Ojeisekhoba close-up photo of a honey bee in a colorful flower.
Joshua Ojeisekhoba
Benton Middle School announced today that Joshua Ojeisekhoba has been named a winner in the 2018 CaliforniaStreaming digital photography contest — the third consecutive year the school has had a student earn top honors in the state competition.
Joshua, a 7th-grader, won for his close-up photo of a honey bee in a colorful flower, a work designed to reflect the “Investigations” theme of this year’s contest. He was selected as one of eight winners chosen from more than 500 entries that are annually submitted for the contest, which is sponsored by the California County Educational Technology Consortium.
Joshua was recognized for his accomplishment during the Norwalk-La Mirada Unified School District Board of Education meeting on April 16.
Last year, as a 7th-grader, Genesis Sandoval was named a winner for her low-angle shot of cracked highway pavement in the Mt. Baldy area, under the contest theme of “Exploration.” In 2016, Cristian Bautista, who was in 8th grade, won for his work to capture the details of a Monopoly game board as part of the “Traditions” theme that year.
“I take pride in their success,” said Victoria Pflanzer, the school’s photography teacher, noting that all three of the winners were inspired to work hard to take their photo-taking skills to a higher level. “It’s overwhelming. I get excited over my students winning awards and getting recognized.”
Pflanzer has seen many of her students earn local and regional contests during the eight years she has taught at the sixth-through-eighth-grade campus that is a visual and performing arts magnet school. The school’s tradition of success in competitions comes as no surprise to Ben Webster, principal of the 542-student school in La Mirada that has the Wolverine as its mascot.
“We continue to thrive through our emphasis on a comprehensive arts-based education,” said Webster. “Students are challenged to exceed their own expectations and we cultivate a culture of creativity. We are training students to admire the small things in life and be attentive to the details.”