PR Students, Instructor Win Awards at Annual PRAM Conference

OXFORD, Miss. – Eight University of Mississippi journalism students and their instructor, Robin Street, recently received awards from the state’s public relations association. Four of those students won top awards.

Presented annually by the Public Relations Association of Mississippi, PRism Awards honor and recognize outstanding work by public relations professionals and students.

“I am so proud of my students,” Street said. “This was a competition for public relations professionals, and ours were the only college students to win awards. Many of them even won the top award in their category, which is extraordinary.”

Four students received PRism Awards, the association’s highest honor. One of these students, senior Emily Laird of Columbus, won the 2011 Student Best of Show Award in addition. Other students receiving PRisms were seniors Hannah Chalker of Marietta, Ga., Rivers Fischer of Nashville, Tenn. and Hallie Mosby of Jackson.

Street won two Awards of Excellence. Students receiving Certificates of Achievement were recent graduates Heidi Egloff of Bay St. Louis, Lindsay Jordon of Brandon and Mallory Roberts of Yazoo City, and senior Erin Parsons of Oxford. Parsons also received the Outstanding PR Student of 2011 Award, which included a $250 scholarship.

“Through the PRism Awards program, students from the University of Mississippi had their work evaluated alongside campaigns and projects by professional public relations practitioners,” said Kristie Aylett, APR, PRAM president and a principal with The KARD Group PR/Marketing. “The judges were very impressed by the quality of their entries, and it is obvious that the students are being well prepared to enter the field.”

PRAM is a network of 11 chapters throughout the state, consisting of nearly 600 members. The association includes memberships for students majoring in public relations and professionals who hold positions in a variety of fields, including corporations, industries, government entities, not-for-profits and agencies. PRAM members are concurrent members of SPRF, a network of more than 1,300 public relations professionals in Alabama, Florida, Louisiana and Mississippi.