10/31/2024
Plaque build up: Recognition abounds for JAMS students
LPC’s media students bring home 26 awards from regional, state and national journalism competitions
It’s award season for the student media at Las Positas College. The students of Las Positas racked up.
Six first-place awards at the NorCal Regional Conference for the Journalism Association of Community Colleges capped what’s been a sensational few months for the Journalism and Media Studies Department. The 19 awards won over the weekend included the coveted General Excellence for the print publication.
“We felt honored,” said Jakob Arnarsson, editor-in-chief of The Express newspaper. “All the work we’ve put into this paper has gotten recognized, and it’s a feeling that only has us working harder.”
Arnarsson took first place for his profile feature on men’s basketball player Alex Martin and first place for his coverage of men’s basketball playoffs.
Rain Hepting, copy editor and artist extraordinaire, also won two first-place awards. One was for the live copy editing competition and the other was for their editorial cartoon titled “Awareness vs. Acceptance” to accompany Hepting story on Autism Acceptance Day. Hepting also won third place for another editorial cartoon.
Olivia Fitts, news and opinions editor of The Express, and Gabriel Carver, now at San Francisco State, won first place for their illustration for the story on the mice infestation.
Paul George won for his column series Dad’s Rambling Again.
The awards coup at JACC comes on the heels of a major accomplishment by Olivia Fitts. She was named by Associated College Press as one of 10 finalists for Reporter of The Year in the nation for two-year schools. It’s the second-consecutive year a Las Positas student was declared one of the 10 best by ACP, which has member schools through four America and Canada. Lizzy Rager, who currently attends UCSB, won second place in this category last year.
“Olivia Fitts is competing with some of top journalists in the nation for this award — an award that recognizes her hard work, commitment to the truth and, especially, her unique ability to tell a compelling story,” said Melissa Korber, head of the Journalism and Media Studies Department. “For the second year in a row and the fifth time since the program entered this national arena in 2012, LPC is home to an elite college journalist. The JAMS program is fortunate to welcome naturally talented writers like Olivia and to help them hone their skills.”
Fitts will learn her ranking next month when the results are announced.
The California Newspaper Association Awards this summer kicked off LPC’s awards season.
Justin Gomes, editor-in-chief of the newspaper for spring 2024, won 1st Place for news photo for capturing a campus protestor speaking with a campus safety officer. Gomes also took 3rd Place for his Feature Photo on Day of the Dead. And both Paul George and C.J. Flores received 2nd Place honors — George for his “Dad’s Rambling Again” column and Flores for his profile of Hawks’ men’s basketball’s Isaiah Victor.
Both The Express newspaper and the online publication, LPCExpressNews.com, received 4th Place in the General Excellence category.
“The students deserve this,” said Marcus Thompson, professional mentor to the media students. “They are talented. They grind. They have great camaraderie. They represent what student media is all about — and they’ve got plenty of plaques to show for it.”
Individual Awards
ACP
Finalist: Olivia Fitts — Reporter of The Year, two-year schools
JACC
1st Place: Jakob Arnarsson — Profile Feature Story (Alex Martin)
1st Place: Jakob Arnarsson — Sports Game Story
1st Place: Olivia Fitts and Gabriel Carver — Photo Illustration (Mice)
1st Place: Paul George — Column Writing
1st Place: Rain Hepting — Editorial Cartoon
1st Place: Rain Hepting — Copy Editing
3rd Place: Rain Hepting — Editorial Cartoon
4th Place: Jakob Arnarsson — Sports Feature Photo
4th Place: Gabriel Carver — Online Photo Story Essay
4th Place: Olivia Fitts — Critical Review
4th Place: Justin Gomes — Feature Photo
Honorable Mention: Paul George — Editorial
Honorable Mention: Justin Gomes — Photo Story Essay
Honorable Mention: Justin Gomes — Sports Action Photo
Honorable Mention: Camille Leduc — Critical Review
Honorable Mention: Luke Vavuris — Feature Photo, On-the-Spot Awards
CNPA
1st Place: Justin Gomes — News Photo
2nd Place: Paul George — Columns
3nd Place: C.J. Flores — Profile Story
3rd Place: Justin Gomes — Feature Photo
Staff Awards
JACC
General Excellence in Print: The Express
2nd Place: The Express — Front Page Layout
4th Place: The Express — Inside Page Layout
CNPA
4th Place: The Express — General Excellence, print
4th Place: LPCExpressNews.com — General Excellence, online