Melissa Hanson  Journal Staff

Last Thursday evening students were recognized at the 6th annual Rammy Awards. The awards acknowledge excellence in broadcast work, short fiction films, and photography.

The night was emceed by professor Dana Rosengard, Ph.D., and the audience included Suffolk President James McCarthy, among other notable individuals.

Students and faculty filled Suffolk’s Modern Theater dressed to impress.  Rosengard donned a sequined vest and nominees appeared in dresses, suits, and ties.

There were nine categories, a student winner chosen in each, with the exception of one photography category where there was a tie.  Professors from the Communication and Journalism Department took the stage throughout the evening to announce the winners in each category.

The students who are recognized are chosen by professionals all over the country and world.  What is great about this, according to Rosengard, is that people who would otherwise have no idea, find out that Suffolk University students are capable of producing this kind of work, and to such a high quality.

The night began with a strobe light and a fast paced montage of Boston streets, flashing images of pedestrians and cars, which introduced the faculty members that would be present through the night.  Then the awards began.  Nominees were listed and then short clips of student work were shown on the stage’s large screen.

All the students gave acceptance speeches when they were awarded. Many thanked professors, some thanked family and friends, and some showed gratitude to their peers. Heidi Walsh told a short story on her winning broadcast story in the Feature News category, which featured a Suffolk University student who is a woman in combat.  She spoke on how the woman in her story risked so much to speak with her, and Walsh was moved by that dedication.

Another notable acceptance speech was by Anthony Mangini.  However, he did not have just one speech; he had three.  He was awarded in the Photo Spot News, Photo Black and White, and Photo Color categories.  Professor Ken Martin spoke on his dedication as a student before handing him one of his glass Rammy Awards.

Other students awarded included Kathryn Babb as Magini’s tie in the Photo Color category, Kellie Mchugh for Photo Essay, the team of Jared Pelletier, Anush Elbakyan, Dan McCarthy, and Matt Irwin for Hard News, Dan McCarthy for Sport Reporting, David Lawlor for Fiction Short, and Tyler Fisk and Mason Marino for Music Video.

“I think my favorite part [of the event] was being able to shout out to the audience just how many people it took to get that hard news piece out,” said Rosengard.

“I thought the student work looked professional and was stunning to see what students are capable of creating,” said Suffolk freshman Jared Doherty, a broadcast journalism major.  “It’s encouraging knowing I will be taking those same classes and hopefully creating these same pieces of work.”

Doherty, like others in the audience, was very impressed by all of the work.  He says the music video was his favorite piece, that it was “stunning” and “looked and sounded very professional.  Submitting work and being nominated is a hope of Doherty’s for the next few years.

After the first two categories, the Suffolk choir group Rampage took the stage for a musical performance.  Dressed in sleek red and black outfits, the performers sang and danced in a uniform fashion to “September” by Earth, Wind and Fire.  After awarding a few more students for their work, Rampage took the stage again and performed their own medly of Queen songs.

One of the most memorable moments of the night was the introduction of the Lifetime Achievement Award in honor of Professor Gerald Peary.  A notable movie critic, Peary is now beginning to star in, and direct, movies.  He is beginning phase-in retirement, and was honored to have this new Rammy Award as recognition of his career.  Photographs of Peary traveling abroad were shown to students, a clip of him acting in his new movie was played, and he gave a short, thankful acceptance speech.

Rosengard ended the evening with an invitation for everyone to attend a reception at the Back Deck on West St., and to also keep working hard and submit work for the 2014 Rammy Awards.