Golda Och Academy’s literary magazine wins first place

WEST ORANGE, NJ — Nuts & Raisins, Golda Och Academy’s literary magazine, won a first-place award in the annual national American Scholastic Press Association’s magazine competition for 2019. More than 200 schools entered the contest, which has been running since 1980. Entries are judged on content coverage, organization, design, presentation and creativity. Out of a possible 1,000 points, Golda Och Academy scored 885, which according to ASPA chairman Richard Plass, is an “extraordinary achievement.”

According to the ASPA, “Creating a magazine teaches students the fundamentals of publishing and creative writing, proofreading/editing skills, and concepts of design/composition while promoting and supporting a community of young writers, thereby nurturing esteem and status.”

And Nuts & Raisins, according to the ASPA, “shows the superior efforts of talented and creative editors, writers, artists, photographers, layout/graphic designers, staff members, contributors and advisers.”

Nuts & Raisins, which is printed each spring, is run under the direction of faculty adviser Jason Langer. Students in grades six through 12 are invited to submit poetry, prose and artwork. Submissions are determined and reviewed by a student-run editorial board that meets weekly and is also responsible for editing the publication. Last year’s magazine, titled “Patchwork,” was also run by editors-in-chief Naomi Esrig ’20 and Eva Hale ’20.

“Our students have taken great pride in creating this literary magazine, which is why this award is such an honor,” Langer said. “It’s a testament to the passion and hard work our student editorial board exhibited putting together this publication and the creativity of our contributing authors and artists.”

  Golda Och Academy