Point Park, Myron Cope Family Teaming up to Honor Best in High School Sports Communication Wednesday, November 8, 2023
Point Park University's School of Communication is partnering with Myron Cope’s family to recognize excellence in high school athletic communication in Western Pennsylvania. Any student who wins a Myron Cope High School Athletic Communication Award is eligible for a $1,000 scholarship.
Three of Western Pennsylvania’s most esteemed sports journalists will help judge the entries:
- John Beale, a sports photojournalist for The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and former photography professor at Penn State University
- Guy Junker, public address announcer for the Pittsburgh Pirates and longtime sports anchor for WTAE
- Tim Rigby, former anchor and sports anchor for WJAC
School of Communication Dean Bernie Ankney said the competition is going to be fierce.
“I am overwhelmed by the live broadcasts, sports photography and sports journalism that high schools are producing in Western Pennsylvania. I was recently listening to a high school football game and thought the broadcasting team was as good as many college broadcasts,” said Ankney.
Elizabeth Cope, daughter of Myron Cope, said her dad would be honored that the awards were named after him.
“My dad loved Western Pennsylvania. My dad loved sports. My dad loved to mentor young journalists. He would be so excited to see these young men and women entering sports communication,” said Cope. “I think his advice would be: 'Be yourself and don’t be afraid to take risks. Don’t let someone tell you that you don’t have the right voice or right look.'”
Awards Given (three schools honored for each category):
- Best Broadcasts of Live Sports
- Best High School Sports Segment
- Best High School Sports Broadcast Show
- Best Sports Photography
- Best Sports Social Media Account
- Best Sports Website
- Best Sports Coverage in a High School Newspaper
- Best Sports Coverage in a Yearbook
Individual Awards
- High School Play-by-Play Announcer of the Year (Greg Brown Award)
- High School Sports Broadcaster of the Year Award (Bob Pompeani Award)
- High School Sports Multimedia Journalist of the Year Award (Michael DeCourcy Award)
- High School Sports Podcaster of the Year
- High School Sports Journalist of the Year (Newspaper and Yearbook)
Brown, Pompeani and DeCourcy are Point Park alumni.
Eligibility
High schools and students in the following counties are eligible: Allegheny, Armstrong, Beaver, Bedford, Blair, Butler, Cambria, Clarion, Clearfield, Fayette, Greene, Indiana, Jefferson, Lawrence, Somerset, Washington and Westmoreland.
“The School of Communication offers a sports communication major and I'd love for these high school students to come to Point Park because I think it's the next step in them getting a job in broadcasting, college sports or professional sports,” said Ankney.
Award submissions due by May 13, 2024
High schools can enter the competition online. All submissions must be received by May 13, 2024.
Email Dean Ankney with questions: rankney@pointpark.edu.
Awards Ceremony
Sunday, June 2, 2024 at 12 p.m.
Point Park’s Pittsburgh Playhouse