A video by MiraCosta College student Matthew Robinson has been selected as the first-place winner – complete with a $10,000 prize – in a contest seeking ideas from community college students on how their education could be transformed. The University of Southern California Race and Equity Center sponsored the Student Visions for Change contest. More than 120 California community college students submitted entries in the “Transformed Educators” category that Robinson won. Robinson, a 34-year-old film major at MiraCosta College, was stunned when he learned his 90-second video had been selected for the top prize.

“It was like a dream,” he said. “I’ve never won anything in my life. I was grateful not only to be part of the opportunity, but to be a winner.”

Robinson said he learned about the contest from MiraCosta College Sociology Professor Edwina Williams, who was leading an internship that Robinson was taking.

“She said, ‘Hey, I think you should create something for this contest,” Robinson said. “She was a big help for me finding out about it because I didn’t even know it was out there.”

In his video, Robinson says that faculty and staff members often don’t understand the experiences of the many kinds of students they see. He proposes creating videos of various students that would help faculty understand their backgrounds and experiences.

“There’s a rift between the educator and the student,” Robinson said. “We need to figure out a better way to build community between the two. Students have difficulty finding someone they can relate to and be open with. Sometimes it’s hard for teachers to relay their messages because of how students feel because of their experiences.”

Robinson started at MiraCosta College in Fall 2021 and said it was easy for him to decide to major in film. “It was an instant pick,” he said. “I love film, I watch films, I critique films. Film is one of the loves of my life.”

His love for film made his contest entry an easy task. Robinson said he put together the film in about four hours.

He said the prize money would help with his expenses until he graduates next year. He’s been living with his mother in Oceanside while attending MiraCosta.

A ceremony to honor Robinson and the winners in the other contest categories is set for late January.