The Oak Leaf staff brought home a total of 10 awards in mail-in and on-the-spot competitions from the Journalism Association of Community Colleges’ NorCal conference on Saturday, Nov. 6. Eleven Oak Leaf students attended and six participated in on-the-spot competitions.

The newspaper’s faculty adviser Anne Belden acknowledges the Oak Leaf’s devoted staff. “I am really proud of how hard the Oak Leaf students work on the paper and on their own journalism skills,” she said.

Two Oak Leafers swept the on-the-spot news-writing category. Oak Leaf Co-Editor-in-Chief Michelle Peirano and Features Editor Jerome Janairo captured first and second places respectively in on-the-spot news writing.

Oak Leaf Layout Editor Haley Sansom captured third place in on-the-spot news judgment/layout in her first on-the spot competition.

The Oak Leaf won seven awards in the mail-in category awards.

The Oak Leaf’s former photo editor, Molly Rose Livingston, and Peirano took home a Generally Excellent enterprise reporting award for their collective work on the Fresh & Natural series.

Former Arts and Entertainment editor Buckley Collins took first place in critical review for his “Splinter Cell” video game review. Peirano won third place in the profile feature category for her profile of ex-SRJC Police Chief Terry Stewart.

Ben Pack, former co-editor in chief, received honorable mention in column writing, and the Oak Leaf staff won honorable mention for editorial writing. Former journalism student Theresa Ryan won honorable mention in the news feature category for her story on nursing jobs.

The Oak Leaf will compete at JACC’s state conference in Sacramento April 7-9.