FSU’s Arrowhead Advertising virtually competed on April 24 in the semi-finals of the National Student Advertising Competition (NSAC) sponsored by the American Advertising Federation (AAF).

Although Arrowhead did not advance onto the final round, the team chose to celebrate their successful academic year filled with dedication, hard work, and enthusiasm.

They reflected on winning first place in the district No. 4 competition where they also won awards for Best Storytelling and Best Diversity and Inclusion.

Each year, the AAF tasks schools with creating an integrated campaign for a client. This year, students across the country had to work for the popular dating app, Tinder.

“As you might expect, all levels of the competition were virtual this year and the Arrowhead team also met virtually,” said Dr. Kelly Kelly, faculty advisor for Arrowhead. “We did not have the benefit of the Arrowhead lab to work together, meaning that all team collaborations – from research to strategy to creative were carried out in countless Zoom meetings.”

Even with the virtual nature of the competition, the students learned a lot from their experience and gained valuable friendships throughout the process.

“Arrowhead has been a beacon of light for me this school year,” said Janelle Altamirano, a student on the team. “We have come together to create an amazing campaign and friendships to last a lifetime. This win (editor’s note: the district’s win) only solidified what I had known this entire year – that there is no other team with as much heart as Arrowhead.”

Dr. Kelly also reflected on the experience, commending her students for their diligent work.

“The students didn’t miss a beat,” said Dr. Kelly. “They worked together to identify innovative ways to make the Zoom meetings work and we improved the process as we went along. They certainly taught me some innovative ways to engage online. They demonstrated incredible focus, resilience, tenacity, and grace throughout.”

The team will meet one more time this year to review scoresheets and reflect on what they learned from the competition.

“I am incredibly proud of this team of accomplished Seminoles,” said Dr. Kelly. “They gave it their all. That’s what is most impressive to me – their willingness to work harder, work longer, and strive higher. Arrowhead will be back even stronger next year because of this team. I applaud them.”

Members of the 2020-2021 Arrowhead Advertising team:  

Sean Flynn, Jake Lenze, Evangelina Alonso, Janelle Altamirano, Valerie Esquivel, Courtney Gifford, Maidson Jozsa, Axel Lagergren, Elle Menzel, Carter Montgomery, Hanya Noussier, Anastasia Novitski, Paxton Perry, Morgan Pinna, Zoe Risch, Isabella Serrano, Martha Sizemore, Jordan Wiener, Jessica Zide, Avery Centrella, Madison Getgood, Andriana Peters, and Graduate Faculty Advisor Cassie Nicolace.