JACC SoCal 2015: Full Schedule

8:00am PST

On-the-Spot Contest Registration

Get your conference badge and head over the Contest Sign-up Table to complete in the On-the-Spot Contests at JACC SoCal:

News Story - based on the Keynote Pultizer Prize Panel presentation at 9:15 a.m.
News Photo & Caption - based on the Keynote Pultizer Prize Panel presentation at 9:15 a.m.
Opinion Writing - based on the Keynote Pultizer Prize Panel presentation at 9:15 a.m.
Critical Review - based on the Critical Review Event at 10:30 a.m.
Copy Editing

Saturday November 14, 2015 8:00am - 9:15am PST
College Center Bldg. 200 Fullerton College

Contest

8:00am PST

Registration Open

Registration opens at 8:00 a.m. in the College Center, Bldg. 200 at Fullerton College. Please arrive early to pick up registration materials and sign-up for any of our On-the-Spot competitions in News Writing, News Photo & Caption, Opinion Writing, Critical Review, and Copy Editing.

Note that while registration takes place in the College Center, the Welcome Address and Keynote Pultizer Prize winning panel presentation will take place across East Chapman Avenue at the Wilshire Auditorium. If you wish to complete in the On-the-Spot Contests, you must visit registration before the Keynote session begins.

Saturday November 14, 2015 8:00am - 4:00pm PST
College Center Bldg. 200 Fullerton College

8:45am PST

Faculty Proctor Meeting

All faculty and staff members assigned to proctor a contest must attend this meeting.

Moderators

Patricia Stark

Proctors

Max Branscomb

Rich Cameron

Adviser, Cerritos College

Rich Cameron has been head of the Journalism Program at Cerritos College since 1997. Prior to that he worked at three other California community colleges for more than 20 years. He has been a leader in community college journalism and mentors not only his students, but journalism... Read More →

John Francis

Mike Hoffman

Allan Lovelace

Pat McKean

Mike Moreau

Meg O'Neill

Tim Posada

Sylvia Rico-Sanchez

John Rose

Lab Teaching Assistant, Santa Barbara City Collge

John Thomas Rose is the lab teaching assistant to The Channels. He started at SBCC in 2013 and oversees journalism, photography and video students working on the online student news site.In Spring 2012, Rose completed a multimedia internship at the Science Desk at National Public... Read More →

Jay Seidel

Professor/Adviser and chair of the Fullerton Drone Lab, Fullerton College

Jay Seidel is professor and director of the Fullerton Drone Lab at Fullerton College. He is a Part 107 certified UAS Pilot and has been flying drones since 2016. He is an AUVSI TOP (Level 3) UAV Instructor and is a member of the FAA’s Safety Team where he is a Drone Pro for Orange... Read More →

Jean Stapleton

Cathy Werblin

SoCal Faculty Proctors pdf

Saturday November 14, 2015 8:45am - 9:00am PST
Room 229 College Center, 200 Bldg. upstairs

Mandatory Meeting

8:45am PST

On-The-Spot Contest News Photo Mandatory Orientation Meeting

This session is required for all photographers competing in the On-the-Spot News Photo event.

Moderators

John Rose

Lab Teaching Assistant, Santa Barbara City Collge

Jay Seidel

Professor/Adviser and chair of the Fullerton Drone Lab, Fullerton College

Saturday November 14, 2015 8:45am - 9:00am PST
Wilshire Auditorium

Mandatory Meeting Contest

9:15am PST

Welcome and Introductions

Erin Hiro, JACC SoCal Planning Committee, and Evan Solano, JACC SoCal Student Representative welcomes all members to the SoCal 2015 Regional Conference.

Speakers

Erin Hiro

Adviser, Palomar College

Erin Hiro is a member of the JACC SoCal Regional conference committee.

Evan Solano

Creative Director, theLAnd Magazine

Evan Solano is the Creative Director and co-founder of independent local publication, theLAnd Magazine and works as a freelance graphic designer whose work has been featured in the Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Magazine and The Marshall Project. Formerly a page designer for the Southern... Read More →

Saturday November 14, 2015 9:15am - 9:20am PST
Wilshire Auditorium

Workshop

9:30am PST

Keynote Panel: "Winning National Praise for Community Journalism"

This keynote presentation is the content for the On-the-Spot News Writing, Opinion Writing and News Photo Contests.

Rob Kuznia and Rebecca Kimitch have spent the past seven years doing what most journalists in the United States do: covering local school boards, city councils and community concerns — the kind of beat work essential to keeping public officials accountable, but that doesn’t always see a lot of glory. The latter changed for them earlier this year when they – with their project editor, Frank Suraci -- won a Pulitzer Prize for their work uncovering corruption and malfeasance at a small, low-income school district in Los Angeles. They’ll share how they took an important local story on Rob's beat and turned it into one of the most praised stories in the country in 2014.

Moderators

Nathan McIntire

Freelance Digital Producer, Southern California Public Radio

Nathan McIntire is the faculty adviser for the Pasadena City College Courier newspaper and a freelance digital producer for Southern California Public Radio. A graduate of Pomona College and the USC Annenberg School, he started out in journalism as an intern at the Cape Times in Cape... Read More →

Speakers

Rebecca Kimitch

Reporter, The Daily Breeze

Rebecca Kimitch works on special investigations and projects for the Los Angeles News Group and has worked in various capacities for the organization’s newspapers since 2008, including as city editor and political editor. Together with two colleagues, she recently won the Pulitzer... Read More →

Rob Kuznia

Reporter, The Daily Breeze

Rob Kuznia is a 1999 graduate of the University of Minnesota who spent 15 years as a reporter at newspapers and magazines along the West Coast. He started his career as a city hall reporter in Oregon before he developed a specialty in education reporting at the Santa Barbara News-Press... Read More →

Frank Suraci

City Editor, Los Angeles News Group/The Daily Breeze

Frank Suraci considers himself a journeyman editor, working for more than 30 years as city editor of the Daily Breeze in the Los Angeles News Group. A graduate of Pepperdine University in Malibu, he worked more than seven years as a reporter on a variety of beats -- from cops and... Read More →

Saturday November 14, 2015 9:30am - 10:15am PST
Wilshire Auditorium

Workshop

Tags On-the-Spot Contest

10:15am PST

News Photo Contest Mandatory Meet-up

All contestants in the News Photo & Caption Contest must meet in front of the Wilshire Auditorium immediatly following the Keynote Panel presentation to walk to building 700 for the Photo Lab.

Moderators

John Rose

Lab Teaching Assistant, Santa Barbara City Collge

Jay Seidel

Professor/Adviser and chair of the Fullerton Drone Lab, Fullerton College

Saturday November 14, 2015 10:15am - 10:20am PST
Wilshire Auditorium

Mandatory Meeting

Tags On-the-Spot Contest

10:15am PST

15-Minute Break

Saturday November 14, 2015 10:15am - 10:30am PST

Break

10:30am PST

On-the-Spot Contest: Critical Review Event

Professional actors will perform the play "Love Letters" for the On-the-Spot Critical Review Contest.

Moderators

John Francis

Mike Moreau

Jean Stapleton

Saturday November 14, 2015 10:30am - 11:30am PST
Room 226 College Center, 200 Bldg. upstairs

Contest

10:30am PST

On-the-Spot Contest: News Writing Lab

The Keynote presentation will be the content for the On-The-Spot News Writing Contest. Contestants must check-in to the News Writing lab by 10:35 a.m. to participate in the compeition; once you are checked in, you must stay in the lab until your entry is submitted.

Moderators

Max Branscomb

Rich Cameron

Adviser, Cerritos College

Mike Hoffman

Tim Posada

Saturday November 14, 2015 10:30am - 11:30am PST
Room 314 300 Bldg, Fullerton College

Contest

10:30am PST

On-the-Spot Contest: Opinion Writing Lab

The Keynote presentation will be the content for the On-The-Spot Opinion Writing Contest. Contestants must check-in to the Opinion Writing lab by 10:35 a.m. to participate in the competition; once you are checked in, you must stay in the lab until your entry is submitted.

Moderators

Allan Lovelace

Pat McKean

Meg O'Neill

Sylvia Rico-Sanchez

Saturday November 14, 2015 10:30am - 11:30am PST
Room 316 300 Bldg, Fullerton College

Contest

Tags On-the-Spot Contest

10:30am PST

On-the-Spot Contest: Photo Lab

The Keynote presentation will be the content for the On-The-Spot News Photo & Caption Contest. Contestants must attend the mandatory 8:45 a.m. meeting in Wilshire Auditorium and meet by 10:20 a.m. to participate in this competition; once you are checked in, you must stay in the lab until your entry is submitted. REQUIRED: Digital Camera, Orientation Meeting as outlined in the rules and regulations.

Moderators

John Rose

Lab Teaching Assistant, Santa Barbara City Collge

Jay Seidel

Professor/Adviser and chair of the Fullerton Drone Lab, Fullerton College

Saturday November 14, 2015 10:30am - 11:30am PST
Room 708

Contest

10:30am PST

"Designing with a Purpose: A Real Life Critique Session and Tips on How to Enhance Your Front Pages"

This workshop is an open invitation to bring your own college newspaper and have it critiqued to the core in front of your peers. Find out what a real world critique is like, can you handle it. You will learn how to go back to your school and create an innovative product that will stand out from any other. Also, find out tips on enhancing your designs. Learn what it take to create a front page that will have your newspapers flying off the racks. Never have photo worth enough for your centerpiece on your cover, learn how to conceptualize so you won't have anymore excuses.

Speakers

Jorge Medina

Graphic Designer, Worldwide Golf Shops

My name is Jorge Medina, and I have been a graphic designer for 18 years. I currently work at Worldwide Golf Shops as a graphic designer in the marketing department I also have worked at five different newspapers in 18 years. I worked at the Orange County Register for 11 years. Being... Read More →

Saturday November 14, 2015 10:30am - 11:30am PST
Room 224 College Center, 200 Bldg. upstairs

Workshop

10:30am PST

"How to Digital Journalism Better Than Anyone"

In this fun-filled session we will talk about what journalists are doing right and wrong on Instagram, Twitter, Blogging, Facebook, Snapchat and Periscope. We will also discuss why journalists young and old should hone their skills in all of these medium to gain not only a competitive edge, but so they can fully tell -- and promote -- their important stories.

Speakers

Tony Pierce

Editor, The Academy of Motion Pictures

Tony Pierce is the Community Manager for the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences. Previously he was the Blog Editor at the Los Angeles Times and KPCC. Prior to that he was the Editor of LAist. He is originally from a small town outside of Chicago but was lured to California... Read More →

Saturday November 14, 2015 10:30am - 11:30am PST
Room 410

Workshop

10:30am PST

"Latina Journalist in California: The Advantages of Combining Two Cultures"

Because of the emphasis on language, Spanish journalism has strongly influenced Latin American journalism, which encourages more imagery. In the United States you can access many more research centers with reliable data than you can in Latin America.

This session will explore how to inform, educate and entertain readers from the perspective of a reporter finding a balance between these two ways of writing news while also trying to maintain the humor, color and Latino flavor.

Speakers

Olga Rojas

Olga Rojas has a bachelor’s degree in mass media communications with a concentration in writing from the University of Zulia in Venezuela. She worked in the mass media industry for twelve years in Venezuela before coming to California in 2003. While in Venezuela, Olga worked... Read More →

Saturday November 14, 2015 10:30am - 11:30am PST
Room 228 College Center, 200 Bldg. upstairs

Workshop

11:30am PST

15-Minute Break

Saturday November 14, 2015 11:30am - 11:45am PST

Break

11:45am PST

On-the-Spot Contest: Copy Editing Lab

Contestants of the Copy Editing Contest must check-in by 11:50 a.m. to participate in the competition; once you are checked in, you must stay in the lab until your entry is submitted.

Moderators

Patricia Stark

Cathy Werblin

Saturday November 14, 2015 11:45am - 12:45pm PST
Room 226 College Center, 200 Bldg. upstairs

Contest

11:45am PST

On-the-Spot Contest: Critical Review Writing Lab

The Critical Review Event will be the content for the On-The-Spot Critical Review Contest. Contestants must check-in to the Critical Review lab by 11:50 a.m. to participate in the compeition; once you are checked in, you must stay in the lab until your entry is submitted.

Moderators

John Francis

Mike Moreau

Jean Stapleton

Saturday November 14, 2015 11:45am - 12:45pm PST
Room 316 300 Bldg, Fullerton College

Contest

11:45am PST

Judging On The Spot Contests

Judging for the On-the-Spot News Story and News Photo & Caption contest will take place at 11:45 a.m. in room 229. Judges should complete the score sheet and submit their entries to the judging coordinator before leaving the space.

Proctors

Max Branscomb

Rich Cameron

Adviser, Cerritos College

Mike Hoffman

Tim Posada

John Rose

Lab Teaching Assistant, Santa Barbara City Collge

Jay Seidel

Professor/Adviser and chair of the Fullerton Drone Lab, Fullerton College

Saturday November 14, 2015 11:45am - 12:45pm PST
Room 229 College Center, 200 Bldg. upstairs

Judging

11:45am PST

"Internships and Entry-level Newspaper Options"

Why should you do an internship? What should that internship look like? How should you present yourself and your work to raise your profile? How do you turn an internship into a job? Why should you look to your local paper for that first internship? Should you stick to a newsroom internship, or are there other options? Paid or unpaid internship? How does college credit work with an internship?

We’ll answer those questions, but bring your own to this session. It’s designed for students AND advisers.

Speakers

Joe Wirt

Joe Wirt, administrator of the California Press Foundation, has provided Cal Press internship grants to California college students for nearly 15 years.

Saturday November 14, 2015 11:45am - 12:45pm PST
Room 410

Workshop

11:45am PST

"So You Want to Work in Motorsports Media?"

Don't miss this fire-up discussion with professionals in media-related motorsports who share tales of capturing the excitement of racing.

Moderators

MaryAnne Shults

Associate Professor, Saddleback College

Associate Professor at Saddleback College, MaryAnne graduated graduated cum laude with a B.A. in Communications and then earned her M.A. in Communications at CSUF as well. She is a member of Kappa Tau Alpha National Honor Society, which recognizes academic excellence and promotes... Read More →

Speakers

Richard James

Motorsports Journalist, Freelance

Richard James is a freelance motorsports journalist living in Orange County, Calif. He covers primarily sports car racing and off road racing as a journalist and photographer, and also often serves as a magazine editor or project manager for various publishing projects. His current... Read More →

Tim White

Director, Acorn Wood Communications

Stemming from a strong childhood interest in all things motorized, Tim began fiddling with lawn mowers and outboard boat motors while doing summer chores for his family in upstate New York. After high school, he completed a degree in automotive technology, where we earned... Read More →

Saturday November 14, 2015 11:45am - 12:45pm PST
Room 228 College Center, 200 Bldg. upstairs

Workshop

11:45am PST

Photographers Roundtable

At least one photographer (any section or media) from each school is invited to participate in a moderated roundtable about life as a student photographer.

Moderators

Chris Viola

Saturday November 14, 2015 11:45am - 12:45pm PST
Room 224 College Center, 200 Bldg. upstairs

Workshop

12:45pm PST

Box Lunch Served

Ticket required - Grab a lunch and head to a meeting!

Saturday November 14, 2015 12:45pm - 2:15pm PST
College Center Bldg. 200 Fullerton College

Break

1:15pm PST

SoCal Faculty Meeting

At least one faculty adviser from each college should attend the JACC SoCal Faculty Meeting. Pick up your lunch before heading to the meeting!

Saturday November 14, 2015 1:15pm - 1:45pm PST
Room 226 College Center, 200 Bldg. upstairs

Meeting

1:15pm PST

SoCal Student Meeting

At least one student represenative from each college should attend the JACC SoCal Student Meeting. Pick up your box lunch before heading to the meeting!

Moderators

Evan Solano

Creative Director, theLAnd Magazine

Saturday November 14, 2015 1:15pm - 1:45pm PST
Room 224 College Center, 200 Bldg. upstairs

Meeting

2:15pm PST

Judging On The Spot Contests

Judging for the On-the-Spot Opinion Writing, Critical Review, Copy Editing contest will take place at 2:15 p.m. in room 229. Judges should complete the score sheet and submit their entries to the judging coordinator before leaving the room.

Speakers

Patricia Stark

Proctors

John Francis

Allan Lovelace

Pat McKean

Mike Moreau

Meg O'Neill

Sylvia Rico-Sanchez

Jean Stapleton

Cathy Werblin

Saturday November 14, 2015 2:15pm - 3:15pm PST
Room 229 College Center, 200 Bldg. upstairs

Judging

2:15pm PST

"Finding the Beat: Reporting on the Basics"

Journalists are watchdogs over authority, and they play a vital role in informing the public of actions taken on their behalf. Nikki Moore, Staff Attorney for the California Newspaper Publishers Association, will discuss how knowing the rules of access to government and university meetings and records aids newsgathering efforts and help reporters find stories.

Speakers

Nikki Moore

Legal Counsel, California News Publishers Association

Nikki Moore is legal counsel for CNPA where she operates a legal helpline to aid reporters and news professionals in everyday dilemmas. She is also a legislative advocate for the association, and lobbies the California Legislature and other state agencies to protect the public's right... Read More →

Saturday November 14, 2015 2:15pm - 3:15pm PST
Room 410

Workshop

2:15pm PST

"Innovation in a Converged Newsroom"

Does your student media collaborate on projects? Does your student newspaper staff want to be able to tell a story in a variety of media? Come meet this panel of experts who work in converged newsrooms, hear their stories, and ask questions about how you can convert your newsroom to a more multimedia-friendly environment.

Moderators

MaryAnne Shults

Associate Professor, Saddleback College

Speakers

Amara Aguilar

Adviser, USC Annenberg

Amara Aguilar is an associate professor of professional practice in digital journalism at USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism. At USC, she developed and teaches journalism for mobile and emerging platforms, and interactive media design for publishing, among other... Read More →

Karyn Bower

TV Producer/Educator, Saddleback College

Karyn is an Associate Professor at Saddleback College, Mission Viejo, California. In addition to her current teaching assignments of Video Journalism and the History of Television, she taught TV and Radio News. Karyn’s TV news students were two of four finalists in the National... Read More →

Ali Dorri

Researcher/Media Studies and Communication, CSU Fullerton

Ali Dorri has been the lab technician and instructional assistant for the Saddleback College Journalism Department since 2007. During this time he has witnessed the impact of changing technology demands on students, faculty, staff and college journalism as a whole. Outside of his... Read More →

Susan Valot

Radio Reporter/College Educator, freelance/Saddleback College (Mission Viejo, CA)

Susan Valot is a Southern California native who started her career in Los Angeles radio nearly two decades ago, before she graduated with a BA in Communications from CSU Fullerton. Valot came to journalism through El Camino College's journalism program and newspaper. Now, she... Read More →

Saturday November 14, 2015 2:15pm - 3:15pm PST
Room 224 College Center, 200 Bldg. upstairs

Workshop

2:15pm PST

"What You Need to Do Today to Get a Job Tomorrow"

In this session, you'll get a guided tour about what editors are really looking for; what kinds of stories make you stand out; where you might need to improve your skills; and how to pitch freelance in order to break into the tough journalism job market. Is the collapse in journalism jobs (and pay) ever going to turn around?

Speakers

Jill Stewart

Managing Editor, LA Weekly/laweekly.com

Jill Stewart is the Managing Editor at LA Weekly and laweekly.com. At LA Weekly, she oversees a team of print and digital journalists who pursue the newspaper's brand of digital hyper-localism and analytical, print journalism. She also oversees the newspaper's video team and video... Read More →

Saturday November 14, 2015 2:15pm - 3:15pm PST
Room 228 College Center, 200 Bldg. upstairs

Workshop

2:15pm PST

Writers Roundtable

At least one writer (any section or media) from each school is invited to participate in a moderated roundtable about life as a student writer.

Moderators

Janna Braun

Saturday November 14, 2015 2:15pm - 3:15pm PST
Room 226 College Center, 200 Bldg. upstairs

Workshop

3:15pm PST

15-Minute Break

Saturday November 14, 2015 3:15pm - 3:30pm PST

Break

3:30pm PST

"Beyond a Tweet: The Basics of Social Media Reporting and Verification"

Explore how reported.ly and other social media reporting ventures are using social media for more than tweeting out stories, and instead building community and finding the stories within social networks. We’ll go over how to get started using social media for reporting and how to verify what you find.

Speakers

P. Kim Bui

Director of Audience Innovation, The Arizona Republic

Saturday November 14, 2015 3:30pm - 4:30pm PST
Room 228 College Center, 200 Bldg. upstairs

Workshop

3:30pm PST

"How To Build Graphs Into Your Story"

Using statics to tell the story is important for presenting facts, whether your a sports reporter or feature writer. We explore ways you can create attractive and interactive information graphs for better storytelling.

Speakers

Rich Cameron

Adviser, Cerritos College

Saturday November 14, 2015 3:30pm - 4:30pm PST
Room 224 College Center, 200 Bldg. upstairs

Workshop

3:30pm PST

Editors Roundtable

At least one editor (EIC to section editors) from each school is invited to participate in a moderated roundtable about life as a student editor.

Moderators

Erin Hiro

Adviser, Palomar College

Erin Hiro is a member of the JACC SoCal Regional conference committee.

Saturday November 14, 2015 3:30pm - 4:30pm PST
Room 226 College Center, 200 Bldg. upstairs

Workshop

3:30pm PST

“Media Ethics 101: Tackling the Tricky Topics"

Learn the basics of media ethics so you can make the best decision on deadline. In this workshop, we’ll tackle the tricky topics of anonymous sources, conflict of interest and publication of graphic images. Tools to help you be an ethical journalist will be provided.

Speakers

Stephanie Bluestein

Assistant Professor, CSU - Northridge

Stephanie Stassel Bluestein teaches journalism at California State University, Northridge. A former Los Angeles Times reporter, she wrote her master's degree thesis on journalism ethics. Bluestein is a JACC alumna.

Saturday November 14, 2015 3:30pm - 4:30pm PST
Room 410

Workshop

6:00pm PST

Awards Presentation & Closing Ceremony

SoCal 2015 Publication Awards Presentation, On-The-Spot Awards and closing ceremony.

Moderators

Erin Hiro

Adviser, Palomar College

Erin Hiro is a member of the JACC SoCal Regional conference committee.

Evan Solano

Creative Director, theLAnd Magazine

Saturday November 14, 2015 6:00pm - 7:00pm PST
Wilshire Auditorium

Awards