North Iowa Area Community College (NIACC) 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 50^th anniversary, which was founded in 1974.

NIACC earned the Print Wild Card award for its student onboarding packet, sent to newly accepted students. The packet guides students through the next steps and helps them prepare to begin their journey at NIACC.

“We’re honored to be recognized on a national stage for work that truly reflects our team’s creativity and commitment to student success,” said Valerie Zahorski-Schmidt, Director of Marketing and Community Relations at NIACC. “Our goal with the onboarding packet was to make students feel confident, welcomed, and ready to begin their journey at NIACC—and this award tells us we’re making the right impact.”

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. 

“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.”

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.

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The mission of North Iowa Area Community College (NIACC) is to enrich lives through comprehensive educational opportunities, a commitment to learner success, community engagement, and leadership. Founded in 1918, NIACC is a nationally-recognized, two-year college located in central North Iowa, serving approximately 3,000 career and transfer students each year. Recognized by the Aspen Institute as one of the nation’s leading community colleges, NIACC is where futures are found. Start your journey today at https://www.niacc.edu/apply-mkt/. Future, Found.