For many readers, the Glendale Community College (GCC) student newspaper, El Vaquero, put out by the journalism department ends when they read the final, polished article. But behind every headline and story, there’s an entire world of decisions, collaboration, and problem-solving. Guided by Editor-in-Chief Carissa Coane and Journalism professor Dr. Reut Cohen, GCC’s student newsroom operates with a level of care and effort that often goes unnoticed by its audience.

The process of assigning articles starts with something simple but thoughtful: connection. “Dr. Cohen and I try to match article assignments to each student’s particular interests and schedules,” Coane explained. “If a student expresses an interest in a certain academic discipline, then I try to give them more opportunities to meet GCC faculty or guest speakers in those fields.” For journalism majors, Carissa makes it a point to assign high-profile articles to help boost their experience and future careers.

Once the articles are in, the editing begins—though there’s no rigid routine to follow. “Honestly, I don’t have a particular process that I follow,” Carissa admitted. “I try to edit articles in two rounds: first for grammar and typographical mistakes, then for clarity and content.”

Dr. Cohen, who has overseen the development of many student writers, also plays a pivotal role. Her focus is not just on refining the writing but on supporting the writers themselves. “Students who pitch their articles will receive feedback on who they can interview and how to approach a potential article,” she shared. She provides detailed guidance through tracked changes and comments in Google Drive, adding, “I typically give more feedback than students are used to getting. The reason I do this is I would have liked to have this as a student.”

Working in an online newsroom, however, is not without its challenges. “The biggest challenge has been communicating primarily through email,” Carissa noted. “Not everyone checks their GCC email, and that’s caused some difficulties. It’s also been hard to coordinate everyone’s schedules to cover in-person events.”

Dr. Cohen echoed this, explaining that deadlines can slip from students’ minds in a fully remote setting. To counter this, she keeps a steady flow of reminders through weekly announcements and emails. “Also, online doesn’t have to mean that we are out of sight as editors and faculty support,” she added. “For instance, I will hold more office hours and edit students’ work with lots of feedback, sometimes even while they are on a document so that they can ask questions if they have them in real-time.”

The relationship between editor-in-chief and faculty advisor is one built on transparency and teamwork. “Dr. Cohen and I communicate more frequently and also more casually,” Carissa shared. “There’s also a ton of back-and-forth ideas bouncing between us.”

Beyond just meeting deadlines and editing drafts, both leaders take pride in something deeper: the growth of the student journalists. “The majority of our students are completely new to journalism,” Carissa pointed out. “I am so proud of their ability to arrange interviews and just totally immerse themselves in the journalistic process.”

Dr. Cohen also reflected on the commitment required to run a student newsroom, noting, “A journalism writing class is probably two to three times the workload of your average class for an educator. Imagine meticulously proofreading and fact-checking over 23 submissions for each issue — it gets to be a lot.”

While the newsroom is technically still open, the shift to remote learning has surprisingly expanded the program’s reach. “Teaching virtually has helped me to do more for students rather than less,” Dr. Cohen said. “I don’t have to contend with daily long commutes, so I get more work done.” The Journalism program at GCC was the first to be on track for a fully online degree pathway, even before the pandemic. 

As GCC’s student newspaper continues to grow, the collaboration between students, editors, and faculty remains at its core. The behind-the-scenes work may go unseen by readers, but it’s the quiet dedication and relentless support that brings each issue to life—one story at a time.

Jojo Mkhitaryan can be reached at [email protected].