Sean Doherty
Student writer
The Northwestern News won 16 awards, including best overall student newspaper in the Diamond Division, at the annual Oklahoma Collegiate Media Association spring conference.
Editors Ashley Strehl and Michelle Willson and adviser Dr. Kaylene Armstrong attended the conference, which was held at Oklahoma State University in Stillwater on April 6.
The newspaper won five first-place awards, two of which were for the staff: overall newspaper and interior page design. Individual or teams won the other three first-place awards: Katie Lackey, multimedia storytelling; Rachel Emerson, Victoria Schnaufer, Jake Goodman, Collin Stork for team enterprise/investigative reporting; Melissa Noland, enterprise/investigative reporting.
The staff placed second in front-page design. Sports editor Sami McGuire won three second-place honors: sports photography, reporting portfolio and multimedia storytelling. Other individual/team winners were Haylee Bates, general news reporting; Katy Hart, Taylor Morris, Melissa Noland, Cooper Stanley for team enterprise/investigative reporting; Adriana Becerra, enterprise/investigative reporting.
Third-place awards went to Sami McGuire, sports photography; Erin Davis, multimedia storytelling; and Rachel Emerson, general news reporting. Ethan Sacket earned an honorable mention in reviews.
“Many people don’t understand how much work these kids put in every week to produce the Northwestern News,” said Armstrong, who has been the adviser for three years. “I am proud of the work they do and the willingness all the students in mass communication have to produce great work for the newspaper and other areas of our department.”
Student newspapers across the state entered work that appeared between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2017. Some of the Northwestern News winners graduated in May and December.
The Northwestern News competed against student newspapers at smaller schools such as Northeastern, Southwestern and Southeastern, who are all part of the Diamond Division of OCMA.
The Oklahoma Collegiate Press Association began in 1975 and changed its name in fall 2010 to Oklahoma Collegiate Media Association. Its mission has always been to “promote and improve student media at Oklahoma’s colleges and universities.”