The Collegian wins first place, twice, and hears VP Joe Biden speak at ONA

Four staff members for The Collegian and adviser Matt Tullis attended the Ohio Newspaper Association's annual conference Thursday, a conference that included a speech by Vice President Joe Biden and a keynote address by Jack Hanna, director emeritus of the Columbus Zoo and Aquarium.

The Collegian, which was represented by managing editor Justine Ackerman, entertainment editor Glenn Battishill, sports editor Chris Bils and photo editor Dan Shade, also picked up three awards in the Ohio Collegiate Newspaper and Web Site Competition. AU's student newspaper earned first place honors for best arts and entertainment coverage and best headline writing. The Collegian won third place for best Web site. 

This is the second time in three years that The Collegian has won awards in the competition, but the first time it earned first place honors. Judges said the newspaper's arts and entertainment coverage was, "Both amusing and informative, subjects are handled well." Judges also said The Collegian's headline, "Students diagnose Health Center" was creative and put "the students in the position of diagnosing the Health Center when the reverse should be true! Effective because the content of the story is evident immediately upon reading the headline!"

Photo courtesy of ONA

As for The Collegian's website, judges said stories were well-written.

"The structure of the sight is good," the judges said. "Nice use of white space. Good color choices. Photo galleries work well."

Biden spoke just before lunch, giving what could be construed as a pep talk for America. 

"America is coming back and America will be second to no other country in the world," he said. 

While Biden brought in a crowd, Hanna brought down the house by bringing out a lynx, a penguin, a flamingo and a cheetah. He also railed against state legislators for watering down an exotic animal bill that would effectively ban Ohioans from keeping exotic animals at their homes. 

Photo courtesy of ONA

He also shared sad news that his daughter, Julie Hanna, had just the evening before learned she had a brain tumor. Julie Hanna is a long-term childhood cancer survivor who has battled secondary tumors caused by the radiation she received as a toddler. 

Tullis featured Julie Hanna prominently in a story on long-term childhood cancer survivors that he wrote when working for the Columbus Dispatch in 2007.