Get to know your M.S. Com Students: Kevin Jurvis

One of the great things about Grand Valley’s Masters of Science in communication program is the wide variety of students it brings. Current M.S. student Kevin Jurvis is getting ready to finish his second semester in the program. Kevin double majored in Political Science and Communication Studies in his undergrad while also being very involved in Alpha Sigma Phi’s fraternity. He served as the Executive Vice President and President of the Fraternity his Sophomore and Junior years. Kevin has always been interested in Politics and has had multiple opportunities to work on various campaigns. He notes that he decided to pick up the second major (communication studies) after taking COM 101 as an elective in his undergrad, stating, “I really loved the material,” and further expressed the remarkable experiences with all Communications Faculty.

Kevin is currently weighing all of his options regarding his future career. For the last few years, he has been working as a transaction coordinator remotely for RE/Max Nexus in Birmingham, MI. And after working in a variety of communication-oriented positions and opening a dialogue with a few different companies, he is very interested in securing a role in the field of Public Relations. Kevin is originally from Huntington Woods, MI, and enjoys playing hockey, visiting his family’s cottage up north, and loves a good round of Euchre. However, in our interview, he mentioned that he is interested in exploring career options outside Michigan.

During his time in Grad School, Kevin has gathered some insight he’d like to share with others who are considering furthering their education.

1. The program will be what you make of it. The effort you put in will directly correlate with your results. Therefore, it is essential to set goals for yourself, remain on task, and find a balance between school and other extracurriculars.
2. It is important to understand that the professors are there to help you some days, it may feel otherwise, but the level of material is also meant to challenge you. You are choosing to get this level of education, and therefore it is your responsibility to hold yourself accountable for the level of work you are given.

So far, Kevin says he’s had a great experience in the M.S. program and is happy with his choice to pursue an advanced degree. He closed his interview by saying he would recommend this program to anyone interested in expanding their knowledge in the realm of communications.

Ad-PR Students Recognized for ‘Superior’ Work

The third annual Superior Awards were held this week to recognize the outstanding work done by Advertising and Public Relations students in their various classes. The Superior Awards are named for the fact that the Advertising and Public Relations program, one of 8 major programs in the School of Communications, is in Lake Superior Hall on the Allendale campus.

This year there were more than 50 entries, with 20 receiving recognition as “superior” by a panel of professional judges. The Superior Awards are not a competition but a recognition of quality work in Advertising and Public Relations assignments done in class as judged by local professionals in the field.

The winners included:

Superior Award winners received a certificate and a pin.

Single Advertisement

• Melissa Brink, Television
• Carly Johnson, Television
• Kyle Flannery, Magazine
• Spencer Walker, Billboard
• Georgia Madison, Magazine

Advertising Campaign

• Daniel Goubert
• Ashley Handy
• Georgia Madison

Strategy-based Media Plan

• Melissa Brink
• Zach Salisbury

Cost-based Media Plan

• Mark Engstrom

Public Relations Case Study

• Kayla Foster
• Lindsey VanDenBoom
• Nichole Wood
• Kelsey Martin
• Jailyn Glass

Public Relations Campaign

• Lindsey VanDenBoom
• Nichole Wood

APA Paper

• Hunter Zuk
• Emelie Milnikel

Judges were selected from area professionals to judge the public relations and the advertising entries.

PR Judges: 

* = alumni of the School of Communications

• *Adrienne Wallace, Director, 834 Design & Marketing
• *Derek DeVries, Digital Strategist, Lambert Edwards & Associates
• Joe DiBenedetto, Senior Director, Lambert Edwards & Associates
• Matt Jackson, Senior Director, Lambert Edwards & Associates
• *Kim Bode, Owner, 834 Design & Marketing
• Chantell LaForest, Project Manager, 834 Design & Marketing
• *Rick Jensen, Media Relations Specialist, Spectrum Health
• *Lyndsie Post, Director of Communications, Davenport University
• *Austin Langolis, Public Relations Associate, Amway
• Heather Halligan, Marketing Specialist, Hungerford Nichols CPAs
• *Leah Twilley, Communications Specialist, GVSU

Advertising Judges:

• Tom Crimp (AUXILIARY Advertising Design)
• Rob McCarty (The Image Shoppe)
• Clayton Boothe (Boothe Creative)
• Stephan Hokanson (Do More Good)
• David Kettler (Media Place Partners)
• Michael Colasanti (Synergi Media)

GVSU’s National Student Advertising Team Places First at Districts

The 2015 GVSU NSAC team

Grand Valley State University’s National Student Advertising Competition (NSAC) team took first place in the American Advertising Federation (AAF) District 6 competition on April 10. AAF District 6, the largest in the nation, had 20 teams from Michigan, Indiana and Illinois vying for a chance to move forward to the finals at the AAF National Convention in Las Vegas in June.

The team, comprised of 19 students, crafted an advertising campaign to meet specific objectives for national client Pizza Hut under the advisory of Professors Roy Winegar and Robin Spring. Students worked on the project for two semesters by conducting research, refining strategy, tactics, and perfecting the campaign and presentation. Professor Spring is very proud of her students.

“This incredible team had the insight to zero in on what the client asked for – increasing digital orders – in creative ways that wowed the client,” said Spring. “They faced stiff competition from 10 other teams, who were all very good, but didn’t have the substance our team brought.  We’ll tackle the semi-final interview with the same fortitude and chances are this team could land at the American Advertising Federation (AAF) National Convention in Las Vegas in June.  I have every confidence in this amazing group of students.”

Next, the team will compete in semi-finals at the beginning of May, with the hopes of making it to the finals in Las Vegas, Nevada in June.

The members of the team are:

Sean Murphy

Chad Rodgers
Kay-Lynn Chartier

Kylie Galligan

Grace Abraham

Stephanie Huynh

Atikh Bana

AJ Rank

Jourdan Maatman

Annie Lenneman

Angelica Pasqualone

Lacey Kollar

Amy Hallochak

Lauren Wion

Katie Vanderlinde

Morgan Grainer

Rachael Pleasant

Julianna Baragar
Amy Dyer

Ad/PR Professor to Receive Sustainability Award

Michael Charles De Meyer

Professor Michael Charles De Meyer has been selected to receive the Sustainability Champion Award for his support of GVSU Sustainability. De Meyer selected GVSU Sustainability to be a client in his sections of CAP 220 (Fundamentals of Public Relations) and CAP 400 (Advertising/Public Relations Campaign). Students in these classes were able to get hands-on experience while helping solve adverting & public relations issues for GVSU Sustainability.

The Office of Sustainability Practices says that “sustainability champions are individuals who, by practice and belief, support the ideals of sustainable practice and using a triple bottom-line approach to problems and issues.” Each year students, faculty, staff, and community members are recognized for their outstanding contributions in promoting sustainability awareness and applying sustainability best practices. De Meyer will be recognized at an awards breakfast on April 10.

For more information on the award, visit the Office of Sustainability website.

PRSSA & Ad Club Elect 2015-16 Officers

GVSU PRSSA 2015-16 Executive Board

The GVSU Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) and the GVSU Advertising Club (Ad Club) have both elected their 2015-16 Executive Boards. The GV PRSSA is affiliated with the West Michigan Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) and the GV Ad Club is affiliated with the AdFed West Michigan (AAF).

GVSU Public Relations Student Society of America 2015-16 Executive Board

Tyler Lehner – President

Elle O’Hara – CEO of GrandPR
Kristina Graefen – VP of Member Services
Alicia Saragosa – VP of Public Relations
Ashley Mamula – VP of Chapter Development
Rachel Bills – VP of Programming
Jaclyn Ermoyan – VP of Professional Development

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GVSU Advertising Club 2015-16 Executive Board

Rachael Vruggink – President

Ben Kaluski – Vice President

Jessica Krysinska – Communications Director

Michelle Marinos – Secretary

Erik Wang – Treasurer

Mari Behovitz – Events Director

Dan Goubert – Membership Director

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