On Monday April 23, Senior graphic designer and Focus editor Devon Walter placed first in her event at the NSAA Journalism State Championships at Northeast Community College in Norfolk, NE. Angel Trinh, Chynna Burgess, Chelsie Caulfield, and Morgan Valley accompanied Walter to Norfolk, as the Oracle’s single State competitor who then dominated her division in Layout design.

The object of the Layout design event was to construct a creative and organized two page spread that include three different articles and a minimum of two photos. Participants were given a flash drive full of files they could choose from to create a cohesive layout in 75 minutes or less. Walter was slightly nervous when she glanced at others’ final products and saw that the majority had created what looked more like an actual newspaper spread compared to her magazine-style layout.

“I wasn’t particularly nervous because I wasn’t expecting to win,” said Walter. “I was just focused on creating a good layout and having fun.”

The judges clearly enjoyed Walter’s divergent approach to the design, giving her the first place medallion at the awards ceremony four hours after her event ended. Hearing that she had won her event had enhanced the Oracle team’s sentiments that waking up before 5 a.m., riding the bus for three hours, and

having a complimentary meal at the dining hall had all been worthwhile. Her support group had sat silently behind her in the classroom while she constructed her layout. Although the room hadn’t been totally silent with various pings from computers going off every once in a while, computer mouses clicking constantly, and even the door closing behind the event coordinator when she returned from leaving the room occasionally.

“I had been expecting it to be really serious when, in fact, it was just a bunch of students sitting down in a room and doing what they love,” shared Walter.

Walter has held a primary role in graphic design during her senior year on the Oracle staff. She designed all covers and was responsible for multiple layouts for each edition. She is always ready to assist anyone who has questions about their own layouts. She will attend Southeast Community College in the fall to complete her general education credits and plans to do an academic transfer to UNL with the potential major in Biological sciences and a minor in Photojournalism. Walter has had a successful year on the Oracle and winning State Journalism is only another step toward her success in a future of creativity and design.