Greenville Technical College’s Marketing and Communications department has been honored with a national gold award from the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations (NCMPR), which recognizes outstanding achievement in design and communication at community and technical colleges across the United States and Canada.
The gold award was presented at the NCMPR Paragon Awards Ceremony at the National Conference in San Antonio in March. This national competition is the only one of its kind that honors excellence exclusively among marketing and public relations professionals at two-year colleges. This year’s competition drew 1,939 entries from 262 colleges.
Greenville Tech took the coveted first place award in the special event campaign category for “Community Fest @ Greenville Tech,” a college-hosted community block party on the Barton Campus, held for the first time in 2017. The award recognized the campaign’s branding and awareness, considering the overall engagement and outreach, creativity in logo and materials design, and public relations. The third annual Community Fest @ Greenville Tech is scheduled for October 5, 2019.
Dr. Jermaine Whirl, vice president for learning and workforce development, initiated the first Community Fest at GTC and applauded the college’s marketing and public relations efforts.
“We’re extremely proud of our dedicated marketing and public relations professionals and their collaborative and national achievement. Our first Community Fest at Greenville Technical College drew more than 1,200 community RSVPs, and we welcomed an excited and engaged crowd of 1,000-plus that day,” said Dr. Whirl. “That’s impressive, and this award puts an exclamation mark on that achievement.”
Joshua Friesen, director of marketing and communications at Greenville Tech, said, “I’m impressed with our team’s ability to innovate. In only three months, we were able to execute a nationally-recognized branding and awareness campaign across a variety of marketing platforms all while showcasing the breadth and depth of Greenville Technical College to a key target audience – the youth and families of Greenville County.”
In September, GTC was recognized with six district awards at the District 2 Fall NCMPR Conference, including a first place for social media campaign for “Eclipse 2017,” a silver in print advertising and four bronze awards. Since 2014, the college has been awarded a total of 11 district honors. This is the first national award since 2013.
Greenville Technical College is a member of NCMPR District 2, which includes 11 southeastern states – Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, West Virginia – as well as Bermuda, British Virgin Islands and the Bahamas.
The National Council for Marketing & Public Relations (NCMPR) is the leading professional development association exclusively serving those working in communication at two-year community and technical colleges. www.ncmpr.org/. It is one of the fastest-growing affiliates of the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC).