The Burr, Kent State’s student-run general interest magazine, received a student ADDY award for Publication Design of last spring’s issue cover.

“The Burr has won so many prestigious awards during its existence. To win another award in a new category does not surprise me,” said Lori Cantor, senior business manager in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication. “The Burr is a first-rate magazine and fills the Office of Student Media and the School of Journalism and Mass Communication with pride.”

The magazine received the award on a regional level from the Akron chapter of American Advertising Federation.

The American Advertising Federation and the Young Professionals in Advertising manage and sponsor the annual student ADDY awards.

The awards are a three-tiered competition with 12 categories, according to the American Advertising Federation website. The Burr will compete against other winners in the second tier of the competition.

Katie Barnes, media specialist for the School of Journalism and Mass Communication, said she thought the cover was exceptional and deserved some recognition.

Barnes researched the competition and helped organize and send the necessary documents for the ADDY award.

The winning cover was inspired by featured stories of students having to deal with therapy. Rabab Al-Sharif, Kent State alumna and previous editor-in-chief of The Burr said they had to decide what to put on the cover and how they were going to make it visual.

“I talked to Tom Song, who was the photo editor, and he came up with the idea to take a picture and shatter it and make it like she was putting the pieces back together,” Al-Sharif said over the phone. “It was hard and rough, and I was worried, but I’m glad it all came together in the in end.”

Barnes said there are several other categories in the ADDY competition that The Burr could be entering in the future.

The Burr will be receiving the award on March 1 in Akron, Ohio at the President’s Hall of the Akron Urban League.

Contact Alyssa Flynn at [email protected].