Compliments to the Chef

Clark College Culinary Arts instructor George Akau - who has been with the college for 37 years - was honored at Chef de Cuisine Society of Oregon's annual Chef of the Year dinner, held on October 16 at E.B. Hamilton Hall on the Fort Vancouver National Historic Reserve.

Akau was awarded the Chef Emeritus honor for his many years of service to the society. Having served for more than 20 years on the society's board of directors, he has been the chairman for several Governors' dinners and, in 1983, was selected as the society's Chef of the Year. Akau is also a member of the American Academy of Chefs, a select group of chefs with only a few thousand members in the United States.

Spotlight on Success

Clark College is shining in a bright spotlight. The college earned a 2011 Spotlight Award (the highest award offered) from the Portland Metro Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) during its annual awards ceremony on October 27. The college was honored in the "event or observance" category for the 2011 State of the College address.

Executive Director of Communications and Marketing Barbara Kerr, APR, accepted the award on behalf of the college. Clark College President Bob Knight and Clark College Foundation President/CEO Lisa Gibert also attended the ceremony, which was held at the Tiger Woods Center at Nike headquarters in Beaverton, Ore. The award entry reflected the contributions of President Knight, Clark's Communications and Marketing Department, Special Projects and Activities Manager Michelle Golder, Stage Manager Mark Owsley and Clark-Vancouver Television (CVTV).

On October 17, Clark's Communications and Marketing Department received three awards at the District 7 conference of the National Council for Marketing & Public Relations (NCMPR), the association of communicators at two-year colleges. Clark earned a gold medallion (top honors) in the "media success" category for the 2011 State of the College address, and two bronze medallions for Clark 24/7 and the 2010 Penguin Nation Holiday Sing-Along.

The medallion awards reflected work done by Webmaster Chris Concannon, Communications Specialist Hannah Feldman Erickson, Executive Director of Communications and Marketing Barbara Kerr, Senior Graphic Designer Pat McDonald and Graphic Designer Jenny Shadley. Communications Specialist Hannah Feldman Erickson and Director of Marketing Brian Scott accepted the awards at the NCMPR conference, which was held in Tacoma.

SpykerMedia, based in Vancouver, recently won a platinum EMPixx Award for "Maze," a TV ad that supported Clark's enrollment-management plan. Presented by the American Pixel Academy, the EMPixx Awards honor excellence in television commercials and programs, corporate videos, independent films and videos, and Internet communication.