Winning contest entries and other notable reporting on disability from 2013-2019. 

 

2019

The following entries for the 2019 Katherine Schneider Journalism Award for Excellence in Reporting on Disability were singled out by judges for the quality of reporting on disability issues. The award winners are listed at the top, followed by other exemplary work.

AWARD WINNERS – Large Media Category

FIRST PLACE “Right to Fail – living apart, coming undone” Pro Publica, December 6, 2018 Joaquin Sapien Read the story online.

Overview:Hundreds of mentally ill New York City residents moved out of institutions into private apartments over the past four years under a landmark 2014 settlement. The approach is meant to champion the rights of people with mental illness to live independently. But more than 200 interviews, as well as medical, social work and housing records reviewed by ProPublica and the PBS series Frontline, in collaboration with The New York Times, show that for some residents, the sudden shift from an institution to independence has been dangerous and, at times, deadly.

SECOND PLACE “Trapped: Abuse and neglect in private care” Reveal, Center for Investigative Reporting, August 4, 2018 Audrey Quinn Read the story online.

Overview:WNYC-FM reporter and Aftereffect host Audrey Quinn’s reporting revealed a history
of abuse, neglect and client deaths at facilities run by Bellwether Behavioral Health, the largest
group home provider in the state of New Jersey.

THIRD PLACE “G: Unfit” Radiolab, July 17, 2019 Lulu Miller Listen online.

Overview: Lulu Miller investigated the consequences of Buck v Bell, a Supreme Court decision from the 1920s that allowed for the forced sterilization of people deemed “unfit.” The story traces the dark history of human eugenics and demonstrates its relevance to today.

Honorable Mention “The parents said it was a special-needs bed. The state said it was a cage” The Arizona Republic, February 14, 2019 Mary Jo Pitzl Read the story online.

Overview: This story centers on one Arizona family’s fight to use a “safety bed” for their daughter with disabilities, which exposed the tension over rules governing caregivers.

AWARD WINNERS – Small Media Category FIRST PLACE “You’re Not Alone” Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, May 10, 2019 Rory Linnane View this story online. Overview:This documentary follows four young people from Wisconsin as they navigate mental health challenges. It’s an extension of the Kids in Crisis series, which over the past three years has uncovered rising suicide rates and gaps in mental health care in Wisconsin. SECOND PLACE “We dined with wheelchair users at 4 of Charleston’s top lunch spots. Here’s what they experienced.” Charleston Post Courier, August 20, 2018 Hannah Raskin Read this story online. Overview:The population of Charleston, South Carolina, is aging faster than the rest of the country. But the city’s antebellum architecture and cobblestone streets worry accessibility experts, who point out it won’t be long before a significant portion of Charleston’s population will need a cane, walker, wheelchair or other assistive device to go out. THIRD PLACE “Criminalizing Disability” Searchlight New Mexico, May 7, 2019 Ed Williams Read this story online. Overview:In New Mexico, a state with one of the highest rates of child trauma and child poverty, an astounding 99.5 percent of youth offenders in state custody have at least one psychiatric diagnosis. This investigation concludes that in New Mexico, difficult students often are left to the criminal justice system to deal with. HONORABLE MENTION “Everyone wants a piece of the Texas budget. It’s hard to succeed when most of the money is accounted for.” Texas Tribune, March 26, 2019 Edgar Walters Read the story online. Overview:This story examines the case disability advocates have made for pay raises for home care workers in Texas. Even in a year with a budget surplus, it’s a difficult battle. Other Notable Entries – Large Market Presented in alphabetical order by title of entry “Costly, Ineffective, Cruel” Gordon R. Friedman, The Oregonian Jan. 27, 2019 Read the story HERE. Overview: In Oregon, adherence to an “aid and assist” system has detained and institutionalized thousands of people with mental illness for committing low-level crimes. The process is expensive for taxpayers and does not deliver lasting benefits to defendants or society, according to this analysis by The Oregonian. “NYC’s Public Transit Nightmare” Elyse Wanshel and Lena Jackson, Huffington Post Oct. 9, 2018 Read the story HERE. Overview: Public transportation accessibility can be one enormous barrier to economic success for people with disabilities. In this article, the reporters take a critical look at New York City’s public transit system, which includes a majority of subway stations that are not compliant with the American Disability Act. “Paratransit Shaken Up” Juliette Goorich, KPIX 5 Dec. 27, 2018 See the story HERE. Overview: This investigation revealed that Bay Area residents with special needs and disabilities constantly struggle with long wait times, unreliable service and other poor treatment from the city’s public transit system.

“Turn up the Volume” David Pogue, CBS Morning Sept. 30, 2018 Watch the story HERE.

Overview: Two out of three people over 70 have trouble hearing, but only 20% use hearing aids. That’s partly because the vast majority of insurance companies don’t cover their hefty cost. But as this segment reveals, recent legislation will make a new, more accessible class of hearing aids available in August 2020. The reporter takes a personal approach to exploring the world of hearing aids, interviewing his own 90-year-old father about his experience.

“Zika Love Stories” William Kremer, BBC News October 2018 Read the story HERE.

Overview:When the Zika virus hit Brazil in 2015, it affected more than 3,000 children who were born with the disease. The disease’s most well-known symptom is microcephaly, or abnormally small heads. When this story’s author — who himself has a child with microcephaly — traveled to Brazil in 2018 to visit with families coping with the disease, he found something special: a group of more than 400 mothers who have organized via WhatsApp to support one another through the challenges of raising a child with the Zika virus.

Other Notable Entries – Small Market

Presented in alphabetical order by title of entry

“Aging and the Unknown” Briana Vannozzi, NJTV News March 8, 2019 View the story HERE.

Overview: Many families in New Jersey don’t realize they need to file for legal guardianship of a relative with a developmental disability until there’s a crisis. This report explores the need for more awareness about various levels of legal guardianship in the state.

“Being LGBTQ and Living with a Disability”
Victoria Brownworth
Philadelphia Gay News
July 3, 2019
Read the series HERE.

Overview:It’s been nearly 30 years since the Americans With Disabilities Act was passed into law, but many people who live with disabilities still struggle with a lack of accessibility — not just to amenities and basic services but also to celebrations. In Philadelphia, many members of the LGBTQ community who live with disability weren’t able to access Pride and Stonewall 50 celebrations last summer. The author gives voice to those experiences in this story, the first in a three-part series on the intersection of LGBTQ and disability communities.

“Sheltered Workshops: Reliable Opportunity”
Eric Neumann, KEUR
April 8, 2019
See the story HERE.

Overview: More than a dozen sheltered workshops throughout the state of Utah employ people with developmental disabilities — sometimes at less than half of the state’s minimum wage rate of $7.25 per hour. A new federal regulation is scrutinizing sheltered workshops and pressuring them to alter their treatment of employees.

“Smart Ass Cripple: Getting in the Big Man’s Face
Mike Ervin, The Progressive
Dec. 1, 2018
Read the story HERE.
Overview: This first-person piece from a disability rights advocate focuses on the value of peaceful protest. Protests might be necessary, the author writes, to bring back the 2005 initiative “Money Follows the Person,” which helps people with disabilities move out of nursing homes and into their own homes.

 

2018

The following entries for the 2018 Ruderman Awards for Excellence in Reporting on Disability were singled out by judges for the quality of reporting on disability issues.

AWARD WINNERS

FIRST PLACE “Abused and Betrayed” National Public Radio Joseph Shapiro, Robert Little, Meg Anderson Read story HERE.

Overview:  This NPR series examines the hidden epidemic of people with intellectual disabilities being sexually assaulted. The NPR Investigations Team spent more than a year sifting through court records and interviewing victims and family members. They found that crimes against people with intellectual disabilities often go unrecognized, unprosecuted and unpunished, leaving the abuser free to abuse again. The investigation also included a first-ever analysis of federal crime data and tracked what states are doing about the issue.

SECOND PLACE “Pain and Profit” Dallas Morning News David McSwane, Andrew Chavez David Read story HERE

Overview: “Pain and profit” documents the way Texas treats fragile people who rely on Medicaid, the government insurance program for the poor and disabled. With the help of whistleblowers and more than 160 public records requests, the series exposed the systemic denials of care and other abuses by companies paid to administer Medicaid. The Texas legislature held hearings on the findings and began considering new legislation to address the problems.

THIRD PLACE “Stuck Kids” ProPublica Illinois Duaa Eldeib, Sandhya Kambhampati, and Vignesh Ramachandran Read story HERE.

Overview: The “Stuck Kids” investigation reveals that between 2015 and 2017, 21 percent of the time children spent in psychiatric hospitals in Illinois was not medically necessary. The children remained confined to hospitals because the state failed to find appropriate placements for them. Some children were stuck in psychiatric hospitals for months, despite evidence that unnecessarily prolonged hospital stays can have detrimental effects on children in terms of both their emotional well-being and their behavior.

HONORABLE MENTION “Aftereffect” WNYC, New York public radio Audrey Quinn, Aneri Pattani, Phoebe Wang Listen HERE.

Overview: “Aftereffect” is an eight-episode podcast that takes listeners inside the life of Arnaldo Rios Soto, a 26-year-old, non-speaking man with autism whose life was upended in 2016 when someone mistook a silver toy truck in his hand for a gun. Police arrived and ended up shooting and severely wounded Arnaldo’s aide, which set off a sequence of events that put Arnaldo’s life in a downward spiral.

OTHER NOTABLE ENTRIES Presented in alphabetical order by title of entry “Alive Inside” Mike Hixenbaugh, Houston Chronicle December 5, 2017 Read HERE. Overview: Of the thousands of severely brain-injured people who are discharged to nursing homes or acute care hospitals in the U.S. each year, 40 percent are estimated to be covertly aware, or in the “minimally conscious state.” They drift between consciousness and brain death, trapped inside themselves and unable to communicate. This story takes a personal look at just one of the many people who are “alive inside,” despite appearing to be in a vegetative state.  “Schools Aren’t Preparing Students With Disabilities for Active Shooter Scenarios” Jordan Davidson, The Mighty March 14, 2018 Read HERE. Overview: There were more than 100 school shootings between Sandy Hook in 2012 and Parkland in early 2018, but there’s still no federal mandate for schools to hold active shooter drills. That means it’s up to individual schools to decide if — and how — to prepare students. As this article explores, modifications for students with disabilities are rarely included in these trainings.  2018 Winners Katherine Schneider Medal FIRST PLACE “Nowhere to Go” Kaiser Health News Christina Jewett Read story HERE. Overview:“Nowhere to Go” shows how teenagers and young adults with autism are spending weeks or even months in hospitals, where they are sedated, restrained or confined to mesh-tented beds. These young people are taken to hospitals when families can’t get help from community social services and other programs; they end up calling 911, and those calls often result in long and agonizing hospital stays for their loved ones. SECOND PLACE “Back of the Class” KING Television in Seattle, Washington Susannah Frame, Taylor Mirfendereski, Ryan Coe Watch HERE. Overview: “Back of the Class” documents how thousands of children in the state of Washington are segregated in public schools, in violation of federal and state laws and despite research that shows children with disabilities made better progress in integrated classrooms. Children with disabilities are isolated from other students in classroom settings and even in the lunchroom, often as a way to save money, the report concludes, and Washington State has one of the worst records in the country in serving such children. THIRD PLACE “Trapped” Better Government Association and WBEZ Chicago Public Media Alejandra Cancino, Better Government Association Odette Yousef, WBEZ Chicago Public Media Read story HERE. Overview:“Trapped” exposes unsafe elevators, shoddy record keeping and failed oversight at the Chicago Housing Authority, where many elderly tenants live, as the series put it, “in fear of their own buildings.” Hundreds of these residents, for whom stairs are not an option, end up trapped inside unsafe elevators in high-rise apartment buildings owned by the housing authority. The problems continue despite repeated citations for safety violations, flunked safety inspections and hundreds of panicked calls to 911. The series prompted the housing authority to begin a $25 million project to modernize and replace elevators. HONORABLE MENTION “Flying the Unfriendly Skies” New Mobility Magazine Kenny Salvini Read story HERE Overview: “Flying the Unfriendly Skies” relates how, in the course of a single year, the author’s wheelchair was damaged two times by two different airlines.“ Once is a case of bad luck. Twice is the universe revealing your path. Having two wheelchairs destroyed by two different airlines in the span of a year has a way of thrusting you into a bit of reluctant advocacy with a lot of questions that need answers,” Salvini writes. He set out to find the answers and discovered a history of failed airline policies and a seeming indifference that affects thousands of others who live with disabilities. OTHER NOTABLE ENTRY “Out of Options” Todd Wiseman, Texas Tribune April 23, 2018 Watch HERE. Overview: This video documentary follows two Texas families as they begin their journey to pursuing an alternative form of medical treatment for children with epilepsy: cannabis oil, or CBD oil. Despite the state’s passage of the Compassionate Use Act in 2015, which legalized a certain type of CBD oil for epilepsy patients who haven’t responded to federally-approved medication, families still face challenges with getting the treatment.   2017 The following entries for the 2017 Katherine Schneider Journalism Award for Excellence in Reporting on Disability were singled out by judges for the quality of reporting on disability issues. AWARD WINNERS FIRST PLACE “Suffering in Secret” Chicago Tribune, November 21, 2016 Michael J. Berens and Patricia Callahan Read online or download a PDF HERE. Overview: An investigation into the mistreatment of disabled adults in Illinois group homes. They identified more than 1,300 cases of documented harm since July 2011 in Illinois’ taxpayer-funded group homes and their day programs. The reporters uncovered at least 42 deaths linked to abuse or neglect in group homes or their day programs and uncovered state records of residents fatally choking on improperly prepared food, succumbing to untreated bed sores and languishing in pain from undiagnosed ailments. SECOND PLACE “Denied” Houston Chronicle, Sept 10, 2016 Brian M. Rosenthal Read online or download a PDF HERE. Overview: Rosenthal’s investigation revealed how Texas officials systematically denied special education services to thousands of children. The seven-part series found that Texas placed a cap on how many children could receive special education services, saving billions of dollars but denying services to children with disabilities ranging from epilepsy and blindness to autism and attention deficit disorder. THIRD PLACE “Dorian Wants Transit Policy Towards Disabled Persons to Change” 91.3 KBCS Seattle-Tacoma, November, 2016 Mona Yeh, Sonya Green, Yuko Kodama Listen online. Overview: The experiences of one wheelchair user trying to navigate public transportation in Seattle. OTHER NOTABLE ENTRIES Presented in alphabetical order by title of entry “America Keeps Criminalizing Autistic Children” Pacific Standard, June 12, 2017 David M. Perry Read online or download as a PDF HERE. Overview: When non-white autistic students get in trouble, schools have a track record of escalating tensions and treating it as a criminal matter. Two recent cases in Orange County, Florida, help illustrate the problem. “Dating with a Disability” New York Times, Dec 8, 2016 Wendy Lu Read online or download a PDF HERE. Overview: Women with disabilities often begin to date much later in life, and they struggle in a dating culture that places a premium on physical appearance.

“Disabled and disenfranchised: The voting rights fight you haven’t heard of” Vice News, Oct 21, 2016 Caroline Modarressy-Tehrani Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: Many voters with disabilities are unjustly categorized as “incompetent” and therefore ineligible to vote due to their participation on guardianships.

“‘I was a citizen, now I’m nothing’: disabled readers on life under austerity” The Guardian, May 30, 2017 Frances Ryan and John Domokos Read online or download as a PDF HERE.

Overview: Recipients of disability benefits in the U.K. criticize fiscal austerity championed by Conservative policymakers including Prime Minister Theresa May.

“Medicaid is Keeping People With Disabilities From Getting Married”
The Mighty, June 30, 2017
Jordan Davidson
Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: Dreams of marriage elude many Medicaid recipients with disabilities who fear combining incomes with a spouse would disqualify them from life-saving coverage.

“Seeing in the Dark: Sex and Disability”
The Bay Area Reporter, Sept 22, 2016
Belo Cipriani
Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: Cipriani, who is blind, writes about the disabled community in the Bay Area, challenging stereotypes about disability ranging from sex to parenting.

“Tyneisha thinks her disability shouldn’t disqualify her from motherhood”
Public Source, June 15, 2017
Brittany Hailer
Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: A teen mom in Pennsylvania was diagnosed with an intellectual disability, PTSD, due to trauma suffered in foster care. Despite her diagnosis she remains hopeful about regaining custody of her baby son, who state authorities placed with a foster family.

 

2016

The following entries for the 2016 Katherine Schneider Journalism Award for Excellence in Reporting on Disability were singled out by judges for the quality of reporting on disability issues. The award winners are listed at the top, followed by other exemplary work.

AWARD WINNERS

FIRST PLACE “A Matter of Dignity” Minneapolis Star Tribune, November 8, 2015 Chris Serres Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: In “A Matter of Dignity,” Star Tribune reporter Chris Serres, along with reporter Glenn Howatt and photographer David Joles, reveals how hundreds of Minnesotans with developmental disabilities are segregated and neglected in a state system of sheltered workshops.

SECOND PLACE “From Institution to Inclusion” WAMU, March 15, 2016 Martin Austermuhle Listen & Read online.

Overview: The series of radio broadcasts and digital reporting chronicled the history of a 40-year-old class action lawsuit that closed Forest Haven, the institution where residents of Washington, D.C., with intellectual and developmental disabilities were sent to live.

THIRD PLACE “The DIY Scientist, the Olympian, and the Mutated Gene” ProPublica, January 15, 2016 David Epstein Listen & Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: A story of do-it-yourself genetics that helped a 39-year-old Iowa mother named Jill Viles solve her mysterious degenerative muscle disorder.

OTHER NOTABLE ENTRIES

Presented in alphabetical order by title of entry

“Choreography of Care” Making Contact Radio, April 8, 2016 Alice Wong Listen online.

Overview: Alice Wong examines the role of caregivers for people with disabilities and how that influences someone’s sense of independence. 

“Insensitive, Inc.” Business World, February 2016 Sonal Khetarpal Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: An international entry, the author looks at job opportunities in India for people with disabilities.

“I’m Not Broken” The Washington Post, December 4, 2015 Eric Garcia Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: A reporter in D.C. explains what it means to be a journalist with autism.

“Interactive: For Disabled Patients, An Endless Cycle of Abuse” Reveal News, November 7, 2015 Julia Chan Read online.

Overview: Reporters from Reveal News present an interactive timeline of the private neurorehabilitation system.  

“Is Ebola Hiding in the Eyes of Survivors?” The Atlantic, March 30, 2016 Emily Baumgaertner Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: Some Ebola survivors in West Africa are going blind after beating the disease. The reporter reveals the struggle doctors are now facing.

“Loneliness Darkens Twilight Years” Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, March 30, 2016 Mark Johnson Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: Johnson documents the pain and loneliness of the elderly population in America living alone. 

“Reporting on Disability with Sensitivity, Not Sensationalism” Nieman Reports, March 30, 2016 Genevieve Belmaker Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: The author chronicles the state of disability reporting, and how newsrooms are changing the way reporters address the topic. 

“The Strange Case of Anna Stubblefield” The New York Times, October 25, 2015 Daniel Engber Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: An examination of the relationship between a man with severe disabilities and a woman who claimed she could communicate for him. 

“The Way Forward” The Washington Post, July 18, 2015 Caitlin Gibson Watch the video & read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: The story of a man with quadriplegia helping his former mentor in recovery from a catastrophic fall. 

 

2015

The following entries for the 2015 Katherine Schneider Journalism Award for Excellence in Reporting on Disability were singled out by judges for the quality of reporting on disability issues. The award winners are listed at the top, followed by other exemplary work.

AWARD WINNERS

FIRST PLACE “Violent and Legal: The Shocking Ways School Kids are Being Pinned Down, Isolated Against Their Will” ProPublica, June 19, 2014 Heather Vogell Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: In an investigation by ProPublica, Heather Vogell uncovered the shocking ways children with intellectual disabilities are physically disciplined in schools across the country. 

SECOND PLACE “Saving Evan” Hartford Courant, Jan. 4, 2015 Josh Kovner Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: This article tells the story of a mother and son navigating the challenges of treating autism. It chronicles how one mother handled many of the bureaucratic hurdles parents face in raising a child with autism. 

THIRD PLACE “Why Some NC Sterilization Victims Won’t Get Share Of $10 Million Fund” WUNC North Carolina Public Radio, Oct. 6, 2014 Eric Mennel Listen and read online or download as PDF HERE.

Overview: Eric Mennel exposes the issues victims of a state-sponsored sterilization program in North Carolina face in seeking compensation from the state after lawmakers set up a $10 million compensation fund. 

OTHER NOTABLE ENTRIES

Presented in alphabetical order by title of entry

“Accessibility in Greektown” The Maneater, April 1, 2015 Alana Saad Read online or download as a PDF HERE.

Overview: An in-depth look at accessibility in the Greektown area at the University of Missouri, where many sororities and fraternities are housed. In this article, students with disabilities discuss basic accessibility issues they say the community is not fixing.  

“Criminalizing Kids: Virginia tops nation in sending students to cops, courts” The Center for Public Integrity, September 11, 2015 Susan Ferriss Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: About 26 percent of students nationwide who are referred to law enforcement have a physical or learning disability, according to Susan Ferriss’s story for The Center for Public Integrity. Ferriss follows sixth grader Kayleb Moon-Robinson, a young boy with autism, after he was charged with disorderly conduct.

“Elder Guardianship: A well-oiled machine” Sarasota Herald-Tribune, Dec. 2014 Barbara Peters Smith Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: This story delves into the tangled web of elder guardianship in Florida, where some people are said to get lost in the system. 

“Left Behind” NBC4 Washington, 2015 Tisha Thompson Watch online.

Overview: Reporter Tisha Thompson talks to D.C. commuters with disabilities and advocates who worry the METRO train system is not accessible in the case of an emergency evacuation. 

Series “Level 14: A Home for California’s Most Troubled Children Comes Undone” ProPublica Joaquin Sapien Access entire series and followup articles online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: In this series, ProPublica exposes the issues at a group home in California where reports of rape, fights, and drug abuse invaded a place meant to be a safety net for children, many of whom were diagnosed with a mental illness.

“On education technology, college lobbyists are keeping disabled students behind” The Boston Globe, September 5, 2014 Kyle Shachmut Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: In an op-ed piece, Kyle Shachmut argues for more accessibility in technology for student with disabilities. 

“Sex, Lives and Disability” Mosaic Science, March, 3, 2015 Katherine Quarmby Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: Katherine Quarmby explores societal beliefs about those with disabilities and sex, and how people are facing that stigma head-on. 

“The Brief Life and Private Death of Alexandria Hill” Mother Jones, February 26, 2015 Brian Joseph Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: Reporting for Mother Jones, Brian Joseph explores privatized foster care through the tragic story of Alexandria Hill, a 2-year-old foster child from Texas. 

“Wheeling and Dealing: How Do People with Disabilities Experience Madison?” Madison Magazine, April 2015 Maggie Ginsberg Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: Maggie Ginsberg looks at the city of Madison, Wisconsin through the eyes of someone who uses a wheelchair. 

“When disability and race intersect” CNN, December 4, 2014 David Perry Read online or download a PDF HERE.

Overview: In this story, David Perry examines a pattern of violence against people with disabilities and the underlying social issues, as in the case of Eric Garner in New York.

 

2014 

The following entries for the 2014 Katherine Schneider Journalism Award for Excellence in Reporting on Disability were singled out by judges for the quality of reporting on disability issues. The award winners are listed at the top, followed by other exemplary work.

AWARD WINNERS

FIRST PLACE “The ‘Boys’ in the Bunkhouse” The New York Times, March 9, 2014 Dan Barry Read online.

Overview: Through text, photos and video, Dan Barry, Kassie Bracken and Nicole Bengiveno documented the lives of men with intellectual disabilities who for 30 years worked in an Iowa turkey processing plant for almost no pay. The story raised questions about the federal law that permitted the men to be underpaid for doing the same work as their non-disabled colleagues, explained how regulators effectively sanctioned the exploitation and detailed the squalid living conditions and mistreatment the men endured.

SECOND PLACE “State of Intoxication – Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders” Anchorage Daily News, Feb.-May 2014 Kyle Hopkins and Mark Lester Read online.

Overview: This series won second place for painting an intimate portrait of children with Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders. As common as autism, the disability is widely misunderstood and underdiagnosed in the U.S.

HONORABLE MENTION “Denise’s Decision” Kansas City Star, 2013 Erick Adler Read online.

Overview: In this wrenching four part series, reporter Eric Adler chronicles the legal, medical and emotional ordeal of placing a loved one with degenerative brain disease in long-term care.

HONORABLE MENTION DHN – Deaf and Hearing NetworkPhoenix, Arizona Peyton Gallovich and Melissa Yingst Huber Read online.

Overview: Arizona State University students Peyton Gallovich and Melissa Yingst Huber were recognized for their start-up venture DHN, a newscast designed to give deaf and hard-of-hearing viewers as well as their hearing family members the opportunity to view newscasts together. DHN incorporates American Sign Language, spoken English and captions into each broadcast.

OTHER NOTABLE ENTRIES

Presented in alphabetical order by title of entry

“A Coming Tidal Wave of Autistic Adults” America Tonight, March 4, 2013 Abigail Leonard Read online.

Overview: From America Tonight, part of Al Jazeera America, this segment focuses on what systems are in place to help the nearly 500,000 children with autism transition into adulthood over the next decade.

Series: Boston Marathon Bombing Survivors The Washington Post, Sept. 2013–June 2014 Lenny Bernstein Read online:For some Boston Marathon bombing victims, charity checks bring frustration, Sept. 15, 2013 Brain-injured woman and others seek more money, Oct. 2, 2013 Amputees are continuing to improve, March 18 2014 Boston Marathon bombing victims to get $20 million more, June 27, 2014

Overview: This series follows several survivors of the 2013 Boston Marathon bombings nearly a year after the terrorist attacks killed three people and injured more than 250 others. Despite payouts from One Fund Boston, many victims still face a long, hard road to recovery.

“The Boy Public School Forgot” Huffington Post, Nov. 24, 2013 Joy Resmovits Read online.

Overview: Through one Washington D.C.-area family’s quest to obtain quality education for their autistic son, this article exposes the routine failures of America’s public education system to give specialized care to children with autism and other intellectual disabilities.

“Chronic Crisis” Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 2014 Meg Kissinger Read online.

Overview: In Wisconsin, Milwaukee County’s mental health system focuses more on emergency treatment than continual, reliable care, more so than anywhere else in the nation. Through patient stories and exclusive data reporting, this online series exposes a broken health care system.

“How an Organ Transplant Changed my Life” Cincinnati Inquirer, June 16, 2014 John Faherty Read online.

Overview: In this long-form narrative, Cincinnati Inquirer reporter John Faherty reflects on receiving a pancreas transplant, beginning with his decision to seek a transplant to grappling with symptoms of anti-rejection medication.

Medicaid Managed Care series Kaiser Health News in collaboration with The Washington Post, July – Dec. 2013 Jenni Bergal Read online: Kentucky’s rush in Medicaid Managed Care: A cautionary tale for other states, July 15, 2013 In Kansas, a fight over developmentally disabled shifting to Medicaid Managed Care, Dec. 5, 2013

Overview: This report documents the consequences of a decision in the state of Kentucky to rapidly switch large numbers of people in Medicaid to managed care. A second report focuses on concerns in Kansas about what will happen when the state’s Medicaid managed system takes over services for thousands of developmentally disabled patients.

“The New Segregation: School Choice in Arizona Takes on a Different Meaning If Your Kid Has a Disability” Phoenix New Times, May 14, 2014 Amy Silverman Read online.

Overview: Phoenix New Times Reporter Amy Silverman recounts her experience of being “pushed out” of Arizona’s diverse charter school system while trying to find the right school for her young daughter with Down syndrome.

“The War Next Door: Can a Vet with PTSD Come Home?” The Virginian-Pilot, Dec. 2013 Mike Hixenbaugh Read online.

Overview: This intimate look inside the life of a former solider with post-traumatic stress disorder examines the uncomfortable questions a close-knit community must grapple with when a neighbor who defended their freedom slowly loses his mind.

“PA Couple Lives with Love and Disability” Public Source, Jan. 26, 2014 Halle Stockton Read online.

Overview: Bob and Tina Norris, who both have cerebral palsy, have been married more than 22 years. Their marriage stands out not just because they have stayed together for so long but because federal and state assistance programs effectively discourage people with disabilities from marrying.

“How Misunderstanding Disability Leads to Police Violence” The Atlantic, May 6, 2014 David Perry and Lawrence Carter-Long Read online.

Overview: This piece explores the many instances when encounters with police have turned violent for people with disabilities over the past several years. Despite greater civil rights for Americans with disabilities, lingering misunderstandings and stereotypes and a lack of education can still trigger tragic endings.

 

2013

The following entries for the 2013 Katherine Schneider Journalism Award for Excellence in Reporting on Disability all earned points from judges for the quality of reporting on disability issues.

AWARD WINNERS

FIRST PLACE “Broken Shield” California Watch, February 2012 Ryan Gabrielson Read online.

Overview: The result of an 18-month investigation by Gabrielson for California Watch and its parent organization The Center for Investigative Reporting, “Broken Shield” exposes the routine failures of police to protect the developmentally disabled at California care institutions. The multipart series details how the Office of Protective Services, a police force charged with protecting the state’s most vulnerable citizens, botched investigations into claims of rape, torture and beatings of patients by staff members at development centers. Carrie Ching and Marina Luz produced an animated video, “In Jennifer’s Room,” to accompany the report, which also won the 2012 George Polk Award and the 2012 IRE Award and was a finalist for the 2013 Pulitzer Prize.

SECOND PLACE “Autism Advantage” The New York Times Magazine, Nov. 29, 2012 Gareth Cook Read online.

Overview: Pulitzer Prize winner and columnist Gareth Cook chronicles the story of the innovative Danish company Specialisterne, which employs people with autism to gain a competitive advantage in the business world. Founded by Thorkil Sonne, the father of a son with autism, Specialisterne (Danish for “Specialists) employs high-functioning autistic adults who are hired out as consultants. Sonne established the company in the belief that workers with autism could be the best person for certain roles.

HONORABLE MENTION “Playing by Ear” Narratively, June 11, 2013 Daphnée Denis and Hoda Emam Read online.

Overview: An abridged excerpt from the feature documentary “Shot in the Dark,” “Playing by Ear” profiles one young man’s dedication to the Paralympic sport goalball for the visually impaired. Filmmakers Denis and Emam follow one of New York State’s top goalball players Ibrahim Shahadat, who has a rare degenerative eye disease.

HONORABLE MENTION “Second Chapter: A Portrait of Barry Corbet” Dartmouth Alumni Magazine, July/Aug. 2013 Broughton Coburn Read online.

Overview: One-time Everest climber and Dartmouth alumnus Barry Corbet was paralyzed from the waist down in a helicopter crash in 1968. “Second Chapter” profiles how the thrill seeker transitioned to life in a wheelchair and became a high-profile advocate for the disabled.

OTHER NOTABLE ENTRIES

Presented in alphabetical order by title of entry

“Access Denied” Campus Technology, Nov. 2012 digital edition David Raths Read online.

Overview: While making university websites and course content accessible to students and employees with disabilities may be the law, many institutions are far from compliance. Campus Technology looks at three key elements of a more proactive approach to accessibility on campus. These include building accessibility into the IT procurement process, training faculty to make online courses and content more accessible and sharing best practices across the higher education system.

Boarding Homes Series San Antonio Express-News, Aug.-Dec., 2012 Melissa Fletcher Stoeltje Read online. Some in group homes are suffering in silence, Aug. 18, 2012 People with mental illness alone get little housing help, Sept. 1, 2012 Escape staircase was removed at scene of boarding home fire, Nov. 17, 2012 Boarding Homes are only choice for many, Dec. 29, 2012

Overview: Hundreds of  boarding homes provide shelter and care to mentally disabled people in San Antonio with little to no regulatory oversight. In this series of articles, social services reporter Melissa Fletcher Stoeltje enumerates the haunting experiences of boarding home residents and their families, portraying a system that provides little help to those in financial and medical need.

“Disability and Discrimination at the Doctor’s Office” The New York Times, May 23, 2013 Pauline Chen, MD Read online.

Overview: Many doctors’ offices are ill prepared to offer even routine care to patients with disabilities. Through personal experience and an overview of a recent medical study, Dr. Pauline Chen lays bare a culture of discrimination against disabled patients by exposing offices unable to accommodate special equipment or outright refusing to book appointments.

“Follow my steps” Wilson Quarterly, Jan. 22, 2012 Andrew Hida Read online.

Overview: Andrew Cunningham is a typical 13 year-old. He complains about studying and spends hours playing on Xbox Live with friends. The only difference is he was born with a rare form of muscular dystrophy and gets around with the use of  a powered wheelchair. Andrew finds a brother and guide in 21-year-old Tony Reuter, born with brittle bone disease and facing a milestone of his own. Andrew Hida first began reporting the story for a class project and eventually turned it into a master’s thesis and an International Motion Art Award-winning documentary.

“For Wounded Vet, Love Pierces the Fog of War” The Wall Street Journal, Feb. 4, 2012 Michael M. Phillips Read online.

Overview: Marine Corps veteran Ian Welch was wounded in a roadside attack during his first tour in Iraq in 2003 but continued to serve two more tours before military doctors determined his post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) and traumatic brain injury qualified him as disabled. Today, Welch lives in Texas with his girlfriend, Katie Brickman, who earns a small stipend as his primary caregiver under a recent federal program for badly disabled veterans.

“Matadi: Un reconfort spirituel pour les sourds-muets” Infobascongo.net, Sept. 20, 2012 Alphonse Nekwa Read online.

Overview: Forty formerly marginalized deaf parishioners are finding spiritual guidance and comfort in a unique church in Matadi, a coastal capital town in the Democratic Republic of the Congo. The pastor of Yhwh Sabaoth uses the director of the only school for the deaf in the Bas-Congo province to translate his sermons into sign language. Article in French; read in Google Chrome for English translation.

“Still, God Helps You” Wilson Quarterly, Summer 2013 Melissa Pritchard Read online.

Overview: Snatched from a marketplace in Sudan and sold into slavery at the age of 6, William Mawwin became one of millions of people in the world to endure some form of involuntary servitude. Arizona State University English Professor Melissa Pritchard’s essay details Mawwin’s journey from a lost boy of a war-torn Sudan to a refugee in Egypt, where he lost his right hand and most of the fingers on his left in a work accident, and finally to a college student in America.

“Technology For Life: How Students With Disabilities Are Attending College At Record Rates” KUNC, May 2, 2013 Jackie Fortier Read online.

Overview: More students with disabilities are pursuing higher education than ever before. New accessible technology along with disability assistance is helping students such as Esha Mehta and Bill Casson earn graduate degrees at institutions like the University of Colorado. But still some gender and minority gaps remain, with more women attendingcollege and more white students attending both undergraduate and graduate school than minority students.

“Zach’s Journey” The Dallas Morning News, July-Dec. 2012 Mark Ramirez Read online. As his sight slips away, a 9-year-old Lewisville boy finds successes more challenging, July 8, 2012 Family of Lewisville boy with failing sight looks for answers amid uncertainty, Sept. 10, 2012 Zach’s Journey: Farmers Branch fourth-graders learn what it’s like for classmate who’s going blind, Nov. 10, 2012 Zach Thibodeaux is an enduring reminder of the gift his parents received a decade ago, Dec. 25, 2012

Overview: Rapidly and surely, Zach Thibodeaux is going blind — the result of a degenerative disease called cone-rod dystrophy that destroys the cells of the retina. Mark Ramirez followed Zach for two years, through the third and fourth grades as the Dallas boy learned what it would mean to be blind, find new hobbies and spread awareness of his incurable disease.