UA Advertising and Public Relations Students Win National Award

TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — A team of 15 University of Alabama students within the College of Communication and Information Sciences’ advertising and public relations department competed against professional public relations campaigns in the 2011 Silver Anvil Awards, bringing home an Award of Excellence as one of the top three campaigns nationally for their subcategory.

“To win an award as one of the top campaigns in the nation, especially when compared to professional work, is a true testament to the caliber of our advertising and public relations program at UA and the faculty and students who compose it,” said Teri Henley, instructor in advertising and public relations and faculty adviser for the student teams.

The Silver Anvil Awards, presented by the Public Relations Society of America, are considered the premier award for public relations in the United States.

Dr. Joseph Phelps, professor and chair of advertising and public relations, commended Henley and the students involved for their achievement.

“For students to compete head-to-head against other students and win a national award is a tremendous accomplishment,” Phelps said. “These students were not competing against other students, they were competing against public relations professionals, and they made it to the finals of a national award competition. This achievement is a testament to the students’ ability, and it reflects well on our program and the education they are receiving at The University of Alabama.”

The LessThanUThink campaign was conceptualized by the 2009 Ad Team and implemented in Fall 2010 by the student-led Capstone Agency using grant funds from The Century Council. The campaign, which focused on reducing the national problem of binge drinking on college campuses, utilized the $75,000 grant to test the viability of the campaign on the UA campus.

“From the first moment I saw the campaign in 2009, I knew it had potential to be something outstanding,” Henley said. “At the end of the 2010 project, the positive results on student attitudes and awareness about the dangers of binge drinking were encouraging. We plan to make the campaign ideas and materials available to universities nationwide.”

In addition to the Award of Excellence, LessThanUThink, in its implementation phase, also has been recognized by the University of Alabama Center for Community Based Partnership as a 2010-11 Outstanding Student-Initiated Engagement Effort; won a Gold Addy for the Seventh District from the American Advertising Federation; won four Gold Addy Awards, two Silver Addy Awards and Best Collective Body of Work from the Tuscaloosa chapter of the American Advertising Federation for 2010; and won eight Medallion Awards and four Awards of Excellence at the 2010 Public Relations Council of Alabama Student Medallion Awards.

“All of the students who worked on this campaign put extraordinary effort into the project,” Henley said. “They approached it like a full-time job, and the work that resulted was evidence of their dedication.”

The following University of Alabama students were involved with the campaign:

2010 (Capstone Agency)
Greer Borland, Hoover
Joseph Bradley, Brewton
John Paul Bruno, Vestavia Hills
Kaitlyn Conway, Dallas, Texas
Allison Cook, Valley
Amanda Coppock, Hoover
Megan Cotton, Alexandria, Va.
Roxanne Ducas, Dallas, Texas
Angelina Gomez, Alexandria
Kassandra Hannay, Connecticut
Mary Marshall, Memphis, Tenn.
Megan Miller, Selma
Christine Kapurch, Arlington, Va.
Alexis Roberts, Savannah, Ga.
Griff Waller, Montgomery

2009 (Ad Team)
Jason Brandt, Dallas, Texas
David Calhoun, Jackson, Miss.
Jessica Charlton, Prattville
Allison Duke, Nashville, Tenn.
Austin During, Chelsea
Kevin Kessler, Mountain Brook
Sarah King, Richmond, Va.
Amanda Kirkland, Leeds
Monica McCall, Tuscaloosa
Adam McCormick, Winston-Salem, N.C.
Emily Roberson, Madison
Carly Jane Rullman, Charlottesville, Va.
Tanya Twerdowsky, Northport
Morgan Welch, Luverne
Matt Williams, Tuscaloosa