KOLA TUBOSUN PRIZE FOR CAMPUS JOURNALISM 2016

KT PRIZE

In line with our vision of “igniting the passion for journalism in Nigerian campuses”, the Union of Campus Journalists, University of Ibadan hereby present the maiden edition of Kola Tubosun Prize for Campus Journalism in Nigeria to honour those campus journalists who have sufficiently demonstrated attention to the preservation of culture and/or gender equality in their works.

GENDER EQUALITY

Today, gender inequality has become a global issue that we encounter every day in the news, on the internet, in the classroom, in the workplace and all around. The threat this issue is posing to the values of humanity, has seen it placed comfortably in the 5th position on the Sustainable Development Goals. The aim of this prize is to encourage the culture of writing on the issue of gender equality with a view to collectively creating what Kola Tubosun referred to as “a world in which men and women can achieve their best selves at home, at work, and in the society without hindrance, and without obeisance to rules that have their roots in prejudice and fear rather than in fact… because I believe that a strong and fulfilled woman is as much an asset to the family as a strong and fulfilled man.”9jafeminista

CULTURE PRESERVATION

It is quite saddening to see that many languages are going into extinction in Nigeria as a result of very passive patronage by the native speakers. The Nigerian experience is even worse where we have even ‘criminalised’ anything different from our poorly spoken English language. This prize is aimed at encouraging a writing culture that continues to enlighten, educate and inspire our people about the importance of preserving our language and culture. But more than that, the prize rewards any campus journalist that has – in the course of the year – demonstrated sufficient commitment to the dignity and agency of the local language by consistent use of tone marks (in the case of Yorùbá, Igbo, and other tonal languages); and a positive disposition to, exposition of, and, defence of the native language as a viable tool for national development.

Eligibility

All applicants must be campus journalists with evidence of membership in any higher institution of learning in Nigeria. Winners will be made to present this evidence of membership and/or a letter of recognition from their respective local Editors-in-Chief/Presidents before claiming their prizes. Applicants in the University of Ibadan must show proof of membership of a press organisation that has paid its dues to the Union of Campus Journalists, University of Ibadan.

General Guidelines

  • All submitted stories must have been written on or before July 31, 2016
  • All submissions must have been published in any of the following mediums:
    • Any Nigerian newspaper (print or online)
    • The website/blog of your campus press organisation
    • A print publication of your campus press organisation
    • Any popular blog or forum
    • Personal blogs
    • Press boards with convincing evidence that they were published on or before July 31, 2016.
  • All applicants are to submit not less than 2 stories and not more than 5 stories on any of the areas highlighted above.
  • All submissions should be in the form of links, pictures, PDF documents and all other formats that make the stories readable and verifiable.

Prize

N50,000

Deadline

All submissions should be sent to ucjunibadan@gmail.com and copied to mail@ucjui.com on or before September 10, 2016.

Announcement of Winners

Announcement of winners will be made via UCJ website and other social media channels on or before the 30th of September, 2016.

Award

Awarding of prizes to the announced winners will be done at the UCJ luncheon/Award Ceremony in the University of Ibadan on the 22nd of October, 2016.

All inquiries should be directed to ucjunibadan@gmail.com or mail@ucjui.com .

N.B: The judging panel will consist of professional and experienced individuals in mainstream journalism; hence, by taking part in the contest, you agree that their decisions will be final.

ABOUT KOLA TUBOSUN:

“Kola Tubosun is a Nigerian writer, linguist, and teacher, whose work spans the fields of education, technology, literature, journalism, and linguistics. He is a Fulbright Fellow (Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, 2009) and recipient of the Premio Ostana Special Prize for Mother Tongue Literature 2016. He writes in Yoruba and English and translates between both languages.

He has worked as a broadcaster, university professor, adult literacy volunteer, high school teacher, and recently as Linguistics Project Manager at Google. He was recently listed on the Quartz African Innovators’ list. He has also edited two volumes of student-written anthology of creative works, as well as a couple of literary magazines.

His chapbook, Attempted Speech & Other Fatherhood Poems was released by Saraba Magazine in September, 2015. He currently works as a curator of YorubaName.com.”

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