West Texas A&M University chapter of PR Student Society wins national honor

CANYON, Texas (KAMR/KCIT) – West Texas A&M University announced that its chapter of the Public Relations Student Society of America won its first Star Chapter Award from the national organization, recognizing the chapter’s commitment to the society’s “highest standards.”

“It’s your Chapter’s leadership that allows PRSSA to provide outstanding programming and relationship opportunities to our members,” wrote Emily Vazquez, vice president of members services, and Ben Castleman, student programs coordinator, in an email to the WT chapter. “We encourage you to continue to work toward this excellence as we move forward into a new year.”

WT officials noted that the chapter needed to fulfill at least eight out of 11 categories of contributions to the PRSSA to qualify, including high school outreach, commitment to ethics, community service projects and others. The WT chapter was noted as having completed pro-bono work with the Amarillo Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals, attended various chapters and won multiple statewide awards to contribute to its star chapter designation.

The chapter, as noted by WT, is housed within the Department of Communication in the Sybil B. Harrington College of Fine Arts and Humanities. Members of the 2023-24 chapter included:

• Jordan Conde, a May graduate in digital communication and media from Dumas;
• Rachael Draper, a senior digital communication and media major from Abilene;
• Gladis Escalante, a December graduate in communication studies from Houston;
• Jaclyn Ferrel, a junior speech and hearing sciences major from Childress;
• Macey Francis, a sophomore public relations, advertising and applied communication major from Amarillo;
• Augustine Galvan-Vega, a junior communication studies major from Amarillo;
• Lexy Gomez, a senior digital communication and media major from Amarillo;
• Macie Groomer, a senior communication studies major from Amarillo: Maurice Holderman, a May graduate in digital communication and media from Amarillo;
• Madilyn Immel, a May graduate in digital communication and media from Fredericksburg;
• Jeremiah Lauzon, a May graduate in digital communication and media from Red Deer, Alberta, Canada;
• Jenna Lopez, a senior public relations, advertising and applied communication major from Tucumcari, New Mexico;
• JoLina Lopez, a May graduate in digital communication and media from Abernathy;
• Hekla Magnúsdóttir, a May graduate in digital communication and media from Reykjavik, Iceland;
• Alyssa Malik, a junior public relations, advertising and applied communication major from Amarillo;
• Haley Manning, a May graduate in communication studies major from Fort Worth;
• Alexandra Maza, a December graduate in public relations, advertising and applied communication from Amarillo;
• Jenna McCarthy, a junior public relations, advertising and applied communication major from Amarillo;
• Jacob Nava, a senior digital communication and media major from Amarillo;
• Layla Olvera, a junior digital communication and media major from Houston;
• Kohl Patton, a junior digital communication and media major from Morgantown, Pennsylvania;
• Jacy Permenter, a senior public relations, advertising and applied communication major from Bushland;
• Grayson Prather, a senior public relations, advertising and applied communication major from Canyon;
• Alexandra Sessions, a senior public relations, advertising and applied communication major from Nacogdoches;
• Brooklyn Spencer, a senior agricultural media and communication major from Porter, Oklahoma;
• Phoebe Terry, a senior digital communication and media major from Amarillo;
• Kiet Tran, a senior digital communication and media major from Amarillo;
• Isai Velasquez, a junior digital communication and media major from Dumas; and
• Elle Waters, a May graduate in public relations, advertising and applied communication from Amarillo.

“Receiving the 2024 Star Chapter Award for the first time is a tremendous honor for our chapter, said Debany Arciniega-Saenz, a senior public relations, advertising and applied communication major from Canyon. “This recognition serves as a significant milestone and testament to our dedication and hard work this year. Being a part of PRSSA offers our members invaluable opportunities for growth, networking, and professional development. We are proud to be acknowledged and inspired to continue striving for excellence in the year ahead.”

More about the chapter can be found online here.

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