College Receives Gold from National Council for Marketing, Public Relations
The College of Southern Marylands Campaign for the Next 50 Years: Envision the Potential-Make a Difference fundraising campaign received the gold paragon award and national recognition from the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations March 17 in Kansas City. Coinciding with CSMs 50th anniversary celebration in 2008, the 20-month fundraising campaign brought in more than $7.7 million in cash, pledges and grants donated by more than 700 supporters.
Our success as a college is due in part to the dedication, creativity and talent of our team and to the support we receive from the community. This award shows what can happen when the two come together, said Michelle Goodwin, CSMs vice president of advancement. The fundraising campaign effectively communicated key college initiatives in a way that touched the business community and individuals. Tying the campaign to the colleges 50th anniversary showed people the great distance weve come and encouraged them to join in being a part of exciting things to come, Goodwin added.
Led by CSM Marketing Director Theresa Johnson, the marketing and community relations departments, in conjunction with local design firm Rottman Creative group, developed a comprehensive marketing campaign including multi-media presentation, special edition Strong Foundations magazine, outdoor banners, billboard, e-newsletters, web site material, advertisements, decals, campaign brochure with inserts and items for special events. CSM staff instrumental in the creation of the fundraising campaign materials included Director of Community Relations Karen Smith Hupp, Amy Brady, Kim Yellman, Carol Wade, Brenda Jones, Janice Love, Valerie Nyce and Mark Volland.
The award is the fourth national marketing award for CSM in recent years, joining 16 district awards for marketing and community relations work.
National Council for Marketing and Public Relations is the only organization to represent community and technical college marketing and public relations professionals, with nearly 600 colleges and more than 1,500 participating members.
The Paragon Awards recognize outstanding achievement in communications at community, junior and technical colleges.