GCC’s El Vaquero and The Insider won 15 awards at this year’s statewide Journalism Association of Community Colleges convention, held in Sacramento from March 26 to 29.

The awards included mailed in stories and photos, bring-in submissions, as well as on-the spot competitions that occurred during the weekend event.

Fabiola Prieto won an honorable mention for her non-profile magazine feature, which appeared in The Insider. Jane Pojawa, Insider editor-in-chief and El Vaquero production manager, won fourth place for her magazine profile feature on former GCC student Carina Crash.

Richard Kontas won an honorable mention for his feature photo in which he captured a man shooting out of a cannon in the opening of The Simpson’s ride in Universal Studios.
El Vaquero’s front page layout won third place, which included work by Jeryd Pojawa, Graig Agop and Kontas.

El Vaquero won two honorable mentions for inside page layout. The winning layouts were the Nov. 12 “Macbeth” review by Isiah Reyes and photographs by Agop, as well as the Nov. 6 “Big Jazz Band” story by Brandon Hensley, with photographs by Jane Pojawa.

Anita K. Marto won an honorable mention for her on-line photo story essay on the aviation class at GCC.

Fabienne Niederberger won fourth place for her photo illustration which appeared in El Vaquero’s April 8, 2008 issue.

On the spot competitions resulted in an honorable mention won by a bring-in ad by Jessica Bourse, editor-in-chief of El Vaquero and Jane Pojawa, which promoted the journalism department.

Bourse also received an honorable mention for her critical review written within harsh time constraints as well as third place for her opinion writing piece.

Corinna Scott’s savvy editorial cartoon won an honorable mention as well as Kontas’ sports photo and Hensley’s sports story.