Columbus Dispatch executive will deliver commencement address

COLUMBUS – Michael F. Curtin, vice chair and COO of The Dispatch Printing Co. and associate publisher of The Columbus Dispatch, will be the speaker for summer quarter commencement on Sunday, Aug. 26 at The Ohio State University. Graduates and guests can find complete information on the ceremony at http://www.osu.edu/commence/
Approximately 2,000 students will receive degrees at the ceremony, which begins at 1 p.m. at the Jerome Schottenstein Center.

Curtin has been with the paper for 34 years. A 1973 graduate of The Ohio State University, he began his career at The Dispatch as a general assignment reporter. For 18 years, he specialized in the coverage of state and local government and politics. His beats included Columbus City Hall, Franklin County government, the Ohio General Assembly, and local and state political campaigns.

In 1985, Curtin became the paper's chief political writer and director of The Dispatch Poll. In 1994, he became the paper's executive managing editor. He was promoted to editor in 1995 and associate publisher in 1998.

Curtin was named president in 1999, COO in 2002 and vice chairman in 2005. Dispatch Printing is the umbrella company for the newspaper, WBNS10-TV, 97.1 FM and 1460 AM radio stations, ThisWeek newspapers, On-Target Marketing/TheBag and WTHR-TV in Indianapolis.

He is author of "The Ohio Politics Almanac," 1st and 2nd editions (1996 and 2006, Kent State University Press).

Curtin serves on the boards of the Greater Columbus Chamber of Commerce, Mt. Carmel Health System, YMCA of Central Ohio, the Columbus Metropolitan Library Foundation and the Catholic Foundation of the Columbus Diocese.

In addition, during the commencement cermemony, Ohio State will award honorary degrees to David J. Gross, the Frederick W. Gluck Professor of Theoretical Physics and director of the Kavli Institute for Theoretical Physics at the University of California-Santa Barbara; and Orlando L. Taylor, vice provost for research, dean of the Graduate School, and professor of communications at Howard University.

The university will also award the Distinguished Service Award to Ted A. Beattie, president and CEO of the John G. Shedd Aquarium in Chicago; and Judith E. Tuckerman, a leader in the Columbus philanthropic community.