WC Indiana News

Sometimes a person makes a lasting impression on someone, and for Durin Hendricks, this impression led him to create an award-winning radio documentary.

Hendricks, a native of Avon, drew on experiences from his time at DePauw University, remembering the message of commencement speaker Vernon Jordan, to make a mini-documentary about Jordan titled "Changemaker."

"I was news director my senior year when Vernon Jordan passed, and I thought back to my freshman year when he spoke at DePauw's 2018 commencement," Hendricks told WC Indiana News. "He was a powerful orator, and his words rang out to me throughout my time at DePauw. I thought 'Changemaker' would be a good tribute to him."

The program recently won the 2022 Indiana Association of School Broadcasters (IASB) College Broadcasting Competition Award in the Radio In-Depth category, the IASB reported.

Jordan, an attorney, was also known as a civil rights activist, power broker and business consultant, Encyclopaedia Britannica said. Jordan is most noted for his leadership roles in desegregating college campuses, the NAACP, the Voter Education Project and the United Negro College Fund.

"I think Vernon Jordan stands out as having a unique perspective for the Civil Rights movement from his higher education career from Jim Crow South to DePauw University and to Howard University's law school," Hendricks said.

The IASB is made up of more than 16 colleges and 48 high schools, as well as career and technical centers, the IASB said.

The awards event is an Indiana high school and college student competition that consists of over 30 audio and video categories, the IASB said. The top-three student entries per category earn plaques or certificates to reward their accomplishments.

Hendricks has since graduated and is now a communications assistant at Nahigian Strategies, a public relations firm in Washington, D.C.