Sam Houston Electric Cooperative recently received recognition in the 2014 “Spotlight on Excellence” national awards program, sponsored by the Council of Rural Electric Communicators and the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association.
Sam Houston EC received Gold Awards in the categories of Best Feature Story (“Hog Wild”), Best Individual Print Ad, Best Website (www.samhouston.net) and Best Special Publication – Small (Board of Directors Election Ballot).
The Co-op also received Silver Awards for Best Internal News Publication (The Wire), Best Special Publication – Large (2014 Calendar & Member Handbook), Best E-Newsletter (The Current), Best Use of Digital Communication and two awards for Best Individual Print Ad.
“The judges noted that electric cooperatives are being challenged to communicate to the people they serve in more ways than ever before,” said Carol Crabtree, administrator of Spotlight on Excellence. “Printed newsletters, news releases, websites, social media, videos, and information in bills are all more important than ever to keep members updated.”
A special reception honored the award recipients during the CONNECT ‘14 Conference held in San Antonio, Texas, on May 12. Winning entries were displayed during the event.
The annual Spotlight awards competition recognizes the top-rated communication and marketing efforts by electric cooperatives and related organizations. Participants in the awards competition competed with electric cooperatives of similar sizes in 18 categories.
Electric cooperative communicators and marketing professionals submitted more than 680 entries in the Spotlight on Excellence program, now in its 26th year. Faculty members from the University of Missouri – Columbia, University of South Carolina and Ohio University Scripps-Howard School of Journalism judged the entries.
The Council of Rural Electric Communicators was organized in 1982, and seeks to advance the recognition, education, and professionalism of electric cooperative communicators and their affiliated organizations. It is a volunteer association working on behalf of more than 4,000 electric cooperative communicators across the United States.
The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, the service organization representing the national interests of cooperative electric utilities, coordinates the Council’s activities. Other national organizations supporting the work of the Council are the National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corporation, the National Cooperative Services Corporation, and Federated Rural Electric Insurance Exchange.
