The Northwestern News staff won 13 awards — seven first place, four second place and two third place — on April 1 at the annual Oklahoma Collegiate Media Association Conference in Stillwater at OSU.
Ten colleges and universities in the state belong to OCMA. Eight schools sent representatives to the conference.
Members of the Oklahoma Journalism Hall of Fame judged the contest entries, which appeared in the Northwestern News between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2025.
The following Rangers won first-place awards:
Jaxyn Cloud, General News Story, “Asbestos closes JD Annex”
Alli Schieber, Breaking News, “Crystalized picric acid causes campus to temporarily close Thursday morning”
Ingrid Maldonado, In-Depth Reporting, “How can America be healthy again?” Feature/Personality Profile, “Do children have too much screen time”; Sports Photo, “Rodeo does well at FSCC”
Emma Gott, Sports Feature/Personality Profile, “Car accident changes player’s life: The story of Lily Anderson”
Victor Kinzie, News Photo, “Protestors seek justice in police shooting”
Second-place awards:
Oaklee Fielder, Breaking News, “Jones out after 2-9 football season”
Karolina Juresiute Arensdorf, Feature/Personality Profile, “Do cellphones distract students?” and In-Depth Reporting, “AI becoming beneficial tool”
Sarah Brashears, Personal Column, “Authenticity over people pleasing”
Third-place awards:
Jaxyn Cloud, Feature/Personality Profile, “Adventures, family, friendships and kindness: The story of Dr. Jenny Sattler”
Ingrid Maldonado, Personal Column, “Importance in having community support”
“Once again, the Northwestern News staff’s work excelled at OCMA,” said Dr. Kaylene Armstrong, who has advised the staff for 11 years. “Many people don’t realize the late nights and untold hours these students put in to make the newspaper outstanding.”