Jacksonville, AL – Per Buffy Lockette, the director of Strategic Communications for JSU, Buffy Lockette, Graduate student Conner Gayda has become the second student in JSU history to be awarded an award of nationally prestigious ADDY Award from the American Advertising Federation.Gayda is currently pursuing masters in Fine Arts at JSU in the Department of Art and Design is entered into the nation’s ADDYs after being awarded Best in Show in the student contest of the Birmingham ADDYs in February which also saw him win the Judges Special Award traditionally given to professionals designers.During the gala for national awards held in St. Louis in June, Gayda was awarded a Silver ADDY in the Typeface Design category for a font he developed that pays tribute to the rich history that black sports have played in Birmingham and is dubbed the Satchel font.”I’m extremely thankful for the professor Chad Anderson, who was very helpful and supportive of the project” Gayda said. “He is an excellent instructor as well as a guide.” The ADDYs are the industry’s biggest and most representative contest, recognizing the creative spirit of excellence that is advertising. One of the first JSU student to be awarded an award at the national level ADDY has been Stefanie Cobb who won the silver ADDY at the age of 20 in recognition of her MFA thesis, “Ex Libris: Reimagining the Literary Experience through artifactual Storytelling along with Ray Bradbury’s Fahrenheit 451 451′. ‘.”Gayda is an multi-disciplinary designer who concentrates on typography, visual identity design and motion. She also works on UI/UX. Originating of Tyrone, Ga., He received the BFA Graphic Design at Samford University in 2021 before entering master’s program at JSU. He is an assistant professor in the graduate program and is currently working as an intern with Tatum Design in Birmingham, Ala. He will complete his degree in 2024.