Baltimore (April 24, 2024) - The Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) Maryland Chapter held its annual Best in Maryland Awards on Thursday, April 18 at the Hotel at Arundel Preserve. Awards were given to organizations and individuals who, as assessed by their peers, have effectively tackled a communications challenge with outstanding professional skill, creativity, and ingenuity.
WUSA9 Get Up DC Anchor, Allison Seymour served as the evening’s host, announcing 41 awards given across over 20 categories organized by component or campaign. Awards are modeled after the national PRSA’s Silver and Bronze Anvil Awards and submissions were judged by the South Carolina PRSA chapter. All PRSA Maryland Best in Maryland campaign entries are automatically considered for the top award, Best in Show.
The 2024 Best in Show award was presented to The Hatcher Group for the Southern Maryland National Heritage Area Launch Event.
Tracy Imm, APR received a Lifetime Achievement award and Katherine Bishop of Devaney & Associates was awarded Rising Star.
In addition to Best in Show and the Professional Awards, the Best in Maryland awards fall into one of two categories, Campaigns and Components. The Campaign Categories are judged on research, planning, execution, and evaluation while the Component Categories are judged on planning/content, creativity/quality, technical excellence, and results. Winning work received Best in Maryland (first place) or Award of Excellence (second place).
The following is a list of all PRSA Maryland Best in Maryland Campaign and Component winners:
Annual Reports – Component (publications that report on an organization’s annual performance) Award of Excellence: Year in Review in the Wake of Major Federal Infrastructure Bill and Safety Initiatives; Maryland State Highway Administration
Best Use of Influencer Communication – Component (influencer communication focuses on an individual the audience sees as a trusted source of information and which can be differentiated far better than through advertising or content marketing) Best in Maryland: What’s Your Flavorite Influencer Campaign; Planit
Blogs – Component (web-based journals, or blogs, that communicated either a corporate, public service, or industry position) Best in Maryland: Showcasing Maryland’s Business Community; Maryland Department of Commerce Award of Excellence: Tips + Thoughts; Coyle Studios
Brochures, Print – Component (pamphlets, booklets, or other small publications designed to inform a target audience about an organization, product, service, or issue) Award of Excellence: HECHO Timeline – Booklet Poster; The Hatcher Group 2
Creative Tactics, Associations/NonProfits/Government – Component (innovative, unconventional, creative tactics or approaches used as part of a public relations program) Best in Maryland: A History Wall Brings MPT to Life for Visitors; Maryland Public Television
Creative Tactics, For Profit – Component (innovative, unconventional, creative tactics or approaches used as part of a public relations program) Award of Excellence: #RoamingRalph; Abel Communications
Editorial/Op-Ed Columns – Component (opinion articles written as editorials, guest columns, or letters to the editor) Best in Maryland: AFRO News: Juneteenth + Black History education; Abel Communications
Feature Stories – Component (earned media placement that prominently features your client and meets a targeted goal, including desired message placement) Best in Maryland: Try This Blue Catfish Recipe to Help Maryland’s Chesapeake Bay; Maryland Public Television Award of Excellence: Advisory Council on Historic Preservation NPR Morning Edition Feature; The Hatcher Group
Magazines/Newsletters, Print – Component (publications designed to provide information and news about an organization or topic on a regular basis) Best in Maryland: Adventist Healthcare & You Magazine; Adventist Healthcare Award of Excellence: Lifebridge Health’s A Healthy Dose Magazine; Devaney & Associates
Media Relations, Associations/NonProfits/Government – Component (tactics, programs, and events driven entirely by media relations) Best in Maryland: New Draft Recommendation on Screening for Breast Cancer; United States Preventative Services Task Force and Crosby Marketing Communications Award of Excellence: Skatepark Media Relations Campaign; Montgomery Parks
Media Relations, For Profit – Component (tactics, programs, and events driven entirely by media relations) Best in Maryland: PA College of Health Sciences Simulation Center; Abel Communications Award of Excellence: Sheetz $1.776 National Media Campaign; Planit
Press Kits/Media Kits – Component (news releases, photographs, and other background information compiled for an organization, product, or issue) Award of Excellence: Maryland Farm & Harvest Season 10 Press Kit; Maryland Public Television 3
Publications – Component (single-issue publications designed for a special purpose) Best in Maryland: Artisanal Intelligence – Johns Hopkins University Press 2024 Scholarly Journals Catalog; Johns Hopkins University Press Award of Excellence: Big City Public Relations; Zach Germroth, APR
Public Service Announcements – Component (productions of one minute or less distributed as unpaid public service announcements. Single productions or a series addressing the same issue) Best in Maryland: Victories for Veterans PSA Campaign; DAV (Disabled American Veterans) and Crosby Marketing Communications
Research/Evaluation – Component (research that provides a meaningful contribution or input to a public relations program, or an evaluation documenting the value or benefit of a public relations program or tactic) Best in Maryland: Maryland Dental Action Coalition Medicaid Patient Survey; Devaney & Associates and Maryland Dental Action Coalition
Social Media, Associations/NonProfits/Government – Component (use of social media, including Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, TikTok, Pinterest, etc. as part of a public relations program) Best in Maryland: Montgomery Parks Skate Park Survey; Montgomery Parks
Social Media, For Profit – Component (use of social media, including Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, TikTok, Pinterest, etc. as part of a public relations program) Award of Excellence: Box Hill Pizzeria & Crab Cakes: Influencer Campaign; Abel Communications
Videos – Component (pre-produced videos distributed online to inform target audiences of an event, product, service, issue, or organization) Best in Maryland: “Bold Invitation” Anthem Video; The Peace Corps and Crosby Marketing Communications Award of Excellence: Behavioral Health System Baltimore ‘Good Samaritan’ Video; The Hatcher Group
Websites – Component (use of a website as part of a public relations program) Best in Maryland: The USAA Educational Foundation Website; Crosby Marketing Communications
Community Relations – Campaign (includes programs that aim to improve relations with, or seek to win the support or cooperation of, people or organizations in communities in which the sponsoring organization has an interest, need, or opportunity) Best in Maryland: Shredding the Divide: Skatepark Outreach Campaign; Montgomery Parks Award of Excellence: Major Blue and Yellow Line Construction; RK&K and Washington Metropolitan Area Transportation Authority
Content Marketing – Campaign (programs that effectively leverage articles, videos, infographics, and other types of relevant and valuable narrative content via online material to introduce and/or promote a brand or organization) Best in Maryland: Solutions + Savings; Coyle Studios 4 Award of Excellence: What Would You Do with 150K; Abel Communications
Events and Observances < 7 days – Campaign (includes programs or events, such as commemorations, observances, openings, yearlong anniversaries, celebrations, or other special activities) Best in Maryland: Montgomery Parks Urban Wood Sale; Montgomery Parks Award of Excellence: The Hatcher Group and National Assessment Governing Board; The Hatcher Group
Events and Observances > 7 days – Campaign (includes programs or events, such as commemorations, observances, openings, yearlong anniversaries, celebrations, or other special activities) Best in Maryland: Southern Maryland National Heritage Area Launch Event; The Hatcher Group Award of Excellence: Adult-Use Cannabis Launch Day; Abel Communications Award of Excellence: Holiday Barket; Montgomery Parks Award of Excellence: Shady Grove Medical Center Tower Groundbreaking; Adventist Healthcare
Integrated Communications – Campaign (includes any program that demonstrates leadership of public relations strategies and tactics in a creative and effective integrated campaign, along with other marketing or communications) Best in Maryland: “Bold Invitation” Campaign; The Peace Corps and Crosby Marketing Communications Award of Excellence: Second Annual See Beyond Festival Sets Record; Devaney & Associates
Marketing – Campaign (includes programs designed to introduce new products/services or promote existing products/services to a particular audience) Best in Maryland: Work with Montgomery Parks; Montgomery Parks Award of Excellence: Maryland 529 Animating Dreams Campaign; The Hatcher Group
Public Affairs – Campaign (includes programs specifically designed to influence public policy and/or affect legislation, regulations, political activities, or candidacies — at the local, state or federal government levels — so that the entity funding the program benefits) Award of Excellence: A New Community Center for Rural Western MoCo, MD; Fovndry
Goucher College's Master of Arts in Digital Communications was the Silver Sponsor of PRSA Maryland’s 2024 BIM and in-kind sponsors were Coyle Studios, Crown Trophy, Devaney & Associates, and Girl Scouts of Central Maryland.
The 2024 Best in Maryland committee includes Katherine Bishop (Devaney & Associates), Lisa Bruscio-Coster (Howard County Government), Dorothy Fuchs-Yeager (Purple Dot PR), Abiola Johnson (TerraCotta Editorial Services), Tia Malloy (Communications Strategist), Emily McDermott (Abel Communications), Jaiden Nuako (Towson University’s PRSSA Chapter), Lauren Obrien (Towson University’s PRSSA Chapter), Danita Terry, MSA (Girl Scouts of Central Maryland), Aprill O. Turner (Higher Heights of America), and Kristi Williams, APR (Montgomery Parks).
About PRSA Maryland
The Maryland Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA MD) was established in the 5 1960s to help public relations and communications professionals stay connected professionally and personally. As part of the nation’s largest organization of communication professionals, PRSA Maryland offers networking, training, resources, and support to help members in their practice of public relations. For more information, go to
www.prsa.org.
Media Contact
Emily McDermott on behalf of PRSA MD
info@prsamd.org
(443) 283-8060