Jorge Ibanez, Coordinator, Digital Media Technology Department, writes:
Every year, SF’s Digital Media Technology students enter the National Yellow Pages Association student advertising design competition. The project consists of designing a yellow page ad for a real Yellow Pages client.
Students enter in teams consisting of class groups sponsored by their instructor. Participation in this national prestigious advertising design competition keeps growing and this year more than 1,600 students from 128 design programs nationwide entered.
Santa Fe College’s two year Digital Media Technology program always places in the top 1 or 2 percent of all entries, going against more prestigious four-year programs like Savannah College of Art and Design and the Art Institutes. And every year Santa Fe College is the only two-year program to make it that high in the rankings.
This year, that tradition has been broken. Several other community colleges finally broke into that elite group of winners. So, not to be outdone, Santa Fe College went ahead and placed not one but four entries into that top 1 percent of all entries and, just to make sure we did not leave any doubt as to who is who, we won first place (click image for larger view).
Domina Daughtrey, who graduated in April, won first place with her design for Leaf and Lawn Landscape. Her instructor was Rhonda Peyton. Shawna Mansield’s students received special recognition in the teams of Kathryn Johns-Hupp and Mibsam Cardenas, Allison Praytor and Mitch Pazanski. Heather Griffith and Angel Yeager (another team coached by Peyton) also received special recognition. (Earlier this year, Domina received a scholarship from the Advertising Federation of Gainesville.)
This year’s results speak for the quality of Santa Fe’s Graphic Design program, which is one of three specialization tracks in the Digital Media Technology program. They are also irrefutable evidence of the impact of community college programs in this and many other fields, when we can go toe to toe with much more expensive four-year programs and beat them at their own game.
Six other community colleges placed in the top 2 percent. Cuhayoga Community College (in Cleveland, Ohio, with a student enrollment of over 31,000) came in second place behind Santa Fe. Congratulations to all of them. Career education works.
But, sorry guys, we’re still the best, see you next year.
For more information about the competition, go online.