UA Scholastic Media Director Wins National Award for Blog

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Meredith Cummings’ “Up Beat” outlook on life has earned her a national award from the National Federation of Press Women.

Cummings’ blog, “The Up Beat,” won first place in the 2015 NFPW Communications Contest blog category. The blog is hosted on al.com.

Cummings, who has previously been a runner-up in the category, said the win marked the achievement of a goal.

“I’m proud of this award because three years ago I won third place and set a goal to do better,” Cummings said. “Then, last year I won second place and set a goal to win first this year. And, I did it.”

Seems that Cummings’ positive attitude has paid off, both in her writing and in the professional recognition of her blog. In addition to the national award, she also won a first-place award in the Personal Blogs category in the Alabama Media Professionals’ annual awards content.

“We’re very proud of Meredith, who’s an outstanding journalist, teacher and mentor to future journalists,” said Dr. Wilson Lowrey, chairman of the journalism department. “Her writing keeps her grounded in the craft of telling stories about important issues that she’s passionate about.”

Cummings serves as director of scholastic media in the College of Communication & Information Sciences, where she oversees the Alabama Scholastic Press Association and the National Elementary Schools Press Association.