Hye-Jin Yoon and Mina Lee Honored

Grady doctoral students Hye-Jin Yoon and Mina Lee were recognized for their outstanding teaching at the Grady College Award Ceremony.

In her four years as a doctoral student, Hye-Jin Yoon taught a variety of courses in the ADPR Department including media planning (ADPR 3120), advertising research(ADPR 3130) and advertising and society (ADPR 3140). According to Department Head Karen King, "Students appreciate Hye-Jin's accessibility, ability to explain and willingness to answer their questions." Hye-Jin will join the advertising faculty at SMU in the fall.

Mina Lee was received an Outstanding Teaching recognition from the University of Georgia.

The department is grateful for the excellent instruction that Hye-Jin and Mina have provided to our students.

Ad PR Outstanding Teaching Award Winners

(Dean Krugman and Bryan Reber pictured on the right)

Dr. Dean Krugman (Ad) and Dr. Bryan Reber were selected as the Outstanding Teachers for 2010 by their faculty colleagues.

"Dr. Krugman is a gifted instructor on both the graduate and undergraduate levels. Students appreciate his enthusiasm," noted Karen W. King, head of the department. "He sets high standards for his students and they delight in meeting this challenge.
At the undergraduate level, Krugman is a master at getting his students to think critically and become strategic problem-solvers, said King. In his graduate classes, he helps his students wrestle with and ultimately master complex theoretical concepts."

"Dr. Reber is a versatile instructor who excels at teaching a variety of public relations classes from the large introductory course with 300 students to the small writing labs with 16," noted department head King. "His students enjoy his sense of humor and the current examples of public relations strategy and tactics he brings to the classroom. Dr. Reber engages his graduate students in theoretical discussions and brings complex theoretical concepts to life for them."

Bateman Team #1 !!!

Five public relations students from the University of Georgia won first place in the national Bateman Case Study Competition in Washington, D.C. on May 14th.

The team included account executive Kristin Ballard from Atlanta; Courtney Garmhaus, Litchfield, Mich.; Debbie Ebalobo, Masinloc, Zambales, Philippines; Magan Cowart, Milledgeville; and Bridgett Johnson, Brunswick. The UGA team was advised by Kaye D. Sweetser, assistant professor of public relations.

The competition, sponsored by the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA), uses a single national client. The 2010 client was the U.S. Census. Student teams from college campuses across the nation compete to create the ultimate public relations campaign for the client. The UGA Bateman team competed against 67 other schools this year, and was selected as one of three finalist teams to present to client and PRSSA representatives in Washington, D.C.

Working since fall 2009, the public relations students created a hyper-local, grassroots campaign to promote the 2010 U.S. Census in the local Athens community.

The UGA Bateman team's iCount campaign focused on the student population at UGA, as well as the hard-to-count populations within Athens such as the Latino community. Steeped in extensive scientific and rigorous research, the UGA Bateman team took a four-prong approach to increase knowledge of the Census, communicate its benefits, educate the community about the new short-form and increase likelihood of participation.

The Bateman team credits their Grady coursework with preparing them for this ultimate public relations campaign experience.

"I used parts of every single Grady class I've ever taken in the Bateman campaign," said Garmhaus. "We did primary research that I learned in PR Research, writing tactics I learned in PR Communication and created the book with programs I learned in Graphics. Without my Grady education, we couldn't have created such a well-rounded, well-thought-out campaign."

The UGA Bateman team won $2,500 for first place. The prize money was presented to the college's chapter of PRSSA, to reinvest into future chapter programs.

Historically, teams from Grady College have placed well within the competition, having last won the Bateman competition in 2007, and receiving honorable mention in both 2008 and 2009.

The UGA Bateman team is sponsored by Grady's PRSSA chapter. The national Bateman case study competition began in 1973 as an avenue for PRSSA members to employ practical public relations skills and problem solving. In recent years, competition clients have included organizations such as Ford Motor Credit Company, Nutella and Habitat for Humanity. (Story adapted from Grady College wesbsite)