Many of Ohio's top journalists made the trip to Great American Ballpark in Cincinnati on Sunday, Sept. 30, where about 75 people gathered for the 2012 Ohio SPJ Awards. SPJ Cleveland chapter Secretary-Treasurer Tom Moore represented the chapter at the annual event, including being the co-master of ceremonies along with Tom McKee, board member of the Cincinnati chapter.

Those who attended were treated to a buffet lunch, the awards ceremony, as well as a tour of the ballpark, home to the National League Central Division Champion Cincinnati Reds. One of the tour groups was joined by Reds mascots Mr. Redlegs and Rosie Red (pictured with Moore in front of the entrance to the Reds' clubhouse).

There were numerous winners from the Cleveland area.  The two top daily papers are both local, as The Plain Dealer won best large daily, and Elyria's Chronicle-Telegram won the statewide award for best small daily. For a complete list of winners, go to ohiospjawards.org . If you want to enter your work from 2012 in next year's awards, keep an eye on the web site for the Call for Entries early in 2013.

The awards are administered jointly by the Cleveland, Columbus and Cincinnati SPJ chapters. The location of each year's awards event is rotated between the three cities.  Next year, the event will be held in the Columbus area.

Zanny Minton-Beddoes, the economic editor of The Economist, assures us that the U.S. economy is re-inventing itself. Though the recession is not over yet, things are looking up!  

She will be discussing the subject as part of the Town Hall Speaker Series on Oct. 29 at 6 p.m. at the Ohio Theatre, Playhouse Square. Tickets cost $45.

Prior to signing on with The Economist, Minton-Beddoes was an economist at the International Monetary Fund. She has written surveys of the World Economy, Latin American, global and Central Asian finance. As well as her work as editor, she is a regular commentator on NPR's Marketplace, a trustee of the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace and a member of the Research Advisory Board of the Committee for Economic Development. 

For more information and to purchase tickets, click here. 

What happens to communicators' carefully crafted plans when a crisis hits? Schools in crisis can teach us how we can prepare for the time when, suddenly, all our plans have to actually be used. 

The PRSA and the Press Club of Cleveland present a special morning panel discussion Oct. 18  from 8 a.m. to 9:45 a.m. at LockKeepers, 8001 Rockside Road, Valley View, Ohio. 

Join Moderator Trevor Loe of PR Newswire and panelists

• Dick Russ, WKYC TV-3
• Ken Trump, President of National School Safety &   Security Services 
• Lindsey L. Geiss, Dix & Eaton

as they share different viewpoints on how to communicate during times of great difficulty and stress. 

The cost is $25 for PRSA and Press Club members, $35 for non-members.

For more information and to register click here

If you're a student, don't forget about the Public Relations Society of America's Greater Cleveland Student Day 2012 on Oct. 26 at the Hilton Garden Inn Downtown Cleveland.  

Learn about a career in public relations, take advantage of interactive panel discussions led by local PR leaders and participate in the following sessions:

• Opportunities in Cleveland
• Choosing Your Career Path
• Interviewing, Networking And More
• Connecting The Dots: Integrated Campaigns
• Resumé Review

This year there's a new interactive luncheon where you'll have the chance to network with local pros and talk about their specialties.  

The program costs $40, with breakfast and lunch provided. It lasts from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. with registration starting at 7:15 a.m.  For more information and to sign up online click here

If you're planning a trip to Chicago around Nov. 9 you might want to stop by the Navy Pier for the daylong SPJ JournCamp.  

For $35 for SPJ members ($55 for non members) including breakfast and lunch you can take advantage of 4 different trainers offering sessions in: 

• Entrepreneurial Journalism
• FOI, Public Records and Data Journalism
• Visual Storytelling
• Social Media as a Reporting and Engagement Tool
• Mobile Newsgathering
• Copyright and Fair Use (particularly for a digital age)
• Web Programming Basics

For more information and to register before the Nov. 2 deadline, Click Here.   

In recognition of the National Day on Writing, the North East Ohio Society for Technical Communication will be holding its Writing Canvas Workshop, Oct. 20 at John Carroll University. Our own Writer's Week editor, Carrie Buchanan, will be leading one of the afternoon breakout sessions.  

The morning will be dedicated to the challenge of writing mobile apps. Led by Neil Perlin, an internationally recognized consultant, trainer, strategist and developer for all types of online content, the workshop "Mobile Apps Without Coding" will lead attendees through their own whole mobile app development... without using one bit of code. 

The afternoon will offer a choice of attending 2 of 4 possible presentations: 

1. Take Your HAT Mobile - presented by Neil Perlin 
2. Writing Across the Genres- presented by Lynn Nickels - journalist, entertainment writer, technical instructions writer, advertising writer, technical study-guide author, essay tutor, magazine editor-in-chief, and most recently, as an information developer of technical documentation at Rockwell Automation since 2008:
3. Technical Writing and New Trends -  presented by Denise Kadilak - Information Architect with Blackbaud, Inc., headquartered in Charleston, SC:
4. Writing about Health and Environmental Issues - presented by Carrie Buchanan - tenure-track assistant professor in the Tim Russert Department of Communication and Theatre Arts at John Carroll, where she teaches journalism; political communication; media literacy; editing and design; and health and environmental writing. 

There are a number of pricing options available. For more information and to register click here.

Starting Oct. 22 the Poynter Institute is offering a four-week online group seminar, "Building Effective News and Information Websites."  A faculty member will guide attendees through a practical process for building websites including:

• Web Fundamentals
• Web Design Principles and Technologies
• Web Development Principles and Technologies
• Content Management Systems and Beyond

The seminar costs $429 and offers individual feedback and discussion with others in virtual space. 

The application deadline is Oct. 12.  For more information and to apply click here 

Thanks to Kelly Blazek for her dedication and commitment in seeking out many of the jobs posted below. To receive her full newsletter (We only excerpt media-related jobs.) see the separate box headlined Cleveland Job Bank below at right.  

PUBLIC RELATIONS, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR COLLEGE OF THE ARTS AND COMMUNICATION To develop and teach both undergraduate and graduate courses in our rapidly growing public relations/corporate and strategic communication programs. A Master's degree in a relevant field (Public Relations, Communication, Marketing, Public Affairs, Journalism, Management) and substantial record of professional experience is required. Senior-level public relations agency or corporate communication professional experience and a terminal degree (M.F.A. or doctorate) are preferred.Department of Communication Elizabeth Birge, Chairperson birgee@wpunj.edu