News about column writing alum Jason Wiener from Christopher Hennessy in Emerson's public affairs office: "Emerson MFA student Jason Wiener won a 2007 Cecil B. Hackney Literary Award for his story 'Footprints.' Contest winners were announced at the 28 annual Writing Today Conference on March 7 and 8, 2008, at Birmingham Southern College in Birmingham, Alabama. The event included a public reading of Jason's first place story. Sponsored by the Cecil Hackney family of Birmingham, the literary competition awards $5,000 at the national and state level for poetry and short fiction each year. One novel is also selected for recognition. Past winners of Hackney prizes have included Rick Reiken, Associate Professor of Writing, Literature and Publishing at Emerson. Wiener's story 'Damages' was a finalist in the 2007 Sonora Review Short-Short Contest. Before coming to Emerson, Jason worked as a 3D animator and college instructor for film and video games, including a summer contract at Pixar Studios. He is currently completing his graduate thesis, a novel."