Cynde Puckett
In Motion Staff Writer
Lake Buena Vista was the place to be Oct. 12-15 as the Florida College System Publications Association’s 57th Annual Awards Conference welcomed colleges from across the state.
The event kicked off with a welcome by Daytona State College’s Senior Professor of Journalism, Elena Jarvis, who is the outgoing FCSPA President and Conference Coordinator.
Student publications were showcased as well as critiqued, judged and awarded. Contests for poetry, photography and movie reviews added some fun to the competition. Workshops were held on a variety of topics, such as: creative writing; blogging; social media; and augmented reality. A costume karaoke contest, by Orlando’s Karaoke Diva, DJ Di, and nearby Disney Springs, provided entertainment.
DSC’s newspaper, In Motion, and the College’s literary magazine, Aeolus, were recognized with numerous awards at the banquet held Friday night.
Aeolus won first place for a collection of poetry by William Rose, Tori Bryl and Tabitha Gregg; first place for individual photo, Robin Banks; second place, photography, Lance Rothwell, Gretchen King and Jorge Sastre; second place for editing, Tabitha Gregg, Eryn Brennan, Evan Scherr, Sasha Saliba and Erin Laughlin; second place for staff page, Robin Banks and Jorge Sastre; third place for fiction, Caleb Lee; and third place for art works, Candice Thompson, Katie Stone and Alexandria Fuller. The magazine placed second in the category of General Excellence.
In Motion won first place for a sports photo, Danielle Hunter; second place for a news photo, Jorge Sastre; second place for a feature story, Eryn Brennan; second place for editorial cartoon, Tristan Cook; second place for humor writing, Evan Scherr.
One of many highlights of the weekend was keynote speaker and Tampa Bay Times feature writer and Pulitzer Prize-winner Lane DeGregory, who led a workshop and spoke at the banquet. Stories about her career in journalism delighted aspiring journalists in the crowd. DeGregory presented “20 Tips Your Editor Won’t Tell You,” which were intermingled with heart-warming anecdotes and photos from her years as a storyteller.
DeGregory passed on useful tidbits of information. For example, “Talk to strangers. Convince them that what they are talking about is more interesting than the story you’re already working on,” she said. “That will get people to open up which often leads to better stories.”
Eric Cornish, Graphic Design and Computer Animation Professor at Miami Dade College, instructed publication designers in the crowd, giving them tips for designing an extraordinary publication. “Make people want to pick up your work. Grab attention. Get them excited about the content and be unique. ”
DSC Professor and Senior Instructional Technologist, Hector Valle, led a workshop on augmented reality that fascinated audience members with information about the future of gaming, browsers and 3D viewers as they relate to augmented reality.
Bruce Cook, DSC’s Assistant Dean of Co-Curricular, taught a workshop on writing leads for news stories. He also critiqued newspapers represented at the conference and facilitated a discussion among editors of student publications, offering them advice for challenges they face as editors and student leaders.
Other workshop leaders and speakers included: Melissa Alling, Assistant Professor of Communications at College of Central Florida; Troy Appling, Professor of English at Florida Gateway College; James Blevins, an English major at the College of Central Florida; Nicolette Constantino, Associate Professor of English at Tallahassee Community College; Rob Marino, Associate Professor of Communications at the College of Central Florida; Diane Orsini, Valencia College; Vicky Santiesteban, Broward College; Wendy Whitt, Instructor in the Zimmerman School of Advertising and Mass Communications at the University of South Florida; and Jackie Zuromski, Valencia College.
Among the participating colleges included: Broward College; College of Central Florida; Daytona State College; Hillsborough Community College; Lake-Sumter State College; Miami-Dade College; Palm Beach State College; Pensacola State College; St. Petersburg College; Tallahassee Community College; and Valencia College.
The Florida College System Publications Association is a division of the Florida College System Activities Association.
For information about becoming involved in DSC’s Student Publications club, contact the club adviser, Elena Jarvis at jarvise@daytonastate.edu or In Motion’s Editor-in-Chief, Cynde Puckett at cjp541@gmail.com.