The Department of Journalism and Public Communications honored Rosey Robards with the JPC Alumni Award at its graduation celebration earlier this month. 

Rosey Robards is the director of Alaska Teen Media Institute and executive director of the Alaska Press Club, a nonprofit organization that offers professional development opportunities and advocates for the industry. Under Robards’ leadership, the Alaska Press Club has grown from a small body to a thriving organization that brings national newsroom figures to Anchorage for its annual conference as well as providing other programming. Last month, the Press Club conference welcomed Judy Woodruff of PBS and other industry innovators. The Press Club has more than 175 members statewide.

Robards was the editor at The Northern Light, but she began her journalism career at Dimond High School’s Igaramkin student newspaper. Since graduating from UAA as a University Honors Program Scholar with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Public Communications in 2005, Robards has been a leader in journalism education for both teens and professionals.

“One of the first things you learn when you work with Rosey is she doesn’t do things halfway,” said Lori Townsend, news director and senior host at Alaska Public Media. “She is incredibly organized and thorough. Within a few years of getting involved with the Press Club, she and Julia O'Malley and a few other working journalists had taken charge of the organization and molded it as fast as they could into an organization that could help encourage young journalists, provide valuable training for those already in journalism as a career, and bring inspiring national editors and journalists here to Alaska to share their knowledge.”