(Edmonton) Important and interesting stories unfold every day at the University of Alberta. And if the latest awards for excellence from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) are any indication, the U of A also has some of the best in the business at telling those stories.
The U of A won 29 awards-the most among more than 130 competing institutions in the CASE District VIII regional awards. The winning projects showcased innovative work by faculty, students, staff and alumni across campus, advancing awareness and understanding of the university's importance in Alberta, in Canada and around the globe. Here are some highlights:
- The Virginia Carter Smith Grand Crystal Award, the top overall honour bestowed by CASE VIII each year, went to graphic designer Marcey Andrews for her work on the university's new magazine, Cornerstone. The publication focuses on personal stories celebrating philanthropy at the U of A.
- Along with the overall recognition, Cornerstone took an impressive haul of individual awards. The debut issue of the magazine scored 15 awards-including the grand gold award for visual design, gold for special constituency magazines, gold for print design and photography, and a sweep of gold, silver and bronze in the editorial shorts category.
- The U of A's alumni magazine, New Trail, continued its winning ways as a perennial CASE favourite, winning six awards including gold for print magazines with a circulation of more than 75,000, and for its special "Impact Issue" about the economic power of alumni worldwide.
- The Marketing and Communications team took home four awards, including silver for best article of the year for the online feature story Attack of the Pine Beetle, bronze in news writing for "Rare mineral points to vast 'oceans' beneath the Earth" and two bronze awards for best practices: one for the rare-mineral story and one for spring convocation 2014 communications.
- The U of A's engaging Twitter campaign for Valentine's Day, "Who's Your #UAlbertaValentine?" took silver for social media programs and projects-thanks in no small part to a campus community whose tweets ran the gamut from heartwarming to hilarious.
- U of A Engineer magazine improved on its silver finish in last year's CASE awards by taking gold in the news writing category, for a feature on the successful exploits of the concrete toboggan team.
The CASE District VIII awards honour excellence in marketing and communications for professionals working in post-secondary environments. Representing more than 130 member institutions in the Pacific Northwest and Western Canada, CASE VIII is a regional district of the Council for Advancement and Support of Education, one of the world's largest non-profit educational organizations, focusing on alumni relations, communications, marketing, fundraising and other areas that advance the institution and its mission.
UAlberta CASE Award winners
VIRGINIA CARTER SMITH GRAND CRYSTAL AWARD
Marcey Andrews, Cornerstone magazine
GRAND GOLD
Entry Title: Best Summer Ever, New Trail magazine, Spring 2014
Category: Photography and Illustration
Entry Title: Cornerstone magazine, Spring 2014
Category: Visual Design
GOLD
Entry Title: Cornerstone magazine
Category: Special Constituency and Research Magazines
Entry Title: The Impact Issue, New Trail magazine
Category: Magazine Special Issues
Entry Title: New Trail magazine, Winter 2013 and Spring 2014
Category: Print General Interest Magazines, circulation greater than 75,000
Entry Title: Being Marissa, Cornerstone magazine
Category: Editorial Shorts (published editorial pieces, print or web, less than 1,000 words)
Entry Title: This is how you cement your place in concrete toboggan history, U of A Engineer magazine
Category: News Writing
Entry Title: Alan Bleviss profile, Cornerstone magazine, Spring 2014
Category: Individual Photographs
Entry Title: Tom Morimoto photo series, Cornerstone magazine
Category: Series of Related Photographs
Entry Title: Forever Farmers, Bocock family profile, Cornerstone magazine, Spring 2014
Category: Series of Related Photographs
Entry Title: Best Summer Ever, New Trail magazine, Spring 2014
Category: Series of Related Illustrations/Photo-Illustrations
Entry Title: Cornerstone magazine, Spring 2014
Category: Multi-Page Print Design
SILVER
Entry Title: Attack of the Pine Beetle, UAlberta News
Category: Best Articles of the Year
Entry Title: The Voice, Cornerstone magazine
Category: Editorial Shorts (published editorial pieces, print or web, less than 1,000 words)
Entry Title: Being Marissa, Cornerstone magazine
Category: Fundraising and Alumni Relations Videos
Entry Title: Best Summer Ever, New Trail magazine, Spring 2014 cover illustration
Category: Individual Illustrations/Photo-Illustrations
Entry Title: Summer Guide, New Trail magazine, Spring 2014
Category: Multi-Page Print Design
Entry Title: Rohit Sharma profile, Cornerstone magazine, Spring 2014
Category: Series of Related Photographs
Entry Title: Alan Bleviss profile, Cornerstone magazine, Spring 2014
Category: Series of Related Photographs
Entry Title: Who's Your #UAlbertaValentine?
Category: Social Media Programs and Projects
Entry Title: Rohit Sharma cover photo, Cornerstone magazine, Spring 2014
Category: Individual Photographs
BRONZE
Entry Title: Ringwoodite Discovery: The Value of Planning
Category: Best Practices in Communications and Marketing
Entry Title: UAlberta Spring Convocation 2014
Category: Best Practices in Communications and Marketing
Entry Title: Being Marissa, Cornerstone magazine
Category: Best Articles of the Year
Entry Title: Rare mineral points to vast 'oceans' beneath the Earth, UAlberta News
Category: News Writing
Entry Title: Forever Farmers, Cornerstone magazine
Category: Editorial Shorts (published editorial pieces, print or web, less than 1,000 words)
Entry Title: New Trail magazine, Spring 2014 cover
Category: Cover Design
Entry Title: Day in the Life of Betty Jones, New Trail magazine
Category: Series of Related Photographs