Bachelor of Public Relations graduate Annette Hynes was named top winner in the public relations category at the Emerge Media Awards on April 4.
Hosted by the University of Guelph-Humber, the awards program is now in its fifth year and was established to recognize outstanding writing, editing, videography, audio, graphic design, communications and public relations work by post-secondary media studies students across Canada.
Students and graduates from universities and colleges are invited to submit work they completed as students during the previous school year. This year, four of the five finalists in the public relations category were students and graduates from Conestoga's Bachelor of Public Relations program or the Public Relations diploma program.
Winners were recognized at the annual Emerge Media Awards gala held at St. James Cathedral Centre in Toronto.
Hynes won first place for her capstone project, a strategic communications plan for Big Brothers and Big Sisters Waterloo Region. Marissa Watkin, also a graduate of the BPR program, finished in second place for her capstone, a strategic communications plan for Planned Lifetime Networks.
Other finalists included:
- BPR students Sarah Fullerton and Danielle Demeyere who were nominated for the public relations campaign proposal they prepared for Langdon Hall
- Public Relations diploma graduates Vanessa Cardoso, Michael Milne, Jodi Huenemoeder and Louis Phan who were nominated for their capstone project titled “Here We Grow Again”
Patricia Uribe, professor and program coordinator for the BPR program, said the entire faculty team is extremely proud of the students’ success. Uribe and Paul Godkin, coordinator of the PR diploma program, attended the awards ceremony to celebrate the exemplary work completed by Conestoga students.
Conestoga's Bachelor of Public Relations degree program was the first to be approved in Ontario and the fourth of its kind in Canada. Graduates are prepared with critical thinking skills and the practical experience required to manage reputations, responses and relationships on behalf of their organization.
Students in the Public Relations diploma program learn strategic and creative communication strategies to solve organizational problems or make the most of business opportunities with key publics. A field placement opportunity is provided in the last semester to gain career experience before graduating.