Matthew Schur Wins Don Romero Prize for Outstanding Magazine Journalism
Award Honors a Former Missouri School of Journalism Professor
By Nathan Allen
Master’s Student
Columbia, Mo. (April 18, 2012) — Magazine journalism senior Matthew Schur is the 2012 winner of the Don Romero Prize. He will receive a $400 prize.
The prize was established in honor of Don Romero, a former magazine professor at the Missouri School of Journalism, by two of his former students. The award acknowledges Romero’s contribution to and his encouragement of outstanding magazine journalism.
“Matt is a textbook example of a magazine student who has thrived with the Missouri School of Journalism, hands-on method of learning by doing,” said Berkley Hudson, associate professor of magazine journalism. “He has grown both as a reporter and a writer. And he is continuing to master the art of revision. It will be wonderful for us all to watch him flourish after he graduates from Mizzou.”
Schur submitted three different stories to be judged. The first story was about former University of Missouri football quarterback Chase Patton. Patton was considered a top quarterback recruit coming out of Rock Bridge High School but served as back up behind Chase Daniel. The article highlights Patton’s MU football career and his current studies as a dentistry student.
The second article submitted was about the local country music scene in Columbia and the struggles local artists have while competing with larger, national acts. The final article submitted was about a gospel rapper living in Columbia who coined his own genre of music, “hope-hop.”
Schur served as a contributing writer for Vox magazine when he wrote the articles. He is from Chicago and plans to write for a magazine after graduation.
“The professors here have taught me so much,” Schur said. “I have learned how to remember the big picture while writing and include specific, detailed parts of stories.”
Updated: June 5, 2020