Two teams from Kent State University placed among the top tier in the country, earning honorable mentions in the Public Relations Student Society of America’s (PRSSA) 2019 national case study competition. Students from the School of Journalism and Mass Communication (JMC) received recognition for the 2019 Bateman competition.
Bateman is PRSSA’s annual case study competition. This year, teams were charged with creating a campaign that focused on diversity and inclusion in the communication profession.
The Bateman competition received casebooks from 66 teams from across the country; 18, including the Kent State teams, earned honorable mentions. The teams each consisted of five undergraduate public relations majors who researched, developed and implemented the campaign and then evaluated the results.
Associate Professor Stefanie Moore, faculty advisor for the Bateman course, describes what each team chose to do for their casebook, based on the research prompt:
“To raise campus and community awareness about the diversity and inclusion challenge in the communications profession and to create awareness about the book Diverse Voices: Profiles in Leadership.”
This particular prompt challenged students to think more about the lack of diversity in the field and who they should target to effect change.
“Bateman Gold focused on the connection between diversity and mentorship. Bateman Blue focused on recruiting and supporting diverse talent,” says Moore.
Moore says she is proud of the students she and other professionals advised for this year’s competition. Kent State alumni Lyndsey Fortunato, ’13, Founder/Marketing Consultant Huddle Marketing + Design Solutions, and Kirsten Bowers, ’14, SEO Senior Specialist at OuterBox in Akron, served as professional advisors for the student teams.
“The PR students continue to do well in this national competition,” says Moore. “That’s good for our program, the school, the college and the university!”
Participation in the annual competition provides students both leadership experience and a research-based portfolio piece, Moore said. And, students gain practical and academic experience in conducting a public relations campaign.
“It also teaches them how to work as a team, how to overcome obstacles and challenges, and how to best showcase the impact of the entire campaign,” says Moore. “The particular prompt allowed them to develop a deeper understanding of what makes someone diverse and the importance of diversity and inclusion in a workplace that is changing.”
Bateman Blue team consisted of Francesca Barrett, '20, Kody Elsayed, '20, Jenna Langan ’19, Brynn Pennell, '20 and Rebecca Rowe, '19. Bateman Gold team consisted of Natalie Eusebio, '20, Vanessa Gresley, '20, Caroline Henneman, '19, Jacob Majka, '19 and Emelia Sherin, ’20.
Kent State students have earned honorable mentions or placed in the top three of this competition in six out of the last seven years. Last year’s team earned second nationwide.
To learn more about the public relations program go to: https://www.kent.edu/jmc/public-relations-0