Ithaca College

Have you ever watched a commercial and thought, "I could do a better job selling that car"? Well, that's exactly what the IC Ad Lab team did this year when they won the regional, district 2 competition with their campaign for the Toyota Matrix.

Their motto, "We Guarantee Success," led this year's Ad Lab team to the top of their game at the district 2 competition of the AAF student competition.

Ad Lab, a 3-credit course offered to seniors in the Park School, teaches students the essentials of planning an advertising campaign, including media strategy, positioning, and ad design. The course culminates in a comprehensive plan for a specific product and the opportunity to compete nationally for the annual American Advertising Federation National Student Advertising Competition, the premier college advertising competition.

The teams in the district 2 competition represented colleges and universities in New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Delaware, and the District of Columbia. They were judged by an impressive 5-member panel including the vice president of marketing for Toyota, this year's corporate sponsor.

The team of five presenters and adviser Scott Hamula traveled to Los Angeles in June for the national competition. Competing against winning schools from the other 15 districts and a wild-card team, IC's Ad Lab ranked within the top 10. Past Ad Lab teams won the district 2 title in 1995, 2001, and 2003. In 1993, Ithaca College won the national title when the sponsor company was the Saturn Corporation.

The Ad Lab course has been offered at the College since 1980.

Photo: front row: Paula Lizarraga, Lauren Perry, Nicholas Tassi, Erin Masling; second row: Leigh Nannini, Michael Karam, Melissa Siegel, Lauren Morgan; third row: Tiffany Sica, Seth Wulsin, Anne Test, Dale Cocca, Brooke Mathewson, Gretchen Hansen, Sarina Heyward; fourth row: Jesse Barnholdt, Jeremey Horan, Davian Akers, Seth Cole, and assistant professor of TV-R and Ad Lab adviser, Scott Hamula.

Contributed by Antoinette Di Ciaccio