Illinois State University Marketing and Communications won two awards, including a gold, in CASE’s 2025 Circle of Excellence competition for creative work produced for university clients and flagship communication channels.

UMC videographer Hugh Sullivan and video interns Mollie Pollock and Nate Richards won a gold for their Lego-inspired stop-motion video promoting Birds Give Back, Illinois State’s designated giving day organized by University Advancement. For the second consecutive year, a group led by UMC writer John Twork won a storytelling award, this time a silver for the multimedia version of the State magazine story about how pizza has shaped the experience of generations of Redbirds.

The awards recognize exceptional achievement in advancement services, alumni relations, communications, fundraising, and marketing.

“These awards aren’t just about creativity. They’re about impact,” said Pat Vickerman, vice president for University Advancement. “The UMC team tells stories that really connect with students, alumni, and donors. From giving day videos to pizza nostalgia, they bring out what makes ISU special. Their work builds Redbird pride and helps move the University forward. I’m proud of what they’re doing and the difference they’re making for Illinois State.”

Illinois State University is a member of the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE), which is a global nonprofit organization dedicated to educational advancement and championing education to transform lives and society. In 2025, CASE received more than 4,460 entries from 640 institutions in 33 countries for its Circle of Excellence competition. From that pool, volunteer judges selected 477 winners.

“I’m incredibly pleased that our work has garnered two international Circle of Excellence awards this year,” said Brian Beam, M.S. ’94, MBA ’10, executive director of University Marketing and Communications. “The fact that we can put Illinois State’s marketing and communications work up against the best work from higher ed institutions around the world and come out on top is a real source of pride for our department. We are especially proud of the back-to-back wins in the Communications Storytelling category. I’ve noticed the ‘Big Conference’ institutions emulating our winning storytelling ideas, and am very proud of our Illinois State team’s ability to be thought leaders and idea trailblazers across higher ed communications groups.”

This latest recognition comes on the heels of UMC’s success last year, when staff won three Circle of Excellence Awards and four CASE Best of District V awards. Here are this year’s award-winning entries by UMC:

Gold

Video, Fundraising (Flash Campaign/Giving Day): Let’s Build

Videography: Hugh Sullivan, Mollie Pollock, and Nate Richards
Scriptwriting: Jillian Nelson
Creative planning: Jessica Green ’07; Jillian Nelson; and Tracy Widergren ’03, M.S.’15

From the judges: “We praised the very clear call to action. Additionally, we enjoyed the creative use of stop motion, which resulted in something very different from other giving day videos. Excellent work, Illinois State University!”

Silver

Communications, Storytelling: Slice of College: How pizza shaped the Redbird experience

Writing: John Twork, M.S. ’12
Graphic design: Mike Mahle
Web design: Ella Jahraus ’20, M.S. ’22
Photography: Shea Grehan ’20 and Tyler Mardis ’24
Videography: Brie Byers and Hugh Sullivan
Social media promotion: Julie Mana-ay Perez and Elena Roth ’18, M.S. ’20

From the judges: “This entry is an innovative and highly engaging example of community-driven storytelling. By leveraging the relatable topic of pizza, this team brilliantly blended nostalgia with impressive alumni engagement across generations. The project effectively used social media to source content, and the integration of archival material, a custom webpage, and original video created a rich, multi-sensory experience. This clever yet simple idea generated impressive results and stands out as a strong model for leveraging multimedia and community content for historical storytelling.”