OMAHA, Neb. – Two representatives of Northeast Community College have earned recognition from an organization that exclusively represents marketing and public relations professionals at community and technical colleges across North America.
Leah Barrett, president, was presented the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations (NCMPR) District 5 Pacesetter Award while Crystal Hollmann, director of marketing, received the District 5 Communicator of the Year Award. The presentations were made at the District 5 Annual Conference in Omaha recently.
The district includes the states of Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, South Dakota, the Canadian province of Manitoba, Puerto Rico and Virgin Islands.
The Pacesetter of the Year Award recognizes a community college president or CEO who has demonstrated special leadership and support in college communications and marketing. In accepting the award, Barrett said marketing and public relations play important roles at the nation’s community and technical colleges.
Barrett was nominated for the award by Northeast’s marketing and public relations departments. Her nomination stressed Barrett’s inclusion of marketing in several areas including in the development of the College’s new strategic direction, “enVISION.”
“To be a part of why we do what we do and empowering others who are a part of Northeast is why marketing and public relations exists in community colleges,” the nomination reads. “Telling our story, working with the campuses, students, community, workforce - we are often times referred to as the ‘knowers of all’ and it’s a heavy lift sometimes, however, Dr. Barrett empowers us to be the key resource of the college. She welcomes discussions of how we represent the college, what’s our vision, empowering others, and how the Marketing and Public Relations teams can continue to support the college.”
“They are our voice, they create our brand and they tell our story,” Barrett said. “Marketing and public relations professionals need to be part of our planning process so they can understand how we get to our strategic directions, our values, our missions and visions and how we want our students to see our institutions. I am honored to be selected for this award.”
The Communicator of the Year Award is one of the most prestigious awards presented to an NCMPR member who has demonstrated leadership and ability in the area of college communications.
Hollmann was nominated for the award by her colleagues in Northeast’s marketing and public relations departments.
“Crystal consistently finds ways to support faculty, staff and students across Northeast Community College in offering advice or strategies by thinking outside the box to accomplish a task. She is quick to respond to requests for further details on items that are necessary to complete an assignment so it comes to fruition.” She is a go-getter who is willing to go above and beyond her typical responsibilities to reach out and offer her assistance or solutions.”
Hollmann credits her team for their work and dedication to Northeast in allowing her to be where she is today.
“Our team made it our mission to reach out to the College community and make communications our priority,” Hollmann said. “I enjoy being the person so many come to to create communication plans and to show how their communications impact and work for them. It’s our role to be the foundation of information and support our campus communities to solve problems and guide others.”
Both the Pacesetter, Communicator of the Year and the Rising Star awards are presented annually in each of NCMPR's seven districts. District recipients automatically qualify to compete for the national award in their respective categories which will be presented at the organization's national conference in Denver in March 2022.
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PHOTO CUTLINE
Crystal Hollmann, director marketing at Northeast Community College (left), and Leah Barrett college president, were presented prestigious awards from the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations (NCMPR) at the organization’s District 5 Annual Conference in Omaha recently. Hollmann was presented the District 5 Communicator of the Year Award while Barrett received the District 5 Pacesetter Award. Both women automatically qualify to compete for the national award in their respective categories which will be presented at NCMPR’s national conference in Denver in March 2022.