Kent State Well Represented in Advertising Award Competitions Statewide

Kent State University was well represented in recent advertising award competitions held in various parts of Ohio. An advertising campaign for the Kent State Folk Festival and the “Experience for Life” television ad series were both honored recently in local ADDY Awards competitions. In addition, student graphic designers at Glyphix, a design agency housed within Kent State’s School of Visual Communication Design, were honored for their work with the design for the Healing Stanzas poetry and art poster series.

Cleveland-based advertising and marketing firm Marcus Thomas took home 17 Cleveland ADDY Awards for a poster campaign and other collateral pieces created for the 44th Kent State Folk Festival. Prizes were presented by American Advertising Federation Cleveland at a February ceremony. The awards included eight gold, eight silver and one bronze for the Marcus Thomas team and were awarded for posters and invitations related to the events that comprised the Folk Festival.

At the Columbus ADDY Awards, advertising and public relations firm Fahlgren was honored with a gold ADDY for the agency’s work on a series of television ads produced for the university’s “Experience for Life” admissions marketing campaign. The national television ad series, produced in 2010 and launched in the fall, featured successful alumni, including Devo frontman Mark Mothersbaugh.

The Glyphix students collected three gold ADDYs at the Akron ceremony in the professional category for public service. The Healing Stanzas poetry and art poster series combined the creative talents of Kent State students with student writers (grades 3–12), healthcare providers, medical students, patients and veterans to encourage dialogue about the connection between art and medicine, writing and healing. The Stanzas are currently in Akron METRO buses, Kent PARTA buses and the RTA system in Cleveland. The larger, vertical posters are also being shown in the Kent Starbucks.

“The ADDY competition entries are judged by independent professionals in the advertising and design field who work outside of the local area,” explained Valora Renicker, Glyphix creative director and School of Visual Communication Design assistant professor. “To have them qualify the entries as worthy of the highest level award in competition with professionals substantiates the quality of the work that our students produce.”

The ADDY events are the first round in a three-tiered national competition. The winning entries in the local competitions will automatically be forwarded to the appropriate regional level, competing in a field of 10 other districts. The district awards will be held in April. If participants win gold awards at the district level, they move on to the national ADDY® awards held in June. The ADDY Awards are sponsored by the American Advertising Federation.

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Media Contact:
Emily Vincent, evincen2@kent.edu, 330-672-8595