Alumni Newsletter

PRSSA NETWORKS IN THE BIG APPLE

What do get when you take 15 public relations students and mix them with a handful of BGSU alums?  A powerful networking opportunity!  That’s what transpired when PRSSA seniors visited NYC this past November.

Over the course of four days, students had unlimited access to public relations pros at The Associated Press, NBA, NFL, Macy’s and Ketchum.  

One of the alums, Macy’s Jim Sluzewski, SVP, corporate communications & external affairs, was able to provide an exclusive preview of the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade details from a behind-the-scenes public relations perspective.

One student who attended the trip, Daniel Martin, is now a finalist for a NYC Ketchum internship as a result of the networking trip.

“I'd never been to the Big Apple and it was fascinating to see the business elites function at such a high level.  I was really excited to get to meet professionals from one of my dream agencies to work with.   I got to hear the inside scoop and I made a contact that I hope will lead to a future job with the company,” he explained.

Next stop for PRSSA?  Washington, D.C. in October 2010.  If you are an alum in the D.C. area and would be interested in hosting PRSSA students, we’d love to hear from you!  Please e-mail Julie Hagenbuch, PRSSA faculty adviser, at: hagenjk@bgsu.edu.

STUDENT MEDIA WIN REGIONAL SPJ AWARDS

 BG News and Key magazine fared well in the Region 4 Mark of Excellence competition sponsored by the Society of Professional Journalists.

Key magazine was Region 4 winner for Best All-Around magazine and will now compete against 12 other regional winners for best magazine in the nation, which will be determined and announced at the national convention this fall in Las Vegas.

This was the first time we have ever received this award in head-to-head competition with other universities.  Of course, this was only the second year of publishing a magazine using resources formerly committed to the yearbook.

The BG News did very well, also, finishing second in Region 4 as the best all-around daily student newspaper, finishing behind West Virginia University, but placing ahead of Michigan State, Kent State and Ohio University.

What is noteworthy with these awards is that we did very well against our comparable universities in the state and against some larger programs regionally. Region 4 consists of student media in Michigan, Ohio, West Virginia and western Pennsylvania.

4 RECEIVE COLLEGE HONORS

Four journalism students were recognized with scholarships from the College of Arts and Sciences.  Alissa Widman got two scholarships designated for journalism. Allison Borgelt got one College scholarship designated for a journalism major on the BG News. Angie Burdge was recognized for the Frazier Reams scholarship and Ella Fowler received two scholarships for students who are studying abroad.

NOFTSINGER CHOSEN FOR ONA SCHOLARSHIP

Kate Noftsinger was chosen to receive the Harold K. Douthit Regional Scholarship in the amount of $1,500 from the Ohio Newspaper Association. Originally from Vermilion, she is a columnist for the BG News and a member of the Society of Professional Journalists. She plans to graduate next spring.