The Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications is launching a new award in partnership with the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, the school announced in a release Tuesday.

The Cecilia Vaisman Award for Multimedia Reporters will be given annually to Latinx and Hispanic audio and video journalists “who bring light to the issues that affect the Latinx and Hispanic communities in the U.S. and around the world,” the release said.

Vaisman, who died in 2015, was a Medill associate professor and NAHJ member, according to the release. She received two Robert F. Kennedy Journalism Awards for reporting on disadvantaged people.

In the release, NAHJ president Brandon Benavides said the award will honor Vaisman’s passions for “inspiring Latinx and Hispanic journalists and upholding our responsibility to cover and report on the issues that affect our communities.”

A jury of Medill representatives — including a student — and NAHJ representatives will select the recipient each year, according to the release.

At Medill, Vaisman helped establish a bilingual reporting and storytelling course, and also worked to launch the journalism residency program in Argentina.

“Professor Cecilia Vaisman was an exemplary journalist who was dedicated to telling the stories of the people who needed and deserved to be heard,” Medill Prof. Mei-Ling Hopgood said in the release. “We miss Cecilia terribly, but know her legacy of compassion, excellence and commitment to empowering diverse voices continues.”

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