Press Release:
BATAVIA, NY -- Genesee Community College is pleased to announce Hal Legg has received a Paragon Award, which recognizes the highest achievement among two-year college communications professionals across America, Canada, and several other countries. Hosted by the National Council for Marketing and Public Relations (NCMPR), this year's competition drew more than 1,700 entries. Hal took top honors in the "Notes/Cards/Invitations" category for "Flip Flop," a student recruitment mailing shaped liked a sandal.
Legg also received two scholarships totaling $500 to defray the cost of his attendance at the NCMPR national conference which took take place March 15 - 18 in Kansas City, Missouri. He won a $400 "Seasoned Professional" award for professional development and a $100 scholarship from the NCMPR's District 1 Council, which is the governing body of the organization's Northeast region. This is the second consecutive year that Hal has received both national and regional scholarships to attend an NCMPR event.
"Flip Flop" previously won gold at the NCMPR's District 1 Medallion Awards last October in Saratoga Springs, prompting Hal to enter it in the Paragon Awards. One of the elements that make "Flip Flop" so interesting is that it is Customized Market Mail (CMM), which is a special postal classification. With CMM, irregularly shaped pieces (in this case, life-sized sandals in the sand) can be mailed without any envelope. Another interesting feature is that it incorporates variable data publishing (VDP), meaning that the content of each piece is tailored to its recipient. For example, a male applicant could get a camouflaged flip flop with language particular to having applied for admission. A female non-applicant could get a pink flip flop with language related to soliciting an application for admission.
"'Flip Flop' was a challenging piece, but it really resonated with potential students. You look at it, and it's just a lot more fun than typical mail," Legg said. "An award like this just goes to show Genesee's across-the-board support for innovation. I'm privileged to accept it, but this honor belongs to the College."
This is the first time Hal has entered and won a category in the Paragon Awards. A recruitment communications specialist, he has been with Genesee since 1997, and is a frequent conference presenter. He is a resident of Brockport, NY.
