Newhouse Creative Advertising Students Win Big at ADDY AAF Awards in Rochester

On Feb. 29, Newhouse School creative advertising students swept the ADDY American Advertising Federation (AAF) Awards in Rochester, New York, remarkably winning 12 out of 14 student awards.

After the competition announced the winners of each category, the Newhouse students eagerly ran up onto the ADDY stage to collect their trophies and scholarship awards for their submitted campaigns which showed their creativity and skill. They smiled proudly with their accolades and checks in hand. 

The winning students collected a total of four Gold awards, four Silver awards and three Student Scholarship awards, each valued at $500, $750 and $1,250, respectively. Two students also won the esteemed Mosaic Award, which is only given to a campaign that promotes systemic change through equity and inclusion.  

The outstanding achievements display the dedication and expertise fostered in the Advertising Creative Portfolio II and III courses taught by Mel White, a professor of practice, and Portfolio II course taught by Kevin O’Neill, also a professor of practice. Winning students created their campaigns throughout their time in these courses. 

To create these campaigns, students implemented AI, Snapchat, X (formerly known as Twitter), apps, NFTs, experiential, outdoor, print and product design to communicate their big ideas for the brands. 

“I’m impressed with the level of dedication these students have,” White said. “They continuously developed sophisticated ideas that solved problems, and as a result they created such innovative work.” 

The student winners will be entered into the ADDY AAF District which is the next level of the student competition. Then, the district winners will be entered into the final level: the ADDY AAF National Student Competition. 

Award winners: 

• Avery Schildhaus won two Gold awards, one for the campaign’s copywriting, and one for the entire campaign “Ease of Assembly.” Schildhaus also won a $1,250 award for this campaign. 
• Brooke Hirsch and Charlotte Shea won a Gold Award for their digital campaign “Pays to wait,” as well as a $750 scholarship.  
• Greta Hartwyk and Meghan Gulley’s integrated ad campaign, “Frenemies” won a Gold Award and $500 scholarship. Additionally, Hartwyk and Gulley’s digital AI campaign “Fake it Til You Make it There” won a Silver Award and a Mosaic Award. 
• The final three Silver awards went to Sophia Donio and Jenna Byers for their print ad campaign, “It’s Obvious,” Toria Aragi and Kayla Beck for their integrated ad campaign “Just Let It Go,” and Juliette Keller and Will Thorpe for their print ad campaign “Your Dog is Eating Dogs.”