An Ohio native, he earned a bachelor's degree in journalism from Ohio State University, where he was a founding member of the campus chapter of the National Association of Black Journalists and served as editor of The Lantern, OSU's student newspaper. In 2012 he was named Emerging Journalist of the Year by the National Association of Black Journalists. In 2014, the Advocate named him one of its 40 Under 40. Twitter: @GerrickKennedy