SFU Co-op Student Lands Student Communicator of the Year Award

This article was originally posted on the Simon Fraser University Media Release website on June, 10 2012.

Communication major Alexandra Lowe has earned a Student Communicator of the Year (SCOY) Excellence Award from the International Association of Business Communicators, British Columbia (IABC/BC) for a digital rebrand initiative that she took on as a co-op student working for SFU’s Volunteer Services department.

“It feels great to be recognized by the IABC and I am very proud of my project I did on rebranding the department’s E-Newsletter,” says Lowe. “I found an increase in the subscriptions for the E-Newsletter and an increased click-through by SFU students after the rebrand.”

The SCOY awards recognize communication excellence in students who have undertaken a project related to writing, digital communication, publications, communication creative or a communication campaign.  Submissions are evaluated by a panel of accredited business communicators.

“IABC/BC’s SCOY awards reward emerging communicators for demonstrating sound research, measurement and results,” says Karin Basaraba, ABC- IABC/BC President and Account Manager with PR Associates. “It sets students up for the kind of strategic thinking that brings value to an organization.”

Lowe will be recognized at IABC/BC’s Bronze Quill Awards Gala on Wednesday, June 12, 6 – 8p.m. at the Renaissance Vancouver Harbourside Hotel, 1128 W. Hastings St.

While the SCOY awards are open to submissions from students enrolled in Communication-related programs at all BC post-secondary institutions, SFU Communication Co-op students have figured prominently in the award program’s history. Lowe joins graduand Marianna Adamian and alumni Ryan Paulson, Patricia Zhou, Robin Conlinn, Melissa Chungfat, Kiyoshi Yamamoto and Arthur Yee, who all won SCOY awards.

“Winning a SCOY award helped me transition from the classroom to the workplace,” says Yee, Communication Specialist with Providence Health Care. “It opened doors for me and helped me connect with amazing communicators in BC.”

Marcia Shimizu, who has been a Communication Co-op Coordinator for 15 years now, is delighted at the achievements of her students: “Over the past decade, many of our SFU Communication Co-op students have been successful in winning the annual IABC/BC Student Communicator of the Year award, acknowledging their accomplishments in the workplace. The award has demonstrated the value of the theory students learn in their Communication courses, along with the applied skills they gain in the workforce through Co-op.”

SFU’s Work Integrated Learning Communications & Marketing Coordinator and SFU Communication Co-op alumnus Adam Brayford will also be recognized at the Bronze Quill Awards Gala for earning an IABC/BC Bronze Quill Award of Excellence for communication management on his national social media campaign during 2012–2013 National Co-operative Education Week.

Beyond the Article

• Find out more about the IABC Student Communicator of the Year award.
• Read more about SFU's 2011 SCOY winner.
• Learn about how the IABC can help launch your career.