Newspaper Students At Las Positas College Win 19 Awards

From Las Positas College:

November 21 2019

Las Positas College's Award Winning Student-Run Newspaper The Express Is Recognized As Elite In Latest Contest

LIVERMORE, CA - Students of Las Positas College's Award Winning Student-Run Newspaper, The Express, earned 19 awards at the Journalism Association of Community Colleges (JACC) NorCal Conference on November 16 at San Jose State University, including two of the highest honors - General Excellence for both print and online journalism.

The print edition of The Express earned General Excellence, JACC's most prized acclaim, for the first time since 2011. This puts the newspaper in the ranks of the elite with the online edition, LPCExpressNews.com, which received the same honor for the second time this year. Students who attended the conference were quick to credit one student leader for returning the print edition of The Express to glory; Emily Forschen, 2018-19 editor in chief.

When she joined The Express in 2018, Forschen was determined to print compelling stories in an attractive newspaper. She was aided by a small but dedicated staff and a revamped design, created by former editor in chief Brianna Guillory. They succeeded in their efforts, as the critique stated, "The Express is an excellent student newspaper, with content drawn from quite a few sources, both on and off campus. The content is balanced and timely. I particularly noted the in-depth coverage of campus issues, ranging from faith-based communities to student politics."

"It's exciting to see The Express recognized as one of the best in the area. The ambition on that team is so high, and the dedication is unmatched. It's incredibly rewarding to know that not only do we feel like we've delivered a quality product, an audience of readers and critics feel that way, too," said Forschen, crediting her team. Forschen and other members of The Express piled up individual awards for work published during the last academic year. She earned two individual writing awards including second place for her news story on interim President Roanna Bennie and a team layout award.

"This has been an incredible month for journalism at the college," Express Advisor Melissa Korber said. "The JACC awards come on the heels of international recognition from the ACP, including our first-ever Pacemaker award for our online site. I am a little in awe of the talent and drive of these students."

The Journalism Club is planning an end-of-semester celebration to honor the outstanding work of the student journalists. The current edition of The Express newspaper is on newsstands now, and the latest campus news is available on the award-winning website.

"All students from this year and last can share in the General Excellence and Pacemaker awards," said Korber. "This was a team effort brought about by excellent student leaders and hardworking writers, photographers and designers."

A complete list of the JACC awards earned on November 16 follows.

Publication Awards
1. Illustration 1st Place - Alexa Lowe
2. Broadcast News 1st Place - Trevor Gregory
3. News Story 2nd Place - Emily Forschen
4. News Photo 2nd Place - Victoria Lachnit
5. Student Designed Ad 2nd Place - Kirstie Burgess
6. Environmental Photo 3rd Place - Timothy Cech­­
7. Editorial 3rd Place - Emily Forschen
8. Column Writing 3rd Place - Jennifer Snook
9. Student Designed 3rd - Jennifer Snook
10. Feature Story 4th Place - Timothy Cech
11. Inside Page Layout 4th Place - Kirstie Burgess, Emily Forschen, Jennifer Snook
12. Meritorious Enterprise Award News Story: Les Mahler, Kirstie Burgess, and
Adam Vanderhoofven
13. Editorial Honorable Mention - Las Positas College
14. Sports Action Photo Honorable Mention - Alan Lewis
15. Sport Action Photo Honorable Mention - Alan Lewis
16. ­­­Sports Feature Photo Honorable Mention - Victoria Lachnit
17. General Excellence - The Express
18. General Excellence - LPCExpressNews.com

On the Spot Awards
1. News Writing 4th Place - Nathan Canilao

For more information, please visit the website at https://lpcexpressnews.com/

This press release was produced by Las Positas College. The views expressed here are the author’s own.