The American Advertising Federation-Dayton hosted its annual Hermes Awards on March 3, 2023, at The Brightside in Dayton, Ohio. The Modern’s students, alums, and faculty earned awards across the student and professional bronze, silver, and gold ADDY categories. Many Modern alums were honored in each category for exceptional video, animation, photography, and more.

Fourth-year student Hannah Peterson won the Dan Johnson Award for Creative Achievement and student Gold ADDY for her Amato’s Branding. AAF-Dayton recognized Instructor Leah Henderson for her involvement in the work. Hannah’s fiancé and grandmother joined her for the celebration and awards ceremony.

Additional Student ADDY Winners included:
• Student Lola Flores-Holland, and Instructor Mark Werle, Lola Photography, Silver ADDY
• The Modern Design Club and Instructors Matthew Flick, Paul Garcher, and Justin Morter, Halloween Coloring Cards & Pages, Bronze ADDY
• Student Parker Hess and Instructor Clancy Boyer Turn the Tides, Bronze ADDY

Modern alum and Creative Director for The Ohlmann Group, Jon Brooks won the AAF-Dayton Silver Medal, and the federation paid tribute to his nearly 40-year career in the design industry. Family, friends, colleagues, and design industry leaders highlighted John’s creativity, dedication, and exceptional work.

AAF-Dayton awarded countless alums professional ADDYs, including Justin Morter and Emily Shankland, winning a Silver ADDY for The Modern’s recruitment campaign poster.

An esteemed group of judges selected the award-winning work and included the following:
• Lisa Verkamp, Director of Marketing and Annual Campaigns for the YMCA of Southwestern Indiana, Evansville, IN
• Steve Lance, Creative Director and Chief Operating Officer, PS Insights, New York, NY
• Liz Mattingly, VP, Creative Director, Crowley Webb, Buffalo, NY

“One of my favorite nights of the year–the annual Hermes Awards celebrates the exceptional work produced in the Dayton region,” shared Jessica Barry, President of The Modern. “As AAF-Dayton distributed countless awards to students, alums, faculty and staff, The Modern’s nearly 40-year impact on the creative economy in Dayton region was evident.”

Those who won either gold or silver awards will advance to the district level of the ADDYs, competing with other students and designers from Ohio, Kentucky, and West Virginia. This year, the competition concludes with a national awards ceremony held in St. Louis, Missouri.