College of Southern Maryland (CSM) Senior Executive Director of Marketing Theresa Johnson was named Communicator of the Year by the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations (NCMPR) District I at its annual conference Nov. 14 in Baltimore. (Photo: CSM)
LA PLATA, Md. (December 07, 2011)—College of Southern Maryland (CSM) Senior Executive Director of Marketing Theresa Johnson was named Communicator of the Year by the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations (NCMPR) District I at its annual conference Nov. 14 in Baltimore.
“Theresa has consistently demonstrated leadership and creativity in the world of marketing and communications, not only at CSM but at the state and national levels through inspiring and clever campaigns and on-point messaging,” said CSM Vice President of Advancement Michelle Goodwin. “Theresa is respected and admired by her colleagues and peers for her professionalism and deserves this award--we are hopeful that she will receive the national award as well.”
Johnson, who joined CSM 10 years ago, was recognized for her efforts in re-branding the college through the “Realize your Potential” and “Real Students. Real Stories” campaigns.
The NCMPR award committee stated that, “Johnson has built a team of brand champions representing every area of CSM, where employees throughout the organization have embraced her genuine enthusiasm for customer service-driven brand management.”
“Today's community college environment calls for marketing professionals and leaders capable of working in concert with others, able to collaborate in creative endeavors, innovate, inspire and contribute without dominating any project or assignment,” said Vice President of Continuing Education and Workforce Development Dan Mosser in the NCMPR nomination. “It is this extraordinary skill that Theresa brings to every undertaking. It is her extraordinary poise and style in contributing her best to all of her efforts that creates an environment that draws the very best from her staff and colleagues.”
Johnson was also recognized for her creativity in developing a recruitment video (posted above) for CSM’s traditional-aged students. “One of our biggest obstacles was how to stay true to the integrity and authenticity of our campaign ‘Real Students. Real Stories,’” said CSM Promotions Coordinator Amy Brady, who nominated Johnson for the award. Seven ‘real’ students were each armed with a video camera and asked to record their experiences as college students over a two-week period. Even though the end result could show imperfections among the students and the college, Johnson felt that allowing the students to have a voice, a real one, could only enhance the perception of CSM to a prospective high school graduate.
“I am extremely humbled to receive this award. The college is a great place to work, and I work with such a talented team—they make my job easy,” said Johnson.
Johnson shared her marketing experience, and branding and recruitment campaign successes with NCMPR members during a breakout session during the conference.
In addition to Communicator of the Year award, CSM’s Marketing and Community Relations departments received a gold award for a specialty advertising campaign, with silver awards for printed schedule, college viewbook and a college promotional video, and bronze awards for a newsletter and a community relations project of the Pulse of Southern Maryland.
“Johnson is more than a brand champion, she’s a champion of the community college, and could not be more deserving of this year’s ‘Communicator of the Year’ Award,” the NCMPR award committee wrote.