At the end of another successful school year, the Centennial College Public Relations program has drawn multiple industry awards from the Canadian Public Relations Society (CPRS) and the International Association of Business Communicators (IABC).
At the 2019 Achieving Communications Excellence (ACE) Awards Gala on May 23, CPRS Toronto recognized two groups of post-graduate students and program coordinator Donna Lindell for excellence in their field. The students took home both CPRS awards for Student Public Relations Communications Plan of the Year, and Lindell was honoured with the award for Educator of the Year.
Congratulations to our two @CentennialEDU #PR student teams for their #CPRSACE Awards - @Centennial_CCPR scores the only student awards of the night pic.twitter.com/g734T3n2zW
— Barry Waite (@Toronto_PR_Guy) May 23, 2019
One group of students developed a communications plan for the “Canada’s Top 40 Under 40” awards program. The plan, “Canada’s Top 40 Under 40 Alumni,” involved creating an event for program alumni to teach youth about the future of work. The other group of students created “The City Scouts City Smart Safety Program,” a plan for an urban adventure camp that teaches kids how to safely navigate public transit. The students had begun work on the plans in their first-semester Communications Management course. Then, during their second-semester Storyworks course, they put their plans into action.
Developing plans for real clients gives students the opportunity to see their ideas implemented outside the classroom. Additionally, Centennial’s curriculum allows students to work on projects from planning to execution, just as they will when they reach the workplace: “We make it as relevant as possible,” says Lindell. This professional experience bolsters students’ employability, and the PR students’ many honours are a testament to their industry preparedness.
Earlier in May, grads Kadeisha Powell and Emily Mininger (of the Bachelor of PR Management and post-grad PR programs, respectively) received CPRS Toronto Doris Whiteside awards for student excellence. And the PR accolades did not end with the CPRS. Shane Madill – one of the students who created the “40 Under 40” plan – won the IABC Toronto award for Student of the Year. Madill was recognized during the IABC OVATION Awards Gala on May 29.
Congratulations to @shanemadill for @IABCToronto Student of the Year! And yes, that is @theconrath in a tie. #dressedup #proud pic.twitter.com/iOxpEtE2sW
— Centennial PR (@Centennial_CCPR) May 30, 2019
By Gabriel Holt