To the Glendale College community:

We, El Vaquero, would like to thank the staff, students and administration at GCC for a productive and supportive fall semester, as we have been able to produce seven issues; thanks in part to the funding of our paper, the accessibility of our sources and the many complimentary letters we received.

First, the paper may not be here if it were not for the funding the school and advertisers give to us. We spend hours in a newsroom that is fully supplied with the tools needed to produce a great paper.

We have a conference table, phone lines and working computers, which were bought by the administration and are maintained by Media Services, where Reed Anderson and his staff keep our computers in check and help answer our technical questions. While the Language Arts Department has a limited budget for El Vaquero funding, the department aids us in the purchasing of office supplies, such as paper, toner and plenty of red pens. The remainder of the money comes from both the ASGCC and advertisements, which is handled by Heather Glenn.

Without the sale of these ads we would not have a fax machine, a Zip Drive, or a printer, all of which are vital to the staff and production. With all of these expenses, it could be possible to lose track of who paid for what and which receipt goes where, but thanks to Hbuk Bayer, who works in the business office, we have our operating costs on track.

Upon working countless hours in the newsroom, the paper is sent to the printer, in which the bulk of the bill gets paid by the ASGCC, and the next day the entire campus becomes one community as the news turns into common knowledge. We, as students, get the chance to work in a room that mirrors one that we, as journalists, hope to one day have a career in. We also have the opportunity to take our work into the world
This semester, the staff was able to compete in a wonderful learning workshop, the Journalism Association of Community Colleges convention.

It was through the hard work of Glenn selling ads that helped fund our trip to Cal State Fullerton, where we were able to compete in real-time contests, attend workshops taught by professionals, become a team and win awards. Of course, these workshops only help to aid our news-gathering skills and the money seems to go full circle as we bring our knowledge back to the campus and speak with our sources.

We cover many events, lectures and profiles on campus, as well as uncovering new perspectives and sharing our insightful opinions. These stories would not be possible without the use of GCC’s professors, staff and students. The staff and student body add color and life to the articles. Their knowledge and background aid us in writing clear, concise and moving stories.

While our paper comes out every two weeks, deadlines creep up quickly and our interviewees have been more than helpful and cooperative in speaking with us (the writers) at last minute, be it in person, via e-mail or by the telephone. Again, the feeling of a family resonates throughout the campus as everyone seems to be working together to achieve one goal, in this case producing a great newspaper.

Apparently, our efforts have not only been noticed, but they have also been appreciated. We have received numerous letters of thanks from the college, including from a founder of a club who appreciated the publicity the paper offered, a division chair, and the president of the college. As students, we have felt our faces blush as a classmate gave us the thumbs up and we have a secret pride as we see someone pick up our paper and read with a smile. It has been a wonderful semester and we owe thanks not only to ourselves, but also to the entire GCC family.

With everyone working together and essentially pulling for each other, the college will remain high in its standards and will remain connected to those in contact with the school. Maybe that is the reason for the word “community” in Glendale Community College.