Gadsden State PR department earns awards
“We are very proud to be recognized by a distinct group of our peers for the work we have done to spread the message about Gadsden State”
The Public Relations and Marketing Department at Gadsden State Community College earned several awards for excellence in the industry.
In January, the department was honored with a Gold Award at the seventh annual Education Digital Marketing Awards, which is sponsored by the Higher Education Marketing Report. The award was given for the redesign of the gadsdenstate.edu website.
Entries were received from colleges, universities and secondary schools across the country and judged by a national panel of higher education marketers, advertising creative directors, marketing and advertising professionals and the editorial board of the Higher Education Marketing Report. Gold, Silver, Bronze and Merit Awards were given.
“We are very excited to be the only community college in Alabama to receive an Education Digital Marketing Award,” said Jackie Brehm Edmondson, director of Public Relations and Marketing. “We are one of only two community colleges in the country to receive a Gold Award. I’m very proud of our team for producing such a wonderful product.”
Only two other institutions in Alabama scored a Gold for their website – Auburn University School of Engineering and Samford University, she said.
“Not only has Gadsden State earned a Gold Award, but there are other prestigious universities receiving a lesser award for their websites,” she said. “Baylor University and UC-Berkeley received Silver Awards, and Dartmouth, Johns Hopkins University and Rutgers University earned Bronze Awards. We are thrilled to have received a top honor among so many wonderful higher-learning institutions.”
In October, the PR & Marketing Department earned four awards for exemplary work from the National Council of Marketing and Public Relations.
“We are very proud to be recognized by a distinct group of our peers for the work we have done to spread the message about Gadsden State,” Edmondson said. “We are humbled and honored.”
The NCMPR Medallion Awards were presented virtually instead of at the annual regional conference due to COVID-19 concerns. Over 300 entries were considered by a combination of NCMPR peers from two-year colleges and industry experts in marketing, public relations and communications. Each category recognized gold, silver and bronze medallion winners.
A gold medallion was earned for the redesign of the Gadsden State website.
“The judges noted that the design of the website is modern and clean,” Virginia Moreland, director of NCMPR District 2, said during the virtual awards program. “It seemed easy to navigate to find information students are looking for. Nice job!”
A second gold medallion was earned for the 2019 Alumni Yearbook in the Electronic Newsletter Category. The yearbook is created by the PR & Marketing Department for members of the Gadsden State Alumni Association. It focuses on the association’s contributions as well as the accomplishments of its members, it and can be viewed at here.
“The Alumni Yearbook is wonderfully designed and easy to navigate,” Moreland said. “The photos are really colorful and engaging. Wonderful job!”
A silver medallion was received for the 2019 President’s Report in the E-Catalog, Schedule, Viewbook and Annual Report Category. The report can be viewed at here. It is the third straight year the electronic report has been recognized in the Top 3 during the NCMPR Medallion Awards.
Another silver medallion was earned in the Social Media and Online Marketing Campaign Category. Judges reviewed Gadsden State’s summer registration campaign, which focused on pre-roll advertisements, commercials on over-the-top screens, geofencing efforts, email blasts, digital advertisements, social media campaign and website.
The NCMPR virtual awards program recognized top PR and marketing projects in District 2, which includes two-year institutions in Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia, Bermuda, British Virgin Islands and The Bahamas. Gadsden State was one of only three Alabama community colleges to receive an award. Southern Union Community College received a bronze and two gold medallions, and Wallace State Community College earned two silver and four bronze medallions.
Working with Edmondson in the Gadsden State PR & Marketing Department are Kathy Brown, administrative assistant; Brandy Hyatt, public relations specialist; Jessica Brown, resource development officer, and Laura Catoe, website and social media specialist.