7 professional awards go to Strategic Relations and Communications
The Colorado chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA)—the most prestigious recognition program honoring the state's best public relations campaigns, tactics and professionals—honored CU Boulder’s Strategic Relations and Communications (SRC) department at a Denver ceremony on Thursday, Aug. 27.
The department received five Gold Pick Awards and two Silver Pick Awards for exceptional work in the communications field.
Strategic Relations and Communications staff members at the 2026 PRSA awards ceremony. Left to right, back row: Lisa Marshall, Josh Lindenstein, Kellen Wilson, Alicia DiRago, David DePuy. Front row: Jennifer Schufer, Candace Smith and Lisa Adducci. Photo courtesy of MiHi Entertainment.
Team awards
- The Value of Research Campaign, involving the work of the entire SRC department, received a Gold Pick Award in the integrated communications category.
- SRC’s 2026 State of the Campus Campaign, led by Kellen Wilson, received a Gold Pick Award in the category of integrated communications.
- The CU Boulder Wi-Fi Improvement Project, led by Greg Stauffer, received a Silver Pick Award in the category of internal communications.
Individual awards
- AI ghosts are coming: Is that comforting or creepy?—by Lisa Marshall—received a Gold Pick Award in the category of feature story.
- Common sugar substitute shown to impair brain cells, boost stroke risk—by Lisa Marshall—received a Gold Pick Award in the category of news release.
- Human emissions drove the megadrought in the Western U.S.—by Yvaine Ye—received a Gold Pick Award in the category of feature story.
Best in-house team
- From campaigns to systems: CU Boulder’s integrated reputation transformation, involving the work of the entire SRC department, received a Silver Pick Award, reflecting the strength of SRC as a whole and serving as a testament to the impact the department’s evolution into an integrated marketing and communication approach will continue to have on building CU Boulder’s reputation every day.
Critical support for these winning pieces of work came from SRC leadership, including Erin Frazier, Jon Leslie, Jennifer Schufer and Candace Smith. Also, mightily involved in the success of SRC’s winning campaigns and stories were the behind-the-scenes teams that develop and support the department’s strategies, operations and channels: Marketing and Content Strategy; Strategic Communications; Constituent Experience and Technologies; Work Management and Brand Intelligence; Budget and Financial Administration; and the Strategic Events Team.