Schultz Joins Reporter Staff.

Susan J. Schultz has joined The Chicago Reporter staff as consulting editor. Schultz a reporter for the Chicago Sun-Times for 15 years, has covered Latino affairs, social services and health issues. She received a bachelor of arts and a secondary education teaching certificate from Lawrence University in Appleton, Wis., and has taught journalism courses at Northwestern University, Columbia College and Roosevelt University.

Schultz replaces Sharon S. McGowan, who served as interim consulting editor earlier this year. "We were fortunate to get Sharon's keen editing skills over the last several months. And the Reporter staff looks forward to benefiting from Susy's extensive experience as an urban affairs reporter and teacher," said Editor and Publisher Laura S. Washington.

In other news: Business Leaders for Excellence, Ethics, and Justice honored Paul King, chairman and founder of UBM Inc., with the 2001 John A. McDermott Award. The award, named for the Reporter's founder, honors excellence and ethics in the workplace. King was recognized for helping to advance African American participation In the construction industry. UBM bills itself as the largest African American-owned construction company in Illinois.

Reporter Carlos Hernandez Gomez, along with interns Kimiyo Naka and Ellyn M. Ong, earned Special Minority Fellowship Awards from Investigative Reporters and Editors Inc., a national professional group. The fellowships included annual memberships and grants to support their attendance at the IRE annual conference, held this year in Chicago from June 14 to 17.

Managing Editor Alysia Tate and freelance writer Sarah Karp earned second place awards in the National Federation of Press Women's 2001 Communications Contest. Tate was honored for her government and politics coverage in 2000 and Karp for her May 2000 article, "State Drug Law Hits City Teens, Minorities."

And the Charles Stewart Mott Foundation has awarded the Reporter a two-year, $150,000 general operations grant. It is the first-ever grant to the publication from the Flint, Mich.-based organization. One priority of the foundation is to "strengthen the fabric of civil society in the United States during a time when public apathy and cynicism, extremist forces, and an economically and racially divided society challenge the nation's well-being."