Empire Electric Association, Inc. recently received recognition in the 2012 Spotlight on Excellence national awards program, sponsored by the Council of Rural Electric Communicators and the National Rural Electric Cooperative Association. EEA received an Award of Excellence in the Best News Story Category for Skanska Goes Solar. Bobbe Jones, Assistant Member Services Manager, wrote the award-winning news story.
The judges noted that electric cooperatives are being challenged to communicate to the people they serve in more ways than ever before, said Carol Crabtree, administrator of Spotlight on Excellence. Printed newsletters, news releases, websites, social media, videos, and information in bills are all more important than ever to keep members updated.
A special luncheon honored the award recipients during the Connect 2012 Conference held in New Orleans, LA., on May 17. Winning entries were displayed during the event.
The annual Spotlight awards competition recognizes the top-rated communication and marketing efforts by electric cooperatives and related organizations. Participants in the awards competition competed with electric cooperatives of similar sizes in 19 categories. Electric cooperative communicators and marketing professionals submitted more than 800 entries in the Spotlight on Excellence program, now in its 24th year. Faculty members from the University of Missouri Columbia, University of South Carolina and the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill judged the entries.
The Council of Rural Electric Communicators was organized in 1982, and seeks to advance the recognition, education, and professionalism of electric cooperative communicators and their affiliated organizations. It is a volunteer association working on behalf of more than 4,000 electric cooperative communicators across the United States.
The National Rural Electric Cooperative Association, the service organization representing the national interests of cooperative electric utilities, coordinates the Councils activities. Other national organizations supporting the work of the Council are the National Rural Utilities Cooperative Finance Corporation, the National Cooperative Services Corporation, and Federated Rural Electric Insurance Exchange.