Success built by perseverance and hard work was the theme of the evening Thursday, Nov. 10 as six graduates of the School of Journalism and Mass Communications were honored at the school's 2011 Alumni Awards Dinner held at the Capital City Club in downtown Columbia.

Honored as Distinguished Alumni were Johnny Boggs '84, Western author and Spur Award winner, George Johnson, ’96 MA, former VP for BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina and a SJMC adjunct instructor and Clayton Owen, ’82, senior director of media relations for AT&T Atlanta and founder of Curing Kids’ Cancer.

John Baker, ’01, senior art director for TBWA/Chiat/Day and Kenneth Moton, ’04, reporter for ABC’s Philadelphia affiliate WPVI, were honored as Outstanding Young Alumni.

Videos of Award Receipients

Distinguished Alumni
Johnny Boggs
George Johnson
Clayton Owen

Outstanding Young Alumni
John Baker
Kenneth Moton

Excellence in Service Award
Ken Baldwin

Ken Baldwin, ’49, a retired newspaper executive and loyal donor to the School of Journalism and Mass Communications received the Excellence in Service Award.

The school established the alumni awards in 1984 to recognize former students who have achieved significant recognition in journalism and mass communications.

The Distinguished Alumni Award is for graduates who have been out of school for more than 10 years and whose careers represent significant professional achievement. The Outstanding Young Alumni Award is for graduates who have been out of school 10 years or less but who have already demonstrated significant professional accomplishments early in their careers. The service award honors contributions to the school by alumni and others in the professional community.