COLLEGE STATION Agricultural communicators from the Texas A&M University System recently received awards from Agricultural Communicators in Education, an international association of communicators and information technologists.
All of the winners are headquartered in College Station unless otherwise noted.
Dr. Ellen Ritter, professor and head of agricultural communications at Texas A&M, received the ACE award of excellence, which recognizes individuals who have contributed substantially and creatively to the profession. According to the award citation, the recipient exemplifies excellence in a particular medium or in multi-disciplinary efforts. The recipient should also demonstrate leadership and involvement in ACE.
Ritter has served as head of agriculture communications since 1996. She has provided leadership for the unit’s award-winning work in news, public affairs, marketing and educational materials development in support of the multi-agency agriculture program.
Ritter earned a master’s and doctorate in speech communication from Indiana University. She has been active in ACE since 1990.
Colleena Burt, assistant graphic designer, received the ACE pioneer award, which honors communicators in each region who demonstrate exceptional leadership and technical skills and who make significant contributions to ACE.
Burt earned her bachelor’s degree in environmental design from Texas A&M University. Burt has been the lead designer for award-winning projects such as FRED, or Fathers Reading Every Day, which encourages fathers to read to their children every day, culturally diverse dads; and Health Tech, which educates 4-Hers about the risks of skin cancer, smokeless tobacco and nicotine addiction. When the Texas Agricultural Extension Service changed its name to Texas Cooperative Extension in 2001, Burt helped develop the agency’s new identity package.
Other winners included the team of Elizabeth Gregory and Burt, who received a gold award for promotional writing. The exhibit category award gold winners were Jerry Nucker, Judy Winn and Bill Watson. The team of Lynette James, Jon Mondrik, Dave Mayes, Ritter, Kathleen Phillips, Blair Fannin, Robert Burns, Edith Chenault, Pam Dillard of Amarillo and Lorri Jones of Houston took the gold award for magazines and periodicals. Gregory, Burt, Emma Stark and Vera Johnson took home a gold in the editing category.
Diane Blake Bowen received a silver award in the editing category.
The team of Mayes, Chenault, Fannin, and Phillips received the gold in the media relations programs award category.
Fannin and Phillips received a bronze award for best innovative use of communication technology.
The team of Gregory, Burt and Jennifer Janssen received a gold award in the Web site award category.
-30-