Journalism and Mass Communications honors leader, students

The University of Nebraska-Lincoln College of Journalism and Mass Communications honored Howard Buffett with the Kappa Tau Alpha Outstanding Service Award at its initiation ceremony April 14. The KTA top scholar award was presented to two seniors, Stephanie Christensen Sparks of Central City, and Patricia Lynn Vannoy of Lincoln.

Kappa Tau Alpha is the college honor society that recognizes academic excellence and promotes scholarship in journalism and mass communication. Membership is earned by excellence in academic work. Selection for membership is a mark of highest distinction and honor.

Buffett is president of the Howard G. Buffett Foundation, a private foundation that primarily supports conservation and humanitarian initiatives. He is president of BuffettImages, a photography and publishing company, and is president of Buffett Farms, which operates an 840-acre family farm in central Illinois and manages a 400-acre family-owned farm in eastern Nebraska. Buffett has served in a number of executive positions, in elected office as chair of the Douglas County (Neb.) Board of Commissioners and on several U.S. Trade Representative advisory committees. He has also been chair of the Nebraska Ethanol Authority and Development Board.

He has traveled to more than 65 countries, documenting the challenges of preserving biodiversity while providing adequate resources to support human demands. He has authored more than half a dozen books on conservation, wildlife and the human condition. He has had numerous articles and opinion pieces published in chronicles such as the Wall Street Journal and the Washington Post.

Buffett received the Aztec Eagle Award from the president of Mexico, the highest honor bestowed on a foreign citizen by the government of Mexico. He has also received an honorary Ph.D. in business administration from Lincoln College and has been recognized by the Inter-American Institute for Cooperation on Agriculture as one of the most distinguished individuals in agriculture.

CONTACT: Michael Goff, Interim Asst. Dean, Journalism & Mass Communications, (402) 472-3041