Congratulations to the award-winning Peralta Citizen journalists and their faculty sponsor, Eleni Gastis!
March 13th - 19th is National Sunshine Week, which has been celebrated every March since 2005, thanks to the hard work of the American Society of News Editors. Participants include print, broadcast, and online news media, civic groups, non-profits, schools, and libraries. The activities enlighten the public about their right to government information and strengthen their communities.
This year, PCCD is honored to celebrate the journalistic achievements of its students. The following message is from Eleni Gastis, Chair of the Journalism Department and Advisor for the Citizen, from an announcement sent to all Peralta employees on March 16, 2022.
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Greetings colleagues,Did you know that it is National Sunshine Week?
National Sunshine Week highlights freedom of information in government — and there is no better “news hook” for me to proudly announce that the Citizen, Peralta’s only student-run publication, has won the Society of Professional Journalists’ James Madison Freedom of Information Award!
The newsroom was selected by local journalists and is highlighted in a press release announced today by the Society of Professional Journalists. The students have been given this award specifically for their commitment to transparency and accountability at PCCD, beginning with, but not limited to, their coverage of PCCD security.
The students will be honored with a trophy that will live in our newsroom as a reminder of our commitment — and future work — at Peralta.
In other news, the Citizen also picked up several awards at the Journalism Association of Community Colleges/Associated Collegiate Press conference we attended last week in Long Beach. The winners are:
- Ivan Chairez, photo essay
- David Rowe, profile feature story
- Derek Sylvester, column writing
- Leticia Luna, video journalism
- Pamela Rudd, news story
Please join me in congratulating our students for their gumption, integrity, and talent.
In celebration,
Eleni Economides Gastis
Advisor for The Citizen
Journalism Department Chair
Faculty Senate President
Guided Pathways Co-Coordinator
