Best Newspaper (Community Colleges)

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Best Newspaper (Community Colleges)
     Admittedly, Florida Leader tried everything—and we mean everything—to spread the wealth in this category, which has been absolutely dominated by The Observer of Broward Community College, the "Best Of" winner over five of the last six years. The only exception: Brevard Community College’s Capsule took top honors in 1997, in a toss-up with The Observer. But the hard reality is that no other community college newspaper in the state can match The Observer for hard-news coverage, consistently strong reporting and writing, and campus-wide impact.
     With an annual $40,000 budget and 10,000 biweekly circulation, The Observer annually is the state’s top community college paper. Led by six editors, The Observer may be the most self-sufficient C.C. publication as well, with $20,000 of the total budget coming from advertising, according to Advisor Tom Lassiter.
     This year’s paper looks better than ever, thanks to clean modular design and the addition of full-color on the front page. But Editor Wanda DeMarzo says the packaging merely entices readers to check out the paper’s most popular sections. "The news, editorials, and opinions are controversial," she says. "They raise a lot of questions and generate a lot of interest."
     As editor, DeMarzo’s focus has been on investigative reporting. "We’re a watchdog for students," she says. "Our job is to ensure that rules are not broken and students’ welfare and concerns are addressed by the administration, faculty, and SGA."
     DeMarzo says The Observer broke the news—beating the local dailies-- that the college’s swim coach was resigning. "Because of the ‘Swim team in trouble’ story, a college-wide task force was organized to consider the future of sports at BCC," she says. "Our article brought things to the forefront. When it was all brought out, they said ‘Let’s look at the whole sports program and see what needs to be done here.’"
     Also, The Observer’s March 1998 article about a grant lost by the Office of Disability Services "caused a major stir among the administration and the students enrolled in disability services," she says. "Several faculty and staff members received a lot of flak."
     The Observer also revealed that a new class using expensive technology wasn’t producing results as expected. "The school had decided it would be better to offer a computer math course, but we learned that the success rate for intermediate algebra was higher in traditional classes," she says. "They paid almost a million dollars to have this new class brought in and no one is doing well." DeMarzo says The Observer’s article let students know about this supposed waste of money. "Anyone who read that story knows ‘Don’t take that class,’" she says.
     Unlike most community college publications that always struggle to fill editor slots and train replacements from year to year, The Observer somehow has found one student who was willing to do what it takes to be editor and keep the paper at its high quality, DeMarzo says. "Over the past six or seven years, we’ve had at least one person who went above and beyond. To be editor, it’s just so hard. You really need a high level of commitment."
     With "Best Of" wins in five of the past six years, The Observer editors are justifiably confident and proud of their paper. "I honestly feel that this is one of the best papers in the state, not just among community colleges," DeMarzo says. "Last year, we really had to hunt for stories. This year, students and staff are coming here and telling us. That’s respect."

     Among other top community college papers, Florida Leader gives a nod for improvement to recently resurrected The Scribe of Seminole Community College. Led by Editor in Chief Kelly Icardi and Advisor Tom Pierce, who advised Valencia Community College’s student publications for 17 years before heading to Seminole, The Scribe may be one to watch in the coming years.

     The Metropolis, the visually appealing tabloid at Miami-Dade Community College-Wolfson, continues to improve through getting reader feedback. "We surveyed 100 students regarding their assessments about the campus paper, student government, and student activities," says Philip Lane, faculty advisor. "We also publish a regular column, ‘Voices Across Campus,’ which asks a question on a variety of issues and publishes student responses." The Metropolis would rank higher in Florida Leader’s probing eyes if it stuck to campus issues, instead of featuring cover articles on The Jerry Springer Show and professional wrestling coming of age.

     At Pensacola Junior College, The Corsair Editor Christmas McGaughey says 267 students completed a detailed survey for the monthly paper’s January 1999 in-depth article on the Clinton scandal and other political issues. With its revamped cover logo and magazine-ish design, The Corsair was "general excellence" winner in 1998’s Florida Community College Press Association competition and probably will be one of the favorites this year.

     The Patriot Press at Central Florida Community College deserves recognition for its report on problems at College Square, the school’s student-housing facility. "Every since the center opened, rumors have spread like wildfire about illegal activities that occur there," says Lauren Anzaldo, editor. "We approached the issue from all angles, interviewing residents, the manager, and two administrators. The fair and unbiased way in which the story was reported impressed all sides and led to widespread student discussion."

     At Daytona Beach Community College, InMotion again gets applause for its colorful front-page design. The monthly has the luxury of not printing on typical newsprint, so photos, the cover logo, and graphics look great on the bright white paper. Advisor Bruce Cook says students love the center spread. "Past features have been Theater Productions, the Southeast Photography Museum, and the Cultural Arts Festival. The center spread usually contains a story, pictures, and a colorful background," he says. "We’re most proud of, and were told by readers, of ‘The Complete Works of Shakespeare’ center spread in the October 1998 issue."
     Cook says he’s impressed with the maturity of this year’s editors, Malisa Fernandez and Felonice Merriaman. "The leadership of the paper is shared more this year," Cook says. "This group seems very willing to spread leadership." That bodes well for training future InMotion editors and staffers.

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