The Cadet receive the prestigious William F. Buckley, Jr. Award

&emsp;&emsp;The weekend of October 1st, Cadet Kolton Dobson '23 (The Cadet Copy Editor) and Cadet Gabi Woodward '24 (The Cadet Managing Editor) represented The Cadet Newspaper at the Intercollegiate Studies Institute (ISI) Collegiate Network's National Editors' Conference in Alexandria, VA. At this event, both cadets were given the opportunity to interact with other members of collegiate newspapers, receive guidance from professional writers and editors, and even personally accept the William F. Buckley Jr. Award. Founded in 2012, the award is named for the founder of the National Review who has been an inspiration to independent campus reporters for decades. Every year, it is "bestowed in recognition of a paper that covers events on campus with original reporting, wit, and integrity." &emsp;&emsp;The award is meant to recognize the student newspapers that display the "greatest ethics and integrity to defend and continue independent reporting under conditions seeking to repress the First Amendment at their school." It is no secret that The Cadet has faced its fair share of challenges in the years since its recent startup in May 2021. In the words of Co-Editor in Chief of The Cadet, Patrick Sexton '24, "The Cadet Staff are very grateful for the honor given to us by the ISI. This type of recognition for the unique challenges we face as a paper is humbling especially coming from such great institutions as the ISI and Collegiate Network." &emsp;&emsp;"We were proud to present the Buckley award to The Cadet" said Bridget Ruffing, from the ISI Collegiate Network in presenting the Award. "This paper's staff has worked hard to publish a consistent output of snappy sports coverage, campus culture pieces, and thoughtful, well-researched critiques of their school's administration. They have done all of this in the face of serious, ongoing opposition from their school's administration. For this reason in particular, the team at the Collegiate Network felt that they were most deserving of this year's William F. Buckley Jr. Award for Outstanding Campus Reporting." &emsp;&emsp;In a recent interview Ruffing also told The Cadet, "I particularly cherished the opportunity I was given to deliver this award to The Cadet's Editorial Staff members, Kolton Dobson and Gabriele Woodward, onstage and in-person during our Editors' Conference. It was wonderful to witness the joy and celebration shared by all the award-winners with their fellow Collegiate Network editors." &emsp;&emsp;The Cadet will press forward and continue to provide information to the Corps of Cadets, parents, alumni, faculty, and administration with the same tenacity that earned us this honorable award. We would like to thank the ISI and the Collegiate Network for their wonderful and continued support. We look forward to continuing our work with you in the future.