Washington — Paul Basken, a senior reporter for The Chronicle, has won a 2008 National Press Club Award for an article last year that described how a high-ranking Department of Education official had made policy decisions that significantly benefited Sallie Mae, the student-loan giant that was his former employer.

The article, published in May 2007, told how the official, Matteo Fontana, had issued a controversial high-stakes legal ruling in 2004 that helped Sallie Mae on the day before the lender completed its transition from a government-founded entity into a for-profit corporation. The legal ruling allowed Sallie Mae to bypass federal conflict-of-interest regulations, and thereby to preserve a lucrative relationship with a debt-collection company.

In a citation, the National Press Club applauded Mr. Basken for his “enterprising reporting” and “determination in ferreting out the facts, which he presented in a clearly written investigative piece.”