Rob Collins is executive director of the Oklahoma Media Center. Collins worked most recently as executive editor of the Enid (Okla.) News & Eagle and editor of The Norman (Okla.) Transcript. Also serving as a regional editor for CNHI, he coordinated statewide content for all Oklahoma publications. A fifth-generation Oklahoma resident, Collins also managed CNHI Oklahoma’s Capitol coverage.
Collins received his bachelor’s degree in 1993 at the University of Oklahoma, where he taught media writing from 1998 to 2012 and served on its Publications Board as the Oklahoma Press Association representative.
In 1996, he began his daily newspaper career at The Norman Transcript before serving as managing editor at The Edmond Sun and as editor-in-chief of the weekly Oklahoma Gazette from 2004 through 2011. In Norman, his investigative journalism led to the location and dedication of the unmarked grave of Woody Guthrie’s mother. At the Gazette, his award-winning coverage spearheaded an effort to install artist Charles Banks Wilson’s portrait of Woody Guthrie at the state Capitol.
In 2012, Collins returned to his hometown of Enid where he lives with his wife, Kim, (met this fellow OU journalism grad working at the student-run OU Daily). They have two children. He currently serves as president of the Freedom of Information Oklahoma Board of Directors.
In 2013, FOI-Oklahoma recognized the News & Eagle for its successful lawsuit supporting the public’s First Amendment right of access to sealed court records.
In 2014, the News & Eagle won the Community Journalism Public Service Initiative award from the Associated Press Media Editors after receiving a grant to complete the project.
In 2015, the News & Eagle’s “Under Pressure” series was named co-winner of the Public Service award in the national Best of CNHI contest’s biggest division.
In 2016, the News & Eagle’s “Who’s at Fault?” earthquake series won first in Public Service Reporting and a Writing Sweepstakes award at the Associated Press/Oklahoma News Executives contest.
In 2020, Collins added full-time editing duties in Norman and additionally served as executive editor of Etown magazine in Enid.
The program coordinator of the Oklahoma Media Center, Zachary McGrew, joins the organization after working for over a decade in various nonprofits around the state. Most recently, he served as the media manager for the University of Science & Arts of Oklahoma (USAO) for over six years, and his news releases were frequently picked up by regional and statewide media outlets. He has also published a number of book reviews in World Literature Today, the University of Oklahoma’s magazine of international literature and culture. Prior to that, he worked as the executive director of the Lawton Philharmonic Orchestra and the development director at KCCU-FM, Cameron University’s NPR-affiliate, networking with business and community leaders across southwest Oklahoma.
Born and raised in Lawton, Oklahoma, McGrew earned a bachelor’s degree in English language and literature from USAO in 2009 before embarking on his career in the nonprofit sector. He completed a master’s in business administration at Oklahoma City University in 2022. He currently lives in Oklahoma City with his wife and high school sweetheart, Sarah, and their two cats, Joni and Jaco. In his free time he enjoys cooking, hiking, backpacking, yoga, tennis, reading all sorts of books and studying foreign languages. He is also a passionate musician, playing guitar, bass, banjo, lap steel, sitar, oud, synthesizer and drums.