Jessica Phelps
Once again Jessica Phelps of the Newark Advocate is atop the photojournalism world after being selected as Pictures of the Year Newspaper Photographer of the Year in the 76th annual POYi competition.
Lisa Krantyz from the SanAntonio Express-News placed second and Robert Cohen from the St. Louis Post-Dispatch placed third.
Phelps also won first place for Daily Life Picture Story in the contest for her entry “First Generation” documenting the life of a family that immigrated from Iraq to Ohio in 2011. Ahmed and Dunya Al Haek are raising their children at the intersection of both cultures in hopes of giving them as many opportunities in life as possible.
Dunya Al Haek gently kisses her son Mousa as he absentmindedly waves an American flag in the air at his father’s naturalization ceremony in Columbus. The family arrived in Ohio eight years ago on a green card. Mousa, 5, was born in Ohio. His two older sisters, Dima and Maryam will receive their citizenship after their parents have theirs. (Jessica Phelps/Newark Advocate)
Phelps has been ONPA’s small market POY for the past four years and was named Photojournalist of the Year for small markets in the 2017 Best of Photojournalism competition sponsored by the National Press Photographers.
In 1957 NPPA and the University of Missouri and NPPA merged their contests until parting ways in 2001 when Pictures of the Year became (POYi) Pictures of the Year International and NPPA’s became Best of Photojournalism.
Past winners of the contests from Ohio other than Phelps include George A. Smallsreed, Jr. from The Columbus Dispatch who was the NPPA Photographer of the Year in 1957. In 1973 Kurt E. Smith from the Lorain Journal was the NPPA / Missouri Pictures of the Year Newspaper Photographer of the Year.