The St. Louis American was given nine first-place, three second place, and several other awards that honored staff members for excellence in print, community service, online contributions, and videos in the 2025 Missouri Press Association Better Newspaper Contest.
The awards were announced on Saturday Sept. 13, 2025, during the MPA Better Newspaper Contest luncheon at The Wildwood Hotel in Wildwood, Missouri.
“We are honored to again receive multiple awards during the annual Better Newspaper Contest, which are a testament to the ability and dedication of our staff. This includes every member, from operations and senior management to the editorial, production and digital platform teams, IT staff, and contributing columnists and writers. It reflects both an individual and team effort,” said American Publisher Donald M. Suggs, who attended the awards ceremony.
“Most importantly, the awards help affirm our commitment to provide quality journalism to the community we serve as we move toward our 100th year of publication.”
The American’s first-place awards were:
Weeklies — Class 3
Best Overall Design – Melvin Moore, Mike Terhaar
Best Front Page – Mike Terhaar
Best Sports Pages – Mike Terhaar
Best Page Design – Melvin Moore
Best Stories About Rural Life or Agriculture – Alvin A. Reid and Ashley Winters
Best Stories About Marginalized or Underrepresented Communities – Staff
Best Online Newspaper or Website – James LeBine, Isaiah Peters and Dawn Suggs
Multi-Media Reporting – James LeBine, Taylor McIntosh, Wiley Price and Dawn Suggs
Community Service – Staff
Second Place Awards
General Excellence – Staff
Best Newspaper in Education Project – Cathy Sewell
Third Place Awards
Best Editorial and Opinion Pages – Staff
Best Feature Story – Staff
Best Sports Columnist – Alvin A. Reid
Best Story about Religion – Alvin A. Reid and Ashley Winters
On Friday Sept. 12, the late Kevin Jones who served for over 20 years as the St. Louis American COO was posthumously inducted into Missouri Newspaper Hall of Fame.