Strategic Communication students win Best Digital Media Plan award

(L-R) Leslie Prince, Jacob Barrett, Amy Pesoli and Dr. Jacqueline Lambiase with their award

Fort Worth, TX

11/18/2011

The Texas Public Relations Association recently announced that a team of strategic communication students from the Schieffer School at TCU took home the top award Nov. 11 in the annual student competition sponsored by the organization. The competition was held at The University of Texas at Dallas in conjunction with TPRA’s fall Digital Media Summit. Twelve teams, representing eight of the finest college public relations programs in Texas, competed.

The winning team consisted of senior strategic communication majors Leslie Prince of Plano, Texas; Jacob Barrett of Mars, Pa.; and Amy Pesoli of Austin. Jacqueline Lambiase, associate professor of strategic communication in the Schieffer School of Journalism, was the team’s adviser.

The competition focused on the use of social media in public relations. The teams were given a hypothetical scenario typical of what a public relations agency might be asked to do on behalf of a client. Students had 90 minutes to write a plan detailing how they would use new media – including social media – to help the clients address their problem.

As a team, the students wrote a social, digital and traditional media plan for the merger of two banks. They beat multiple from Baylor, UT-Austin and Abilene Christian, as well as teams from Texas Tech, Texas State and UNT.

"These students applied all the strategies and tactics they've learned in our program at the Schieffer School," said Lambiase. "The team's opening statement was eloquent, especially for its focus on ensuringthat employees were included in building a new culture after the merger."