Arkansas PRSA Announces 2024 Prism Recipients, Crystal Award Honoree
(LITTLE ROCK, ARK.) The Arkansas Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) held its annual Prism Awards event Sept. 19, honoring exceptional public relations programs and skills of the state’s practitioners, companies and organizations.
“As PR practitioners, this is one of our most popular events, allowing us to see what each of us has been doing and celebrating each other’s triumphs,” said Shira Kelley, APR, chairperson of the Prisms Committee. “Arkansas communicators continue to seek and develop exciting and innovative ways to promote clients and meet challenges in a rapidly-changing world, and we love this time to share success stories.”
As part of the festivities, the chapter awarded the PRSA Crystal Award to Lisa Van Hook, M.A., APR. Van Hook is the President and Director of Client Services at The Communications Group. The Crystal Award is the highest award presented by the chapter’s Past Presidents Council, recognizing significant and continuous contributions to the PR profession and to PRSA. The previous Crystal Award recipient for 2023, Heide Harrell, APR, presented the award.
Accepting the award, Van Hook said, “This Crystal Award is not about me. It’s about growing up, it’s about love, and it’s about the incredible relationships of everyone who has supported me along the way. The relationships I’ve built here are truly exceptional and have been game-changing both personally and professionally.”
Little Rock public relations agency The Peacock Group won the 2024 Bob Sells Best of Show Award for their presentation of Every Mother Counts at the Bentonville Film Festival. Finalists for that award were Garver’s “Recruiting Fourth Graders for Engineering Careers” and UA Little Rock’s “Event Eclipses Expectations.”
This year’s Prism Awards had 56 entries in categories ranging from media relations to public service. Members of the San Antonio, Texas, chapter of PRSA judged entries. Veteran publishing executive and businesswoman Heather Baker, president and publisher at AY Media Group, emceed the event. The evening was sponsored by The Peacock Group, The Communications Group, mhp•si, and Garver.
Winners are as follows:
Community Relations
Winner – The Peacock Group: Excel by Eight
Institutional Programs
Winner – The Peacock Group: Maternal Health
Finalist – mhp•si: Revive AR
Internal Communications
Winner – mhp•si: Igniting Excitement
Content Marketing
Winner – mhp•si: Introducing Harding’s Occupational Therapy Master’s Program
Finalist – The Peacock Group: Land of Steel
Crisis Communications
Winner – The Peacock Group: Arkansas Heart Hospital Expense Reduction Mode
Marketing Communications
Winner – The Peacock Group: Land of Steel
Multicultural Public Relations
Winner – The Peacock Group: “Ella the Banker” Book Launch with the Winthrop Rockefeller Foundation
Public Affairs
Winner – The Peacock Group: Maternal Health
Finalist – mhp•si: Arkansas Food Hall of Fame
Public Service (sponsored by Garver)
Winner – The Peacock Group: Wolfe Street Foundation
Finalist – Ghidotti Communications: Little Rock Rotary Club
PR on a Shoestring Budget
Winner – Ghidotti Communications: Catholic High School for Boys Giving Tuesday
Finalist – The Peacock Group: Hoops for Kids
Special Events And Observances, Less Than 7 Days
Winner – The Peacock Group: Every Mother Counts: Bentonville Film Festival
Finalist – Garver: Recruiting Fourth Graders for Engineering Careers
Finalist – UA Little Rock: Event Eclipses Expectations
Special Events And Observances, More Than 7 Days
Winner – The Peacock Group: “Ella the Banker”
Finalist – mhp•si: Igniting Excitement for Children’s Dental Health Month
Other Public Relations
Winner – The Peacock Group: Mississippi County: Rex Nelson Trip
Finalist – mhp•si: Tacos 4 Love
Creative Tactics
Winner – Ghidotti Communications: Little Rock Rotary Club
Finalist – The Peacock Group: Bike to Work
Feature/News Writing
Winner – Garver: Imagine a Day Without Water
Finalist – mhp•si: Sharing the Value Proposition of Unconventional Conventions
Media Relations
Winner – The Peacock Group: Maternal Health
Finalist – mhp•si: Raising a Toast: The Buttered Biscuit
Multimedia
Winner – The Peacock Group: Wolfe Street Foundation
Finalist – Ghidotti Communications: Arkansas Virtual Academy Student Video
Public Service Announcement
Winner – The Peacock Group: Central Arkansas Diaper Bank, Spirit of Arkansas Diaper Drive
Social Media & Influencers
Winner – The Peacock Group: Lesley Murphy Visit to Crystal Bridges
Finalist – mhp•si: Taco Madness
Websites
Winner – mhp•si: Hoag Digestive Health Web Content
Finalist – Empower Healthcare Solutions: New Website
