Senior advertising majors Adnan Anwar Ali, Russell Wyman and Kristina Brown traveled to New York last Wednesday where they were awarded by the American Advertising Federation (AAF). Ali and Wyman are winners of AAF’s “Most Promising Minority Students” competition, and Brown was named to the AAF Honor roll.
AAF’s “Most Promising Minority Students” awards program is designed to recognize and recruit outstanding minority college graduates in advertising, marketing, media and communications.
“The AAF is committed 100 percent to increasing the ranks of minority talent among top advertising corporations,” said AAF President and CEO Wally Snyder in a press release. “This year’s prestigious Most Promising Minority Students Program is the perfect example of that pledge, showcasing the extraordinary talents of those that are destined to be great assets to our business.”
According to Brown, Ali and Wyman, and she were nominated by advertising professor Kartik Pashupati and then had to fill out an application and write essays.
“I was very happy,” Brown said. “Professor Pashupati had been preparing us for it for a while. I’m happy that all the hard work paid off.”
Meadows students have been recognized by AAF 10 years out of the competition’s 11-year history.
“Adnan, Russell and Kristina exemplify the qualities that are critical to the future of the advertising industry,” said Dr. Patricia Alvey, distinguished chair and director of the Temerlin Advertising Institute at the Meadows School in a press release. “They are all outstanding students, and we are very proud of them.”
Ali, Wyman and Brown attended an awards luncheon and met with recruiters and executives from advertising agencies and media companies.
According to Brown, the trip to New York was an opportunity to network with people in the industry.
“It allowed us to be able to connect with other people in the marketing and advertising industries,” Brown said. “It was pretty intense. I had four interviews.”
As Brown wants to move to New York after graduating, she said it was a great opportunity to learn about the industry.
“It was perfect that I got the award so I could meet these people in New York, especially since I live in the South,” Brown said.
The AAF competition is open to all graduating seniors of African-American, Hispanic, Asian, Pacific Islander or Native American heritage.
