AUGUST 5, 2024 — The UTSA Division of University Relations and the Division of Advancement and Alumni Engagement have received five 2024 Circle of Excellence Awards from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) for their impact in philanthropy, communications and marketing.
The Circle of Excellence awards recognize exemplary work among CASE member colleges and universities around the world.
This year, teams from 600 institutions in 28 countries submitted 4,223 entries. Judges selected 486 exemplary entries for bronze, silver, gold and grand gold awards.
“To be among the esteemed institutions recognized in the 2024 CASE Circle of Excellence Awards is a powerful testament to the professionalism and dedication of our UTSA colleagues,” said Karl Miller Lugo, UTSA vice president for advancement and alumni engagement.
The UTSA Alumni Association took home Grand Gold award in the Marketing: Branding category for its rebranding campaign.
The UTSA Alumni Association took home the Grand Gold Circle of Excellence Award in the Marketing: Branding category for its rebranding campaign celebrating the connections UTSA builds “For the Long Run.” The campaign is a take on the alumni motto, “Now and Forever, I am a Roadrunner,” and a play on the university mascot, Rowdy the Roadrunner. Featuring UTSA’s “Birds Up” mark and a bright orange color theme, the logo is a fixture on tailgate tents, tablecloths and campus windows.
UTSA Advancement and Alumni Engagement also received the bronze award in the Video Fundraising: Flash Campaign/Giving Day category for its UTSA Giving Day video. The “GIVINSUMBUX” campaign took a page out of familiar pharmaceutical ads. After going through various symptoms with Rowdy, the ad states that relief can be found by giving to UTSA’s various programs that benefit from donor support. The campaign was key to the university surpassing its goals for the annual fundraising event — to net 3,000 donors and $500,000. Over 1,969 minutes — or 32 hours, 49 minutes — Giving Day brought in 3,683 donors and more than $807,000. The video alone has had more than 78,000 impressions.
“These awards reflect the collaborative spirit and excellence that drive our mission to cultivate meaningful relationships with alumni and donors, resulting in phenomenal support of UTSA as seen in the incredible progress of our Be Bold campaign,” Miller Lugo said.
The UTSA Division of University Relations’ Office of Marketing and Special Projects and Office of University Strategic Communications earned three Circle of Excellence Awards.
University Marketing and Special Projects won silver in the Marketing: Advertising/Broadcast category for its TV spots for football broadcasts.
University Marketing and Special Projects brought home silver in the Marketing: Advertising/Broadcast category for its television spots for football broadcasts. Showcasing UTSA recent alumni and their success in high-demand fields, the ads were broadcast nationally during football games — including in the media markets of Roadrunners Football’s opposing teams — elevating UTSA’s brand among large audiences across the nation.
University Strategic Communications won bronze in the Magazines: Online category for its new digital version of Sombrilla Magazine.
University Strategic Communications netted a bronze Circle of Excellence Award in the Magazines: Online category for its new digital version of the magazine. Sombrilla Magazine Online was crafted to provide an immersive and interactive experience for UTSA students, alumni, faculty and staff, and the UTSA community by including multimedia elements such as videos, podcasts and photo galleries, complementing the magazine’s print edition.
Sombrilla Magazine’s 2023 cover story, “The Roadrunner’s Guide to the Galaxy,” also earned a bronze Circle of Excellence Award in the Writing: Research, Medicine & Science category. From astronomy to geological sciences to engineering, the feature takes a deep dive into groundbreaking scientific discoveries occurring at UTSA, their contributions to space habitation research and how the university is developing the space workforce of the future. The story has garnered significant visibility and credibility for the university’s burgeoning space-related expertise, research programs and community engagement. Since its publication, in fact, UTSA has been invited to join the prestigious Universities Space Research Association (USRA).
“University Relations advances awareness of and builds recognition for UTSA’s innovative and impactful approach to education, research and community engagement,” said Teresa Niño, vice president of university relations. “These national awards reflect the exceptional creativity of our team and their ability to engage audiences in a way that is meaningful and reflective of UTSA’s exciting vision.”
The CASE awards mark the latest accolades for UTSA. Earlier this year, Sombrilla Magazine Online won the silver American Advertising Award in the Online Interactive: Consumer Website category from the local chapter of the American Advertising Federation.
The San Antonio chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) also recognized the University Marketing and Special Projects with two La Plata Excellence Awards in the Events and Observations category.
One award was for UTSA’s grand-opening celebration of San Pedro I, a $91.8 million, 167,000-square-foot building in the local Tech Corridor that helped cement the university’s position as a national leader in information security and as a major driver of economic development in San Antonio.
The second award was for a collaborative Hispanic Heritage Month event with the U.S. Mint and National Women’s History Museum marking the release of the ninth coin in the American Women Quarters Program — honoring journalist, activist, teacher and suffragist Jovita Idar.
UTSA Today is produced by University Communications and Marketing, the official news source of The University of Texas at San Antonio. Send your feedback to news@utsa.edu. Keep up-to-date on UTSA news by visiting UTSA Today. Connect with UTSA online at Facebook, Twitter, Youtube and Instagram.
This workshop explores the intersection of digital activism, data collection, and visualization techniques in the context of gender-based violence and feminist movements. Participants will learn how to harness the power of GraphCommons to create impactful visualizations that can amplify marginalized voices and reveal hidden patterns in complex social issues.
CEDISH Co-Lab 3.02.38, 3rd Floor, John Peace LibraryJoin UTSA’s Carlos Alvarez College of Business and the UTSA Small Business Development Center for a Preview Event to learn more about SURE@UTSA—a transformative program that has empowered over 700 businesses to achieve growth and long-term success.
Durango Building (DB 2.316,) Downtown CampusA moderated discussion to learn how the Suttons not only influenced understandings of local, Black history but also about their lasting legacy on education, civil rights, politics, community organizing, and more in San Antonio and beyond.
Carver Branch Library, 3350 E Commerce St, San Antonio, TX 78220A roundtable discussion that will explore the impact of documenting LGBTQ+ oral histories and the unique challenges of sharing these stories.
UTSA Westside Community Center, 1310 Guadalupe St. San Antonio 78207Have questions about making your OER accessible on UTSA Pressbooks? The OER Team and the Digital Accessibility Team are ready to answer them! Please bring your questions about OER and accessibility and receive guidance from our two teams.
Virtual EventCelebrate the graduates of the College for Health, Community and Policy, College of Liberal and Fine Arts and College of Sciences.
AlamodomeCome celebrate the graduates of the Alvarez College of Business, College of Education and Human Development, Klesse College of Engineering and Integrated Design and University College
AlamodomeThe University of Texas at San Antonio is dedicated to the advancement of knowledge through research and discovery, teaching and learning, community engagement and public service. As an institution of access and excellence, UTSA embraces multicultural traditions and serves as a center for intellectual and creative resources as well as a catalyst for socioeconomic development and the commercialization of intellectual property - for Texas, the nation and the world.
To be a premier public research university, providing access to educational excellence and preparing citizen leaders for the global environment.
We encourage an environment of dialogue and discovery, where integrity, excellence, inclusiveness, respect, collaboration and innovation are fostered.
UTSA is a proud Hispanic Serving Institution (HSI) as designated by the U.S. Department of Education .
The University of Texas at San Antonio, a Hispanic Serving Institution situated in a global city that has been a crossroads of peoples and cultures for centuries, values diversity and inclusion in all aspects of university life. As an institution expressly founded to advance the education of Mexican Americans and other underserved communities, our university is committed to promoting access for all. UTSA, a premier public research university, fosters academic excellence through a community of dialogue, discovery and innovation that embraces the uniqueness of each voice.