NCMPR BLOG

by Virginia Moreland
The College System of Tennessee
Nashville, TN

My first NCMPR event was a district conference in Hilton Head, South Carolina in 2013. I remember walking into the welcome reception with no idea what to expect. The Medallions were presented on an outdoor pavilion with the sound of ocean waves crashing nearby and then followed by two days of relevant sessions full of practical tips and information. I was hooked!

Eleven years later, the absolute best perk of being president is I get to attend all seven district conferences, spreading the gospel of NCMPR and experiencing the unique vibe of each region. This year, District 3 kicked things off with a “rocking” good time in Cleveland, Ohio. District Director Victoria Monteiro and her team made sure everyone was in a good mood with an opening night dinner at a nearby comedy club where performers had everyone laughing as they relayed some colorful Cleveland history.

Speakers covered a wide variety of topics, from the keynote by author/podcaster Joe Pulizzi who spoke on content marketing to colleagues sharing their insights on topics like spicing up your social media, removing barriers to improved student communications during enrollment and learning how to create inclusive campus environments for neurodiverse individuals.

Finally, D3 treated its Awards of Excellence recipients like true rock stars by presenting its awards at the Rock and Rock Hall of Fame in a closing luncheon, allowing attendees to linger afterward to explore the exhibits. Many congratulations to the D3 team for a fantastic conference!

Next up, I traveled to St. Paul, Minnesota, for District 5’s Bootleggers, Branding and Strategy Secrets conference. I arrived early with a bit of time to walk around this beautiful little city with darling little parks dotted throughout, featuring life-size bronze statues of characters from the Peanuts comic strip. Fun fact: Peanuts creator Charles Schulz is from St. Paul. The Saint Paul Hotel was the perfect setting for a 1920s-themed Medallion Awards ceremony, with its chandeliers, marble flooring and perhaps the fanciest women’s restroom I’ve ever stepped foot in.

Director Kristin Kollbaum and her team lined up sessions that were entertaining and enlightening. Two colleges, Inver Hills and Southeast, teamed up to share their experiences launching new mascots from “what to do” and “what NOT to do” perspectives. Others covered the enrollment cliff, making social media accessible, marketing’s role in student onboarding and more.

On the second night, we boarded buses for a historical tour of the city and an old silica mine that has been a mushroom farm, a nightclub, and a wedding venue through the years. I had no idea St. Paul was such a hotbed of gangsters back in the early 1900s. Our guide, “John Dillinger,” enthralled the crowd with his stories that left us alternately wide-eyed in amazement and then holding our sides in laughter. There also may have been some epic karaoke happening at a nearby bar afterward. Thank you, D5, for a great conference!

The latest leg of this presidential tour brought me to my own District 2 in Lexington, Kentucky, for bourbon tastings in horse country as a prelude to a delightful Medallion Awards ceremony and dinner. The next morning, Director  Erica Marye and her team certainly brought the content with a thought-provoking keynote by Dr. Aaron Thompson, president of the Kentucky Council on Postsecondary Education, who stressed the importance of communicating the value of higher education as a foundation for any additional marketing messages.  An array of equally interesting sessions covered artificial intelligence, retention strategies and how to market your marketing department. Kudos to D2 for another fabulous conference!

With that, it was time to head home for a short breather before heading out to the next district event. This tour is already proving to be one of the best experiences of my time in NCMPR. I can’t wait to see what’s in store at Districts 1, 4, 6 and 7!

Virginia Moreland is the director of marketing and advertising for The College System of Tennessee in Nashville. She served as NCMPR District 2 director from 2019-2021 before joining the executive board in 2022. She is the 2024-25 president of NCMPR.