Thank you to those who submitted nominations for the 2023 OMA Awards Program. The nomination process for this year is now closed. Those selected to receive an OMA award will be notified no later than March 22, 2024.

OMA Visual Communication Awards and the Awards of Achievement recipients will be recognized during the 2024 Ohio Museums Association’s Annual Conference Awards Ceremony, Sunday, April 14 in Sandusky.

Please see below for more information on next year's award program.

Ohio Museums Association Annual Awards Programs

 

 

Celebrating Excellence in Ohio’s Museum Community

The Ohio Museums Association Annual Awards Program proudly honors outstanding achievement and visual communication. The 2024 Ohio Museums Association Outstanding Achievement Award winners will be recognized at the 2025 Ohio Museums Association’s Annual Conference. Nominations and entries from the field are considered by a distinguished panel of judges, selected to represent the diversity of the museum community. Eligible institutions include:

Arboretums

Botanical Gardens

Historic Houses

Nature Centers

Aquariums

Ethnic Museums

Historic Parks

Planetariums

Anthropology Museums

General Museums

Historic Sites

Science/Technology Centers

Art Museums

Heritage Centers

Historical Societies

Children/Youth”s Museums

Art Centers and Galleries

History Museums

Natural History Museums

Zoos


The OMA Awards Program is divided into two categories: the 
Visual Communication Awards and the Awards of Achievement.

OMA Awards Program

Visual Communication Awards

Visual Communication Awards Nomination

Nomination for the OMA Visual Communication Awards.
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Visual Communication Awards

Click here to download a Visual Communication Awards Entry Form.

The Visual Communication Competition recognizes creative excellence in Ohio museums by its field professionals and organizations producing material for museums. Articles for submission can include, but are not limited to: Annual Reports, Audio-Visual/Electronic Media, Books, Brochures, Catalogs, Campaigns, Education Materials, Fundraising Materials, Institutional Identity, Invitations/Announcements, Newsletters/Magazines, Posters and Press Packs.

The 2024 entries must be published or distributed between January 1 and December 31, 2024.

Visual Communication Award winners will be recognized at the annual awards ceremony held in conjunction with the Ohio Museums Association's 2025 Annual Conference.

Deadline for submitting 2024 Visual Communication Award Entries: January 20, 2025 (all entries must be postmarked by this date).

The Visual Communication Competition is open to all organizations producing materials for Ohio museums. Entries will be judged on the overall design of the piece, the appropriateness of design to message, effectiveness of design to audience, and the function of the piece.

Entries in the 2024 Visual Communication Awards will be judged against all entries in their respective budget category. Gold and Silver awards will be made in each budget category where merited, with one entry receiving the overall, Best of Show Award.

Budget categories are based on each institution’s operating budget for the year, not on the budget used to create the individual pieces.

Budget Categories are as follows:

  • Level 1: budgets less than $50,000
  • Level 2: $50,000-$249,999
  • Level 3: $250,000-499,999
  • Level 4: $500,000-$999,999
  • Level 5: $1 million-$5 million
  • Level 6: budgets over $5 million

There is an entry fee of $25.00 per entry for members, $35.00 per entry for non-members. Fees can be paid by check, payable to The Ohio Museums Association, or with credit card using the options above.

There is no maximum number of entries each institution can submit. Two copies of each physical entry must be postmarked by the deadline. Materials become the property of OMA.

Digital nominations can also be accepted. If you are submitting your nomination digitally, please email submission along with nomination form to [email protected].

For information on how to become an OMA Member, click here.

For questions about the Awards, contact Johnna McEntee at the OMA office: 614.297.2375, [email protected].

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2022 Award Winners

The Ohio Museums Association would like to congratulate the 2022 winners of our Visual Communication and Award of Achievement program!

OMA Award Program winners were recognized at the annual awards ceremony held March 26, 2023 in conjunction with the Ohio Museums Association’s Annual Conference in Newark. See below for a complete list of the 2022 honorees. Click here for our full 2022 OMA Award Winner announcement.

Click here for the Award Winner photo gallery.

2022 Award Winners

2022 Award of Achievement Recipients:

Best Exhibition (Under $500,000)

Artists Archives of the Western Reserve—“W/O Limits: Art, Chronic Illness, & Disability”

Best Exhibition (Over $500,000)

Massillon Museum“Missing History of Massillon: Unheard African American Stories”

Best Exhibition Catalog (Under $500,000)

Allen County Museum—“Snapshot of Democracy: The Eight Ohio Presidents Catalog”

Best Exhibition Catalog (Over $500,000)

Taft Museum of Art—“ Craft and Camera: The Art of Nancy Ford Cones”

Best Community Partnership (Under $500,000)

Artists Archives of the Western Reserve“W/O Limits: Art, Chronic Illness, & Disability”

Best Community Partnership (Over $500,000)

FRONT Exhibition Co.“FRONT Accessibility Partnership Initiative”

Best Education and Outreach (Under $500,000)

Historic Zoar Village“Zoar & the Presidents”

Emerging Museum Professional of the Year

Allison Smith HernandezFRONT Exhibition Co.

Betty Bryan Volunteer of the Year

Gregory EdmondsNational Veterans Memorial and Museum

Museum Advocate

Fred BidwellFront Exhibition Co.

Professional of the Year

Andy AicheleCOSI

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