Countywide : Local Graduate Wins UCI Literary Contest

A Capistrano Valley High School graduate has won first prize in a UC Irvine literary contest for Latino writers.

Elaine Romero, who grew up in Laguna Niguel and San Juan Capistrano, was awarded $1,000 at a ceremony Tuesday night for her full-length play “Walking Home.”

Romero lives in Tucson, Ariz.

The award ceremony completed a daylong conference on Chicana literary and artistic expression, UCI spokesman Scott Nelson said.

Hector Santiago won a $500 second prize for his work “Un Dulce Cafecito” (“A Sweet Little Cup of Coffee”), which addresses Puerto Rican cultural identity. Debora Marta Simcovich’s play about corruption and class struggle, “El Ordenanza Que Se Suicido” (“The Orderly Who Killed Himself”), earned her the $250 third prize.