Sweet Briar College wins international 2019 CASE Gold Award for student life brochure

Sweet Briar College is the winner of a 2019 Circle of Excellence Gold Award from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education. CASE announced the winners on Wednesday. The award was given in the Design category (single-page publications) for Sweet Briar’s student life brochure, which was updated as a result of the College’s “This is FIERCE” rebranding in 2017. The honor follows a Bronze Award for Sweet Briar’s brand guide in 2018.

“This was a creative, beautifully designed piece that kept the judges interacting with the Sweet Briar brand for several minutes,” CASE judges said. “We appreciated the cost-saving technique of choosing a distinctive fold over a die cut or other expensive printing technique — the result of a successful collaboration with the designer, who suggested the format. The photography was also well-chosen.”

According to a release issued by CASE, the international awards program “honors outstanding work in advancement services, alumni relations, communications, fundraising and marketing at colleges, universities, independent schools and affiliated nonprofits.”

Sue Cunningham, president and CEO of CASE, praised this year’s recipients for their “bold, innovative work” that exemplifies the profession’s best practices.

“These awards demonstrate our members’ success in advancing their institutions through their remarkable work,” Cunningham said. “This year’s award winners demonstrate creativity and strategy; I urge everyone to take a look — you will be inspired. Congratulations to all the Circle of Excellence award recipients. Your work engages important communities in the life of your institutions, advancing education to transform lives and society.”

In 2019, CASE received 2,856 entries for consideration in 100 categories by 611 member higher education institutions, independent schools and nonprofits from 20 countries. Judges gave more than 400 awards in the following categories: bronze, silver, gold and grand gold. Winners are selected based on a number of factors, including overall quality, innovation, use of resources and the impact on the institution or its external and internal communities, such as alumni, parents, students, and faculty and staff. More than 500 judges volunteered to evaluate hundreds of entries.

Made up of several of CASE’s long-time recognition programs, the Circle of Excellence awards program, in its present configuration, was introduced in 1994. It is CASE’s largest and most popular awards program. See all 2019 award winners and read about the Circle of Excellence Awards.