Bristol's Brittany Decker Honored for Documentary Work

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Western New England College junior Brittany Decker

SPRINGFIELD, MA (04/27/2010)(readMedia)-- Western New England College communication major Brittany Decker won first place honors for feature reporting in the Massachusetts/Rhode Island Associated Press radio and TV contest. Decker, a junior from Bristol, CT, was honored for a documentary report she produced on a local charitable foundation's efforts to help the poor in Southeast Asia.

In October, Decker travelled to Cambodia with Dr. Mary Anne Herron of The Harold Grinspoon Charitable Foundation to document the foundation's efforts to provide education and medial care to villagers outside of Phnom Penh. Since 2004, the foundation has funded schools in small squatter communities outside the capital, serving more than 500 students in five schools. The foundation also supports a group of orphans and funded a project to create a medical clinic serving more than 2,000 people per month.

Decker connected with the Grinspoon Foundation through the College's Institute for Media and Non-Profit Communication. Through the institute, students produce, write, shoot, and edit videos for non-profit organizations. The projects give students the opportunity to gain valuable "hands-on" experience while providing non-profit groups access to video production resources free of charge.

Western New England College is a private, independent, coeducational institution founded in 1919. Located on an attractive 215-acre suburban campus in Springfield, Massachusetts, the College serves 3,700 students, including 2,500 full-time undergraduate students. Undergraduate, graduate, and professional programs are offered through the College's Schools of Arts and Sciences, Business, Engineering, and Law.

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