Award-Winning AXIS Magazine Marks Twenty Years Of Artistic Prowess

Lisa Shaw was inspired to make a change. 

After witnessing the literary creativity of her students, the English professor reached out to colleague Elena Perez-Mirabal to create AXIS—the first student-led literary magazine at North Campus. 

With the help of about seven students the publication printed its first edition in 2003. 

Two decades later, the magazine has become a literary giant, winning a boatload of national and state awards including the prestigious national Pacemaker Award.  

To celebrate its 20th edition, the publication will feature excerpts and reflections from AXIS alumni and submissions from current students. 

“This is a special edition,” said Eric Cornish, a graphic design and motion graphics professor at Miami Dade College who has advised the magazine’s design since 2015. “We are really proud of all the students who have been part of the journey so far.”

The Start

After joining forces to create the inaugural volume, Shaw and Perez-Mirabal reached out to colleagues to recruit students. 

“We advertised through all of the English and art classes to solicit material,” Shaw said. “We relied a great deal on the professors of those departments as well as the graphic arts [department].”

Shaw and Perez-Mirabal also connected with professors like Jon Kitner, who helped improve the magazine’s visual appeal. 

The initial entries were submitted through a make-shift mailbox in the English department. Dedicated staffers met each Friday in empty classrooms in the 7000 building.

Vol. 1 featured mostly literary work but the magazine has since expanded to include photography, digital illustrations, paintings, screenplays and music. 

“The first issue was a very small type of magazine,” Perez-Mirabal said. “We could only do a few colors with our budget.”

AXIS won its first writing award in 2004 from the Florida Community College Activities Association.

It also soon started to develop poets with verve. The list of alumni during the earlier years includes writer Dinkinish O’Connor, who has been published in the Miami Herald and The New York Times and CNN anchor Boris Sanchez. 

“He wrote a love poem for the magazine, and that’s tough for a young man to do,” recalls Shaw of Sanchez’s early compositions. 

Jhon Pereda, who graduated from MDC in 2009 with a degree in computer science, is another example of the hordes of students who received mentorship from Shaw and Perez-Mirabal. 

Pereda learned about the magazine through classmates and quickly immersed himself in the process. As the magazine’s editor for vol. 6, he proofread copy, was part of the design team and assisted in selecting the submissions. 

His issue was also the first to include a CD that featured songs and spoken word poetry performed by students. 

“Even though I’m no longer involved in any editing or that type of work, the skill sets that I learned there [are ones] I have been able to adapt to what I am doing now,” said Pereda, who now works as a data engineer for Bank United.

Perez-Mirabal left AXIS in 2010 while Lisa Shaw, who retired from MDC in 2020, left the magazine the following year.

The Next Level

English professor Carmen Bucher became the publications adviser in 2012. Professor Kathleen Noonan joined the fray in 2013 and graphic design professor Eric Cornish, who considered starting a separate magazine, joined the team in 2015. 

The trio has helped elevate AXIS’ profile. During their tenure, the magazine has won dozens of national and state awards.

Accolades have included being named the top literary arts magazine in Division B by the Florida College System Publications Association in 2018 and 2019, a Columbia Scholastic Press Association Silver Crown Award in 2021 and an unprecedented four Magazine Pacemaker Awards from the Associated Collegiate Press Magazine category in 2018, 2020, 2021 and 2022. 

Today, the magazine has about 15 members. The editorial board gathers every Friday to read, judge, select and edit art pieces. Meetings take place at North Campus’ AI Center and the Learning Center’s computer labs. 

Anthony Barrios, who graduated from MDC in 2022 and served as the editor-in-chief of the vol. 19 that won a Pacemaker, called his time at AXIS the pinnacle of his career at the college.
“It felt really, really nice to be in a place where our hard work in the creative arts was publicly recognized,” Barrios said. 

For students like Bianca Jules, AXIS has helped her tap into her creative side. 

After joining the publication last fall, the first-year computer information systems student has unraveled her love for poetry. The 19-year-old’s art will be featured in vol. 20.  

“For the past eight months I have been more exposed to poetry than ever before,” said Jules, who serves as the magazine’s co-secretary. “I’ve been able to learn so much.”

Vol. 20 will be available in the English department and at the Learning Commons at North Campus in the fall.

“I love the way the magazine has evolved,” Perez-Mirabal said. “It’s just a wonderful thing for our students to have.” 

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