Two MDC Student Publications Are Organizational Pinnacle Finalists
Two Miami Dade College student publications—Miambiance and AXIS—have been tabbed as finalists for the College Media Association’s Pinnacle Award in the Two-Year Literary Magazine of the Year category.
The honor recognizes excellence in content, design, art, writing and editing. Finalists were selected based on student work produced in the 2023-24 school year.
Winners will be announced during the Associated Collegiate Press/College Media Association Fall National College Media Convention in New Orleans on Nov. 1.
“Just to be named a finalist is a beautiful thing,” said Rita Fernandez-Sterling, Miambiance’s co-advisor. “We’re very excited about it, especially when you look at the company we are amongst. It’s like, ‘Wow, these are high caliber.’”
Miambiance, the literary and arts magazine at Kendall Campus, was nominated for Volume 34, which focuses on family and nostalgia.
The volume’s cover and content resemble a photo album. On the outside, it features a black spine, green leather background, gold lettering and a silhouette of a black tree. Inside, readers will find keepsakes such as postcards and pictures of family and friends.
It debuted in 1989, and has previously won two Pinnacles in the two-year Literary Magazine of the Year category.
This year, the publication is also a finalist for Best of Collegiate Design Individual Pinnacle Awards in the Table of Contents, Spread and Cover categories.
AXIS is the creative arts magazine at North Campus.
The publication’s most recent issue, Volume 21, focuses on “the mosaic nature of life that is sculpted by the unique experiences of individuals,” said Bianca Jules, AXIS’ editor-in-chief for the 2023-24 school year.
It features works such as art, poetry, photography and a short film titled Forgetful Scars, which viewers can watch by scanning a QR code.
AXIS was created in 2002 and has previously snagged Pinnacles for volumes printed in the 2017-18 and 2022-23 school years.
This year, the publication is also a finalist for Best of Collegiate Design Individual Pinnacle Awards in the Best Literary Magazine, Table of Contents, Spread, Cover/Nameplate and Use of Theme categories.
“[The students] were really looking at how people can come together to share unique stories that are all interconnected in some way,” said Carmen Bucher, co-advisor of AXIS.
Another MDC student publication, Metromorphosis, the literary and arts magazine at Wolfson Campus, was named a finalist for a Best of Collegiate Design Individual Pinnacle Award in the Best Literary Magazine category.
The publication’s latest edition, Volume 36, is entitled Surviving the Human Condition. It spotlights social issues such as abortion, gay rights and banned books.
“It just felt so important to share the voices of unrepresented people and to show them that they have a place, they have a platform and that their voices matter,” said Paola Arriaza, the magazine’s editorial director for the 2023-24 school year. “To find out that we were getting nominated on an edition that really strived for that, made me feel like there can be change in the world and that there’s hope.”
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