Press Release

Team UC Riverside Wins Top Honors at WOW's Annual Iron Chef of Web Design Challenge at TechEd Ontario, CA

Ontario, CA March 27, 2007. The World Organization of Webmasters (WOW) announced today that team UC Riverside (UCR) won the Fourth Annual WOW Iron Chef of Web Design Challenge at the Community College Conference TechEd 2007 taking place this week in Ontario, CA.

The three person UCR team consisting of team members, Bimal Gorajia, Tony Ngo and Nasser Salomon produced the overall winning website based on the following criteria developed by the WOW organization.


Team Santa Anna Community College represented by team members Bob Skinner, Noe Teran, Fernando Osorio won first place in the overall site design category.

"The great part of the WOW Iron Chef of Web Design competition is mainly that it shows the strengths/weaknesses within your team. You are able to focus on each individual’s strong suit and bring forth a group synergy that fosters learning. Each team is a winner because they learn from what worked well and what opportunities they missed. This then becomes an additional tool under your work experience belt that you carry with you to any employer". Nasser Salomon, UC Riverside

"WOW’s Iron Chef of Web Design competition provided me as a student a great chance to work in a team environment that brings together different talents to create a professional website that fits the client’s needs. In the business world there are times that a client will come to us with an urgent need for a quick turn around in services, WOW's Iron Chef event provided that sense of urgency. Adding the requirement of Accessibility was also a great aspect to focus on, it is commonly over look yet easy to make an integral part of any website. As an aspiring Webmaster I want websites to be inclusive for all of society, technology is there we just need to make it happen". Bob Skinner, Web Design student, Santa Ana Community College

The esteemed panel of judges selected by WOW national committee include:

"In today's Web environment it is becoming increasingly important for Web creators to be able to balance design/visual appeal with the maintainability, usability, and accessibility of a Web site. In my mind all four of these components are equally key ingredients for a successful Web site. Like a table or chair, if one of them is out of proportion with the others, there will be a wobble. The bigger the disproportion, the bigger the wobble! WOW's Web design contest demonstrates the importance of that". Ann Willer, Solano College.

WOW believes that today's true Web professional can balance in skill sets, has an ability to analyze a situation and produce a viable solution, and applies technology and design techniques appropriately for the circumstances.

The WOW Iron Chef of Web Design Challenge provides a showcase where competing teams can prove their skills in an entertaining and upbeat environment while carrying a message of excellence forward.

WOW's Web education and certification standards were developed in conjunction with and are supported by leaders from the computer industry, including Cisco Systems and Adobe, in addition to the U.S. government. This initiative was made possible in part by a $1.4 million federal grant that WOW received in September 2000 in collaboration with Prentice Hall Publishing Company, the Public Broadcasting System (PBS) and the University of Washington to create educational resources and standards for Web professionals worldwide.

About World Organization of Webmasters

The World Organization of Webmasters is a non-profit professional association dedicated to the support of individuals and organizations that create, manage or market Web sites. WOW provides education as well as certification, technical, employment and member advantage services to thousands of aspiring and practicing Web professionals worldwide.