The Torch wins seven awards at the Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association’s Collegiate Newspaper Contest
The Torch was awarded seven awards from the Oregon Newspaper Publishers Association’s 2019 Collegiate Newspaper Contest for both writing and photography.
For the second year in a row, the team earned first place in General Excellence. This years’ award was for The Torch’s March 20, 2019 edition featuring articles on Titans basketball, the DisOrient Asian-American Film Festival and the impact of 2019’s snowstorm on Lane Community College’s fiber optics.
Annie Smith, Art Director for The Torch in 2019, said, “I’m extremely pleased knowing the hard work we did didn’t go unnoticed. The Torch offices were like a second home and the people on the team were like a part of my family. The award is a nice reminder of all the time we spent together.”
Current Art Director Selina Scott won first place for her shots of the Lane Community College Titans basketball team in the Best Spot News Photo category. Scott was also awarded first and third place for Best Sports Photo for both basketball and baseball action shots.
“Working for The Torch just started as a way to meet new people and make friends,” Scott said of her experience. “I wasn’t really interested in the journalism field and hadn’t had a lot of photography. After lots of practice and help from The Torch team, I’ve grown a lot. It’s always nice to have your work recognized so having some of my photos win makes me feel really good.”
First place for Best Feature Photo was awarded to former Photographer Jason Petorak for his — very red — coverage of the March For Our Students last year.
“Earning a first place award for my photo means almost as much as earning my diploma,” said Petorak. “I could not have done it without the creative geniuses behind the scenes that make The Torch possible.”
Reporter and Copy Editor James Croxton received second place in the category for Best Series for his three-part series on LCC’s food services, Titan Store and Blenders coffee shop being outsourced.
“It feels great,” Croxton said of both the award and experience with The Torch. “The ONPA award is the first I’ve received for my work in journalism. Above all, it has given me a sense of validation that what I’m doing is worth it and is getting noticed by my peers.”
Last year’s Editor-in-Chief Marek Belka won second place for Best Editorial for his leadership transition piece.
“I’m incredibly honored to be recognized for my parting editorial, but I am far more thrilled that The Torch took home the General Excellence award,” said Belka. “Though I’m very proud of my own work as editor, none of it would’ve been possible had it not been for the amazing team that gathered under our banner during my tenure as EIC.”
Of his experience at the newspaper, Belka added, “The Torch was the first place that ever gave me a chance to show what I’m capable of while also giving me room to grow, offering valuable experience that I’m still building upon today.”
“As a team, it’s really nice to get recognized,” said Galbreath. “The General Excellence Award is definitely something we’re most proud of. Something that’s unique about The Torch is that we don’t get graded on our work, it’s purely extracurricular, outside the classrooms, which is something most community colleges in the state don’t do. We’re not competing for an A, we’re just doing the best job we can.”
“If we didn’t love it, we wouldn’t do it,” he added. “I think that shows when we get two years of general excellence awarded to us.”
