Joy brings home KPA award

March 11, 2021

ASHLAND, Ky. – Each year, the Kentucky Press Association holds an award ceremony celebrating excellence in both newspapers and advertising.

This year, Jonathan Joy, Associate Professor of English at Ashland Community and Technical College, won Best Columnist for his weekly column “Read Me a Bedtime Story,” which appears in the Greater Ashland Beacon. 

“I am thrilled about the award.  I have so much fun writing those stories, creating them with my family, and sharing them.  I'm glad other people are enjoying them too,” he said.

Joy has written the column for five years. 

“It’s hard to believe,” he said. “We've composed 118 stories total for the Beacon.”

He says there are more that appear in his podcast: Professor Theo's Mystery Lab. 

Dr. Larry Ferguson, ACTC President/CEO says Joy’s talents have not gone unnoticed by the ACTC community.     

“ACTC is so fortunate to have Jonathan Joy as part of our world-class faculty. He is an extremely talented writer who is a positive influence on our community,” he said.

Philip Stewart, Publisher of the Greater Ashland Beacon says the staff at the newspaper could not be prouder of Joy’s achievements. 

“Of course, we are not surprised at his KPA win; Joy has quite a gift with his Read Me a Bedtime Story tales, weaving imagination and magic into every line. We always look forward to bringing his column to our readers and are grateful to have him on our team,” he said.

Kimberly Smith, Chief Layout Artist, says “Joy's column is something that my own 9-year-old gets excited about and looks forward to, and to see the curiosity on his face as I read it to him is nothing short of spectacular. I hope that the readers are just as excited to see his column as we are in our own home.” 

You can hear the Read Me A Bedtime Story column tales and more at ProfessorTheo.com