins in Arkansas;” “Lightning bugs: The story behind summer’s tiny fireworks show;” and “Fraud leaves a bitter taste in honey industry.”
Co-entrants for the video were videographers Ben Aaron, Paden Johnson, Kerry Rodtnick, all of the Cooperative Extension Service, and Nick Kordsmeier, director of communications for the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station.
Hightower also earned a second-place in the electronic newsletter for nonprofit, government or education for ONE Division, and a third-place in specialty articles/agriculture for “Norsworthy honored with Rice Industry Award.
A distinguished group of professional journalists, communications specialists and educators judged nearly 2,000 entries in a wide variety of categories. Only first-place winning entries at the state level are eligible to enter the national contest. All entries were published or broadcast between Jan. 1, 2024, and Dec. 31, 2024.
The 2025 contest drew entries from 39 states, the District of Columbia and one foreign country.
Delaware Press Association set a contest record by winning the Affiliate Sweepstakes Award for the 15th time since 2001. The Affiliate Sweepstakes Award is given to the affiliate with the most points for winning entries in the NFPW Communications Contest.
Arkansas Press Women earned the second-highest number of points in this year’s Sweepstakes competition, with the Connecticut Press Club earning the third-highest number.
NFPW is a nationwide organization of women and men pursuing careers across the communications spectrum, including print and electronic journalism, freelancing, new media, books, public relations, marketing, graphic design, photography, advertising, radio and television.
For more information about NFPW and the annual Professional Communications Contest, please visit the organization’s website at www.nfpw.org.
To learn about extension programs in Arkansas, contact your local Cooperative Extension Service agent or visit www.uaex.uada.edu. Follow us on X and Instagram at @AR_Extension. To learn more about Division of Agriculture research, visit the Arkansas Agricultural Experiment Station website: https://aaes.uada.edu/. Follow on X at @ArkAgResearch. To learn more about the Division of Agriculture, visit https://uada.edu/. Follow us on X at @AgInArk.
About the Division of Agriculture
The University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture’s mission is to strengthen agriculture, communities, and families by connecting trusted research to the adoption of best practices. Through the Agricultural Experiment Station and the Cooperative Extension Service, the Division of Agriculture conducts research and extension work within the nation’s historic land grant education system.
The Division of Agriculture is one of 20 entities within the University of Arkansas System. It has offices in all 75 counties in Arkansas and faculty on three campuses.
Pursuant to 7 CFR § 15.3, the University of Arkansas System Division of Agriculture offers all its Extension and Research programs and services (including employment) without regard to race, color, sex, national origin, religion, age, disability, marital or veteran status, genetic information, sexual preference, pregnancy or any other legally protected status, and is an equal opportunity institution.
# # #
Media contact: Mary Hightower
mhightower@uada.edu