(West Burlington, IA) – SCC has received a 2024 Paragon Award from the National Council for Marketing & Public Relations (NCMPR) at the council’s national conference last month in New Orleans. The conference also concluded a year-long celebration of NCMPR’s 50th anniversary, which was founded in 1974.
The award, for Successful Recruitment and Marketing Campaign, celebrates the college’s marketing team for its work on SCC Nursing 2024 campaign—an initiative that spotlighted a learning grant for nursing students.
“Our members are doing the important work of ensuring both prospective and current
students know of the potentially life-changing opportunities available at their institutions,”
says Virginia Moreland, NCMPR’s 2024-25 president and director of marketing and advertising
at the Community College System of Tennessee. “The winning entries demonstrated the
incredible creativity, commitment and resourcefulness of community college marketing
professionals throughout our organization, and we are so proud to recognize them with
the Paragon Awards.”
SCC Director of Marketing and Communications Jeff Ebbing said the award is a proud moment for the team.
“In this line of work, it can sometimes feel like you're running to stand still,” said Ebbing. “But this recognition shows that what we do is helping students move forward—to find what they’re looking for, and maybe even a place they can call home.”
The multi-channel campaign spanned digital and traditional platforms, including YouTube, Hulu, Amazon Prime, Google, paid social media, and retargeting efforts. Ads were tailored to specific audiences, using custom video sequences and QR codes to maximize engagement. A Smartmailer postcard retarget campaign added an extra personal touch to high-interest prospects.
The 2024 Paragon Awards drew 1,570 entries from 205 colleges across the country and was judged by 59 professionals from the marketing and public relations industry.
NCMPR’s Paragon Awards recognize outstanding achievement in design, strategy and communication at community and technical colleges. It's the only national competition of its kind that honors excellence exclusively among marketing and public relations professionals at two-year colleges.
NCMPR supports the professional development of community college communicators, serving more than 1,600 members from close to 500 colleges across the United States and Canada. It’s the only organization of its kind that exclusively represents marketing and public relations professionals at community and technical colleges and is one of the largest affiliates of the American Association of Community Colleges. NCMPR is based in Albuquerque, New Mexico.