ALFRED, NY — Three Alfred University students have each been awarded $1,000 scholarships from the Rochester Chapter of the American Marketing Association (RAMA) to attend the Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival, June 14-24, in Cannes, France. A fourth has been given $2,500 award to attend a creative arts academy held during the festival.

The three recipients of the RAMA scholarships — junior marketing majors Todd Ford of Brockport, NY, and Mike Heaney of Angelica, NY, and senior art and design major Jessica Kernan of Penfield, NY — are members of the AU Chapter of AMA. They are among a group of AU students who will attend the International Advertising Festival, accompanied by William Ward, assistant professor of marketing, and Severine Ward, adjunct professor of French.

Senior art and design major Elizabeth Fisher of Lewisburg, Pa, has been awarded a $2,500 scholarship from Art & Design International, which will be used to defray her cost to attend the Roger Hatchuel Creative Academy, held during the IAF.

The Cannes Lions International Advertising Festival (IAF) is the largest gathering of worldwide advertising professionals, each year drawing more than 10,000 members of the advertising and related fields and allied industries. Students will attend comprehensive seminars and workshops with marketing and advertising professionals from around the world.

Participation in the IAF gives students “the opportunity to learn from the best (in the marketing and advertising field) and gain real-world knowledge and practical skills and gives students a significant competitive advantage in the global marketplace,” Ward commented.

Students attending the IAF will have the opportunity to meet and interact with professionals from around the globe, many of whom will be competing for Cannes Lions Awards, given for excellence in the fields of advertising, marketing and public relations. More than 25,000 advertisements, from television, print, radio and other media, are showcased and judged. “Winning a prestigious Cannes Lions for the advertising industry is the equivalent of winning an Oscar for the film industry,” Ward remarked.

The $1,000 RAMA scholarships awarded the AU students will help defray the cost of attending the festival. Ford, Heaney and Kernan will post to a daily RAMA blog throughout their stay in France, and give a presentation to the RAMA board after they return.

“Todd, Mike and Jessica, have demonstrated leadership and enthusiasm through their participation with the AMA and will be excellent ambassadors at the IAF, thanks top the help of RAMA,” said Ward, the faculty advisor to the AU chapter of AMA.

Fisher’s $2,500 scholarship from Art & Design International will fund her tuition to the Roger Hatchuel Creative Academy and also give her free registration to the International Advertising Festival.

Held during the IAF, the Roger Hatchuel Creative Academy is a separate invitation-only program designed to help develop a small group of 30-40 international students who are nominated or invited. Creative industry leaders from around the world will personally tutor Fisher and other promising young international creative talents.

The Art & Design International Scholarship Selection Committee, consisting of Ward and assistant professors of graphic design Michelle Lockwood and Judy Ross, chose Fisher as scholarship recipient.