Essay contest winners reflect on Page Center Awards, leadership and integrity

April 11, 2023 • Jonathan McVerry

The Page Center chose three student-written essays that capture the spirit of its annual Page Center Awards event. Submissions reflect on the leadership of this year’s honorees and the on-going need for integrity in public communications. Winning essayists also channel their own experiences and share how the honorees inspire their current work and future careers.

More than 200 undergraduate students watched the Page Center Awards live on Feb. 22, 2023. Many more watched the recording. At the event, honorees Mary Barra, chair and CEO of General Motors; Lester Holt, anchor and managing editor of “NBC Nightly News with Lester Holt” and anchor of “Dateline NBC;” and Jon Iwata, former senior vice president and chief brand officer at IBM shared incredible insights and memorable stories about how integrity built their long, distinguished careers.

Winning submissions include student perspectives of public communications today. Each one uniquely defines integrity and reflects on each honoree’s position as a leader in the industry and a role model for students.

The winners of the Page Center Awards’ inaugural Student Essay Contest are:

Alexi Kim, University of Central Florida, who wrote about Mary Barra
Honorable Mention: Sienna Gibson, Grand Valley State University

Lilly Riddle, Pennsylvania State University, who wrote about Lester Holt
Honorable Mention: John Bertoncini, Quinnipiac University

Jennifer Wai, Mount Royal University, who wrote about Jon Iwata
Honorable Mention: Natalie Quintana, University of Central Florida

Since moving the event online in 2021, the Page Center Awards have welcomed thousands of students from classrooms around the world. The Center created this essay contest to further engage these students and give them an opportunity to voice their outlook on public communications and integrity’s role in its success.

Page Center Awards honorees receive a Larry Foster Award for Integrity in Public Communication. The Page Center has honored 22 leaders in public communications since 2017. This distinguished group of journalists, business executives, public relations practitioners and public servants work at the highest levels of the industry. They were chosen to be honored because of their decades-long careers built on integrity and trust-building.

Learn more about past events and honorees on the awards page. You can watch the entire 2023 event on the Page Center YouTube page.