National advertising group deems Penn Staters among 'Most Promising'

University Park, Pa. -- Six advertising students from the College of Communications at Penn State have been recognized by the American Advertising Federation (AAF) as among that nation's "most promising minority students" in a program that brings together leading advertisers and agencies with exceptionally talented multicultural candidates.

All six of the Penn State students who participated in the program were recognized, with two as winners and four as honorable-mention selections. As a result, Penn State earned more awards than any other school in the country this year.

Penn State participants have been crowned as winners in the competition eight times in the past nine years. Prior to this year, Penn State had produced nine winners and eight honor-roll selections.

So, this year's contingent ranks as the most successful in the history of the College of Communications.

Those garnering the "most promising" recognition were Anjelica Caraballo, a senior from Ozone Park, N.Y., and Saria Jones, a senior from Wallingford, Pa. Students who earned honorable-mention status were Victoria Austin, a senior from Rego Park, N.Y.; Poorya Nayerahmadi, a senior from Huntingdon Valley, Pa.; Stella Nguyen, a senior from Devon, Pa.; and Kiersten Walker, a senior from Pittsburgh.

The students, accompanied by Wayne Hilinski, senior lecturer and adviser of the Donald W. Davis Penn State Chapter of the American Advertising Federation, will be honored Feb. 8-10 in New York City. That same week the students will be saluted in "Advertising Age" and "USA Today."

Since its inception in 1997, the AAF's Most Promising Minority Students program has brought together hundreds of exceptionally talented multicultural candidates with leading advertisers and agencies. The program is considered the premier advertising award program to recruit minority college graduates in advertising, marketing, media and communications.

On a national level, there were 40 winners and 35 honor roll designees. Students recognized by the AAF were selected after submitting their grade-point averages, letters of recommendation, a personal essay and an essay about a minority advertising pioneer.

Based in Washington, D.C., the AAF serves as the trade association that represents the advertising industry. The federation's 130 corporate members are advertisers, agencies and media companies that comprise the nation's leading brands and corporations. The AAF connects industry with an academic base through its 210 collegiate chapters.