Previous Award Winners
NACE Excellence Awards
The 1999 NACE Excellence Awards recognize outstanding accomplishments in four categories:
AUDIOVISUAL PROGRAMS
College Winner: "Connecting with Employers: Making the Most of a Job Fair," submitted by Darwin V. Kysor, Juniata College (814/641-3350), on behalf of the Central Pennsylvania Employment Consortium.
This eight-minute video explains how to effectively prepare for a job fair. The video targets a student audience, discussing the stages of job-fair preparation, communication, and follow-up. There are also tips on how students can present themselves to companies during a job fair. Brief remarks from students and corporate contacts attending a job fair show how to prepare for job fairs, and what employers seek from students. "Connecting with Employers" is fast-paced and presents information in a clear, organized, nonintimidating manner.
Employer Winner: "Totally Cool—Amoco," submitted by Susan Knox Wilson, Amoco Corporation (312/856-2704).
The 20-minute documentary-style video shows a "day in the life" of six young engineers at Amoco’s Texas chemical and refining plants. The engineers come from diverse backgrounds, and each gives a tour of where he works, describes his job, and shows his neighborhood and social activities. The employees also emphasize aspects of Amoco’s corporate culture that would appeal to students, such as the presence of mentoring.
Honorable Mention: "I Got Hewitt," submitted by Miriam Cleveland and The College Recruiting Team, Hewitt Associates LLC (847/295-5000).
With quick-cut MTV-style editing, graphics, and rock music, this short video centers on a diverse group of young Hewitt employees. The employees discuss their jobs and work experiences with Hewitt’s CEO, Dale Gifford, during a casual lunch. Of 250 students who evaluated the video, 72 percent of them rated "I Got Hewitt" as above average or superior.
EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMMING
College Winner: "Career Month in Louisiana," submitted by Mary de la Houssaye Belleau, Louisiana State University (225/388-2162).
When March 1998 was declared "Career Month" by the governor of Louisiana, the career services staff of LSU coordinated a partnership between employers and educators to inform people about the changing world of work—a world where the average person holds 8 to 10 jobs in a lifetime.
During Career Month, educators from schools, colleges, and universities provide resources and programs associated with careers. They also have students read and write about careers. Educators are also asked to visit companies and to invite alumni to speak on-campus about their jobs. In turn, employers may hold open houses, and invite students and employees’ children to visit. In addition, employees are encouraged to speak at schools about their career experiences.
Career Month in Louisiana creates an awareness of career services among LSU faculty, staff, students, and employers. Career services also gains the opportunity to collaborate with more than 30 existing statewide networks, such as chambers of commerce and trade associations. Additionally, Career Month in Louisiana was selected for the Best Practices Showcase at the 1998 NACE National Meeting in Dallas, Texas.
PUBLICATIONS FOR STUDENTS
College Winner: "Career Week Publication Package," submitted by Jennifer Sugiyama, Selina Wong, Linda Hernandez, Jim Sullivan, Robin Gates, Dara Ziegelmeier, and Jose Hernandez, University of California, Berkeley (510/642-3312).
To encourage students to participate in UC-Berkeley’s first annual Career Week, entitled "Shoot for the Stars," the career center staff designed a publicity package. The package included a button, a poster, a four-fold brochure, and a 40-page booklet. In staying with the out-of-this-world theme, each piece in the media package is illustrated with shooting stars and other space-related graphics. In addition, the four-fold brochure encourages students to "Expand your universe." Titles of seminars, such as "The ‘Right Stuff’: How to Dress for Success" and "Blast Off: Starting Your Own Company," also reflect the space concept.
Students, presenters, and campus staff highly commended the publications, and Career Week’s success was due to campus awareness generated by the publicity package. For example, nearly all of the seminars promoted in the brochure and booklet were filled to overflowing. Additionally, the publication materials gave greater visibility to the Career Center and its services.
Employer Winner: "To Hewitt May Concern," submitted by Miriam Cleveland of Hewitt Associates LLC’s college recruiting team (847/295-5000).
Hewitt Associates LLC knows how to connect with students: a free phone card. The company encourages two-way communication by attaching a free Hewitt 30-minute calling card captioned "It’s Your Call…" onto their biannual newsletter, "To Hewitt May Concern." Whether students have already accepted an offer or are still considering their options, the newsletter provides information about the company’s corporate culture, activities, and other topics of interest.
The block design and conversational tone of the text convey an accessible, "corporate casual" image. Inside the publication are an 800 number and e-mail addresses of the college recruiting team. For students who need further information, Hewitt’s web site address is listed on the front of the newsletter.
As a result of the publication, students feel more comfortable and connected with the recruiters—as evidenced by the influx of e-mails and phone calls the college recruiting team receives after the release of each newsletter.
Honorable Mention: "The Career Digger: CSM Pathways to Engineering Careers," submitted by Ron Brummett and Louise Wildeman, Colorado School of Mines (303/273-3297).
"The Career Digger" helps freshmen and undecided majors explore their options in choosing a major and a career. The publication is divided into sections by major, with information on the job outlook and starting salaries in various fields. It also lists employers who have hired Colorado School of Mines (CSM) students and graduates. Throughout the publication are interviews of 60 CSM graduates offering career tips and encouragement to students.
TECHNICAL INNOVATION
College Winner: "Virtual Job Fairs for College Campuses," submitted by Troy Behrens, Siemens Building Technologies (847/215-1050).
Faced with a small budget and limited space, Roosevelt University’s career cervices needed an alternative to a traditional job fair. Behrens, who was then assistant director of career services for the small Chicago-based liberal arts college, decided to host a Virtual Job Fair on the Internet.
The Virtual Job Fair, or VJF, had "virtual booths," featuring a company’s job postings; its college recruitment contacts’ names, addresses, and phone numbers; and a hyperlink to the company’s web site. An online resume form enabled students to apply for the posted jobs.
The Roosevelt University VJF was offered for one week, 24 hours a day, and it was so successful that career services extended the fair another week. More than 200 employers and at least 4,000 students participated in the VJF. Additionally, nearly 100 colleges have shown interest in having VJFs of their own, especially after Behrens, now college relations manager for Siemens, published an article in the Summer 1998 Journal of Career Planning & Employment, titled "A Job Fair in Cyberspace."
Employer Winner: "StrategEY Zone," submitted by John R. Flato, Marie Rachwalski, and Chris Raia, Ernst & Young LLP (212/773-1262).
The StrategEY Zone is an interactive case study of a fictitious business on part of the recruitment section of Ernst & Young’s web site. Visitors who access this part of the web site exercise their critical thinking skills by pretending to be the CEO of "MedTech, Inc." The decisions that a visitor makes during the exercise directly affects the fate of the imaginary company.
A visitor who tries "The MedTech Case" can register with the web site; provide information about his or her education, work history, and interests; and share ideas about the case study. Ernst &Young is screening for potential employees prior to the traditional recruitment season by analyzing each registered site visitor’s analysis of "The MedTech Case." In the first three months after launch, of the 2,000 registered visitors approximately 200 have been determined to be potential Ernst & Young employees.
Honorable Mention: "Career Services Center Information System," submitted by Anne S. Harris and Cynthia G. Ferreira, Darden Graduate School of Business Administration, University of Virginia (804/924-7685).
The Career Services Center Information System (CSCIS) is an intranet offering Darden Graduate School students and staff, as well as corporate representatives, a more efficient system to access placement opportunities. Using the CSCIS, students can research companies, upload up to four resumes for distribution, and sign up for corporate presentations and workshops. The most innovative aspect of the web site is the capability for students to accept or decline interviews, register for and confirm interviews, then check the final interview schedule—all online. The positive impacts of the CSCIS are: helping students feel more involved in recruiting, streamlining the efficiency of posting jobs, and improving communication between students and employers.
NACE/Chevron Award
The NACE/Chevron Award for Innovative Programs in Career Services recognizes and honors a NACE college member or a regional association college member for the development of a ground-breaking program in the field.
No winner in 1999.
Kauffman Award
The Kauffman Award, established by the former College Placement Council, Inc. (CPC) Board of Governors, acknowledges the accomplishments and contributions of Warren E. Kauffman, who served the association for more than 30 years. This award recognizes outstanding service to NACE.
1999 Recipient: Susan Hansen, director of career services at Humboldt State University
1998 Recipient: Norita H. Rehrig, assistant executive director of NACE;
Academy of Fellows Award
The NACE Academy of Fellows recognizes individuals who have contributed to the career services and human resources/staffing profession through the advancement of knowledge, leadership, or excellence in professional practice.
1999 Inductees:
William J. Banis, Northwestern University
C. Randall Powell, Indiana University
1998 Fellows:
Robert Greenberg, University of Tennessee at Knoxville
Nick Nabours (retired), Texas Eastman
1997 Fellow:
Robert W. Gammill (retired), Lockheed Martin Corp.
1996 Fellows:
John E. Steele (retired), Boston College
Gale H. Varma, Deloitte & Touche LLP
1995 Fellow:
Richard T. Koffenberger (retired), E. I. Du Pont de Nemours & Co.
1994 Fellows:
Dennis R. Reigle, Arthur Andersen
Richard A. Stewart, Purdue University.
Employer of the Year Award
The Employer of the Year award recognizes individuals who have contributed to the college relations and recruiting progression through exemplary service/leadership in the professional associations, advocacy of the college relations and recruitment function, and mentorship of new professionals.
1999 Recipient: Tony Michaels, Burlington Industries, Inc.
