UWF public relations class earns state Golden Image Award
For the past seven years, the Public Relations Campaigns class of Eileen Perrigo has upheld a reputation for providing a demanding, realistic public relations experience. Each year, 10 students are selected by Perrigo and work together alongside her to help a non-profit organization gain exposure in the community.
The group works under the title “Wellspring Public Relations” and has enjoyed great success over the years, winning a number of awards. This year is no exception.
On Aug. 10, Wellspring PR accepted the Florida Public Relations Association’s Student Golden Image Award for its work with Ballet Pensacola. The award recognizes excellence in public relations and acknowledged the efforts made by the students on behalf of Ballet Pensacola.
Wellspring PR worked for 15 weeks, researching Ballet Pensacola’s target audience and rebranding its image through various advertising and promotional materials. The group presented the findings to the board and suggested several approaches to assist them in better reaching the younger crowd they were striving for.
Macy Miller, Nikki Nash and Josh Newby were at the banquet in Naples to accept the award. “It’s so surreal to be around other professionals from the state and to actually feel like a professional yourself,” said Miller.
The class knew that it would either be accepting the Award of Distinction or the Golden Image Award. “Our fingers were crossed for the Golden Image Award,” said Nash. “We would’ve been happy with anything, but we are so grateful for the first place prize!”
When the awards were finally announced, the trio called Perrigo to tell her the great news.
“They all worked so hard and I’m just glad they got the recognition they deserved. Ballet Pensacola was lucky to have such a great team working for them,” said Perrigo.
These three students also got a chance to network with various PR professionals following the banquet. “There’s so many experienced people there,” said Miller, “and so many opportunities to network with other people. I’m so thankful to UWF for funding our trip and to Mrs. Perrigo for helping us all become the professionals we are now.”
The trip was made possible by the Communication Arts department and Brendan Kelly, chair of Communication Arts at UWF, who paid for the travel expenses, as well as the registration fees.
For more information, visit the Department of Communication Arts Web site.