Designers against hazing: Winners of the 2013 NHPW CAMPUSPEAK Poster Contest

We are proud to announce the winners of the 2013 NHPW CAMPUSPEAK Poster Contest, who created designs around the 2013 National Hazing Prevention Week theme “Know. Decide. Act”:

GRAND PRIZE WINNER!

Anna-Shea Beeman, a senior and Graphic Design major at Saginaw Valley State University, Michigan. Anna created a compelling series of six posters that represented both the mental and physical consequences of hazing. “Hazing happens in every kind of organization, not just Greek Life,” said Anna. “That is what I wanted to portray in my posters. I wanted to include all the feelings that may be felt in a situation where one would be hazed.” Anna is a member of Phi Sigma Sigma Sorority and she used real members of her chapter, along with other students of Saginaw Valley State, in her poster series.

RUNNERS UP:
Jordan Kuhns, a senior and Business Marketing major at Illinois Wesleyan University. Jordan, a member of Sigma Pi fraternity, used a simple, yet modern approach to his poster design. “Keep messages simple and relatable is going to be one way to reach high school and college students all over due to our increasingly busy schedules and lives.” By incorporating custom QR codes in his poster, Jordan makes it easy for students who want to connect with their smart phones.

Kathleen Meriano, a junior pursuing a B.S. in Media, Culture & Communications at New York University. Kathleen’s two posters effectively communicate all the fears that prevent bystanders from taking action against hazing. “It’s incredibly upsetting that stereotypes are perpetuated by careless, harmful actions,” said Kathleen. “These are actions that many disagree with in silence, but lack the ability to take a stand, verbalize concerns, and have the courage to be the change.” Kathleen is a president of the Pi Beta Phi chapter at NYU.

“HazingPrevention.Org congratulates the first winners of this competition, said Charles Hall, executive director of HazingPrevention.Org (HPO). “Their winning submissions are phenomenal enhancements to our 2013 National Hazing Prevention Week (NHPW) observance.”

CAMPUSPEAK and HazingPrevention.Org teamed up in 2012 to launch the inaugural National Hazing Prevention Week CAMPUSPEAK Poster Contest as a way for college and university students to get involved in creating the official poster of the subsequent NHPW. As with each of the NHPW contests, HPO encourages students to learn more about hazing prevention by writing about the topic in the Essay Contest, photographing prevention activities in the NHPW Digital Pix & Composites Photo Contest and combining copy and graphic design to communicate it in the NHPW CAMPUSPEAK Poster Contest.

“The concept of a poster contest was perfect for National Hazing Prevention Week,” Charles Hall, executive director of HPO, said. “But we needed the right corporate partner to not just fund the annual prizes over the long term, but to provide the design expertise that could help us build the contest into one that students don’t want to miss. CAMPUSPEAK is the perfect partner in this effort,” he said.

CAMPUSPEAK works with colleges and universities–and organizations like HPO–to provide educational keynotes and workshops to students across the country, which include efforts to eradicate hazing in fraternity and sorority life, student organizations, res life and athletics. “We believe posters, a medium which has been used since the late 1800s, would be an effective means for students to engage in and help our efforts to make hazing disappear from campuses and organizations,” said Felix Sanchez, CAMPUSPEAK Creative Director. “From the many entries we received, we felt that Jordan’s, Kathleen’s and especially Anna’s posters reflected the student experience of hazing on campus in very creative ways. We hope colleges and universities help spread their messages, not only during NHPW but as an on-going effort to curb harmful practices.”

The mission of HPO is to empower people to prevent hazing in college and university student groups. The nonprofit organization offers information, resources, programs, products and services to individuals, campuses and organizations throughout North America. For more information, visit www.HazingPrevention.Org and www.NationalHazingPreventionWeek.com.

For more information on the contest winners and to download winning posters, please visit campuspeak.com/hazing.