Awards and Honors

Scholarship honors pioneer

She was believed to be the oldest working journalist in the nation when she died this past February at the age of 102.

Mattiebelle Woods was considered the first lady of Milwaukee’s African-American press, whose career included writing for the Chicago Defender, the Milwaukee Defender, the Milwaukee Star, and the Milwaukee Globe, and freelancing for Ebony and Jet magazines. When she died, she was still engaged as a society columnist for the Milwaukee Courier, a post she held since 1964.

The J. William and Mary Diederich College of Communication has announced a scholarship named for Woods, honoring her work as a woman pioneer in journalism. The first recipient is Keith Jamerson, a freshman from Los Angeles who excelled in academics and sports at Santa Monica High School and offered his help to others in his community through service learning outreach, including tutoring students in advanced placement courses.

Media Coverage

• JSOnline: '100 miles per hour for 102 years'
• WISN: A well-known Milwaukee journalist has died at the age of 102