Fullerton College Scores 4 NCMPR Awards
Fullerton College’s Office of Campus Communications won four top awards by the National Council for Marketing & Public Relations District 6. Winners of this regional competition that spans California, Arizona, Hawaii, Nevada, Utah, Guam and Micronesia, were announced on October 30 during a virtual ceremony.
The Fullerton College Students Ride Free marketing campaign won a first-place gold Medallion Award in the outdoor media category. Fullerton College also received a silver award for its 2019 Holiday E-card and bronze awards for the 2020 Commencement website and Instagram account.
“The Office of Campus Communications is a small but mighty team. For a college of our size serving 21,000 students, we never run dry of ways to honor and reflect back the beauty, inclusivity and vibrancy of our large college community,” said Lisa McPheron, director of campus communications. “We love what we do, but it’s also nice to have our work judged and recognized by our peers from other community colleges.”
Fullerton College Students Ride Free | Gold Medallion for Outdoor Media
With Jazmin Zuniga, web content specialist, as the lead designer, Fullerton College in partnership with the Orange County Transportation Authority launched an advertising campaign to promote a new free bus pass program for students. The outdoor media campaign included a full-wrapped bus, a king bus ad, bus shelter posters, and large, small posters for posting at the college and brochures.
The objective of this campaign was to promote this new free service to students and encourage ridership of OCTA buses. In the previous academic year, about 2 percent of students rode the bus. The program has been successful and gained momentum throughout the fall of 2019. Five weeks into the new program, 10 percent of Fullerton College students rode the bus.
Fullerton College Holiday E-card | Silver Medallion for E-card
Each winter, the Office of Campus Communications works with President Greg Schulz to design a holiday greeting that celebrates how students, staff and faculty work hard throughout the year to build a supportive college environment for students. With contributions from Zuniga, McPheron, Marketing and Outreach Assistant Melissa Serrato and Professional Expert Peter Surowski, the 2019 Holiday Card featured a short video with original illustrations, animation and photos.
Fullerton College 2020 Commencement Website | Bronze Medallion for Microsite
When COVID-19 required Fullerton College to close its campus and cancel all in-person events, the Class of 2020 elected to postpone the 2020 Commencement Ceremony, rather than have a virtual ceremony. That left the college with a big question. How will the Class of 2020 be honored in May?
The Office of Student Life and Leadership created the widely popular Buzzy Bundle care packages and the Office of Campus Communications built the website.
“We couldn’t let the moment pass without honoring the Class of 2020 the best way we could with the skills we have,” McPheron said. “We know digital communications can’t replace our grand ceremony on Sherbeck Field, but in a pandemic, you work with what you have, and I think we created something special for our grads.”
The Commencement website, designed by Zuniga with content support from Serrato, and Administrative Assistant Carolyn Whelchel, shares uplifting messages from members of the college community; photos submitted by dozens of graduates; a complete list of graduates; listings of special honors, and three original videos.
One video is an extraordinary performance conducted and produced by Professor Nicola Dedmon of the Fullerton College Concert Choir and Chamber Singers. A second video, produced by McPheron with Substance Media features congratulation messages to the Class of 2020, and a 45-minute video, co-produced by McPheron and Director of Student Life and Leadership Naomi Abesamis with Substance Media, is a virtual celebration of the 2020 Students of Distinction.
Fullerton College Instagram | Bronze Medallion for Social Media
Fullerton College proudly entertains an active social media following and positive engagement on Instagram. These curated posts help communicate general information, showcase programs and resources, events, student life, and a “big picture” of Fullerton College.
“With more than 7,300 followers, Instagram is one of the more popular and successful social media platforms used by the college to communicate important information and engage followers,” Serrato said.
From athletic and fine arts events, innovative classroom instruction, and most recently, crisis and COVID-19 communication, Fullerton College keeps students and the community in the know with eye-catching photos, high-quality video, and content created exclusively for Instagram feed and stories. A single post on Instagram typically generates more than 300 reactions. However, some posts have exceeded 1,000 reactions and 6,500 impressions without the use of any paid promotional tools, Serrato added.
“Content created for Instagram is thoughtfully produced using raw photos, real Fullerton College students, branded colors and guidelines, and is intended to help tell the story of who we are,” she said.
