In a ceremony held in March, the Society of Professional Journalists presented three winners from Temple University with Region 1 Mark of Excellence Awards, which honor the best collegiate journalism in the United States. The Philadelphia Neighborhoods staff won two awards, first place for Best Independent Online Student Publication with their work on “Philadelphia Neighborhoods Online” and second place for In-Depth Reporting with their work on “South Africa.” Christine Fisher, a senior journalism major, was awarded second place for General News Reporting for her piece, “Philadelphia Housing Authority.” The honorees were awarded certificates on March 24 during the Region 1 SPJ Spring Conference held at the Stony Brook University in Stony Brook, N.Y. Winners advance to the national round of judging; this is the second year “Philadelphia Neighborhoods Online” has won Best Independent Online Student Publication to qualify as a national finalist. The Mark of Excellence Awards to SPJ Region 1 includes Connecticut, Maine, Massachusetts, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, Eastern and Central Pennsylvania, Rhode Island and Vermont. This year, the contest received more than 4,000 entries across SPJ’s entire 12 regions.