Ouachita Stories

Highlighting a variety of recent communications projects, Ouachita Baptist University’s Office of Communications has received seven national awards from two professional communications organizations.

The awards honor a pair of Ouachita promotional videos; Ouachita’s 125^th anniversary coffee table book; The Ouachita Circle alumni magazine; a poster for Ouachita’s annual Festival of Christmas; and the university’s 125^th anniversary logo. Five of the awards were presented by Baptist Communicators Association and two are from Higher Education Marketing.

“We are extremely pleased that Ouachita’s communications efforts are being recognized by our peers in national professional organizations,” said Trennis Henderson, OBU vice president for communications.

“Several of the awards reflect partnership efforts with such groups as our admissions counseling staff, Dean Film & Video of Memphis and the Bookhouse Group of Atlanta,” Henderson added. “It is a privilege for us to partner to communicate the Ouachita story for the benefit of prospective and current students as well as faculty, staff and friends of the university.”

Among the recent awards from Baptist Communicators Association are:

First place music video for “Discover Ouachita,” a two-and-a-half minute video produced in partnership with Dean Film & Video and the OBU Office of Admissions Counseling. The fast-paced music video offers a brief overview of Ouachita campus life. It can be viewed online at vimeo.com/35660918.

Second place institutional video for “Discover the Ouachita Difference,” also produced in partnership with Dean Film & Video and the Office of Admissions Counseling. The nine-minute video features interviews with students, faculty and staff as well as campus scenes to highlight Ouachita’s commitment to academic, spiritual and personal growth among students. It is available online at vimeo.com/35657689.

Second place book for Ouachita Voices: Celebrating 125 Years of Academic & Christian Excellence. The commemorative coffee table book, edited by Henderson and Brooke Zimny, assistant director of communications, was produced in partnership with the Bookhouse Group, an Atlanta-based publishing firm. Ouachita Voices features more than 20 essays and 175 photographs highlighting Ouachita’s first century and a quarter of history. Ouachita Voices is available for purchase online at www.obu.edu/125/ouachitavoices or at the OBU Bookstore.

Second place poster design for 2011 Festival of Christmas poster designed by Brooke Zimny. The poster highlighted Ouachita’s annual Festival of Christmas production, which featured guest artists Point of Grace as part of the university’s 125^th anniversary celebration.

Honorable mention logo design for Ouachita’s 125^th anniversary logo designed by René Zimny, assistant director of OBU’s Grant Center for International Education. Ouachita’s 125^th Anniversary Steering Committee and Office of Communications commissioned Zimny, a 2008 Ouachita graduate with majors in graphic design and mass communications, to design the logo, which was featured throughout Ouachita’s 125^th anniversary celebration.

Awards from Higher Education Marketing’s 27^th annual Educational Advertising Awards include:

Bronze Award for external publication for The Ouachita Circle edited by Henderson and Brooke Zimny in partnership with the OBU Office of Alumni. The Circle has earned five state and national awards from three professional organizations since the publication’s redesign in 2008. Other universities recognized in the category included Johns Hopkins’ Carey Business School and Boston College.

Award of Merit for Ouachita Voices. The commemorative book, which debuted on Founders’ Day 2011, features essays from Ouachita’s four living presidents as well as longtime faculty members, distinguished alumni and trustees and recent OBU graduates. Other universities honored in the category included Clafin University and Huntington University.