Oakton Student Wins Writing Award at Literary Competition

(Dec. 6, 2018) Oakton Community College sophomore Mahnoor Jamal (Morton Grove, Maine East High School) captured the top spot in the poetry category at the recent Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference Writers’ Competition and Festival.

Jamal earned first place for her poem, “Meem-Haa-Noon-Wao-Raa.” She was inspired to write the award-winning prose because it depicts how to correctly pronounce her Arabic first name.

“I realized there is beauty behind the word Mahnoor, meaning moonlight, and everyone should say it correctly,” she says. “To win first place means that my story was heard, read and understood by the judges. Also, it means that someone who has a unique name as I do will know that they’re not alone in the struggle of identity that comes with a name that has a strong cultural background.”

For her efforts, Jamal received a medal and a certificate of achievement at the competition held Thursday, Nov. 15, at Morton College. The competition included works submitted by students from Oakton and seven other Skyway Conference member schools including College of Lake County, Elgin Community College, McHenry Community College, Moraine Valley Community College, Morton College, Prairie State College and Waubonsee Community College.

In addition to her first-place award, Jamal received an honorable mention for her short story, “Bahadur Bachi,” which details two sisters involved in a shooting at a school in Pakistan.

“The competition was a great experience,” Jamal, who is pursuing degrees in both English and education, adds. “Being around a community of writers was very rewarding, and it was nice to be acknowledged by my peers for my writing.”