Josh Truett won 1st place in the Arts at the 2018 Edward F. Hayes Graduate Research Forum, sponsored by the Council of Graduate Students. His presentation, "Muxes, Velas, and the Performance of Zapotec Style: Indigenous Festival Economics and Queer Labor", is based on his dissertation research. Truett presented alongside other graduate students in the arts from programs including art, dance, design, and music. First place includes a $600 award.

The Hayes Graduate Research Forum is an interdisciplinary conference where graduate students at Ohio State present their research, competing in ten broad categories. The top three presenters in each area receive prizes and are recognized at a luncheon after the presentations.