April 7, 2025

Ferris State design students shine in regional level of 2025 American Advertising Awards

The visual communication talents of Ferris State University students were on full display in the regional level of the 2025 American Advertising Awards, where students from the Design program within the College of Business and the Graphic Design program at Kendall College of Art and Design combined to win 17 out of 44 total student awards.

Presented by the West Michigan chapter of the American Advertising Federation, the annual event celebrates excellence in advertising design at both professional and student levels.

“These outstanding achievements reflect the dedication, creativity, and excellence of Ferris State University’s design students and faculty,” said Design program associate professor Alison Popp. “Their success highlights our institution’s commitment to fostering innovative and impactful design solutions.”

Leading the way was Design student Amber Hadley, who won the Student Best in Show honor as well as a two Gold ADDY Awards—one in the Logo Design category and another in the Integrated Brand Identity Campaign category—and a Silver ADDY in the Packaging category for her comprehensive branding project for a hypothetical coffee company, “Midnight Oil”.

In his remarks on Hadley’s winning piece, juror and owner/creative director of Kansas City-based agency Springboard Creative Kevin Fullerton said, “It was fun, it was well-executed, and there was such depth in the many pieces to it that frankly, it made me want to go to the place it was advertising.”

Design students Kylie Gudmundson, Megan James, and Christina Tartaglia also earned high praise for their collaborative entry “Lowell Arts Brand Identity 2024,” which took home a Gold ADDY as well as a coveted Judges’ Choice Awards in the Cross-Platform: Integrated Brand Campaign category.

With Popp serving as faculty mentor, the students went beyond the classroom to execute a real-world brand refresh for the Lowell, Mich.-based arts nonprofit that was implemented across the organization’s physical and digital properties in the fall of 2024.

Another collaborative entry, “Blacktopia,” earned multiple honors, taking home three Gold ADDY Awards—in the Ambient Media: Single Occurrence or Installation, Ambient Media: Campaign, and Online/Interactive: Advertising & Promotion Campaign categories—as well as a Silver ADDY in the Cross-Platform: Integrated Brand Identity Campaign-Single category. 

With Popp again serving as mentor, Design students Elisa Barry, Colin Frasier, Amber Hadley, Molli Hans, Matthew Kelley, Max Mulder, April Sousa, and Lilya Vaalburg worked with Detroit-based artist Tylon Sawyer to curate and visually brand the Ferris Fine Art Gallery’s presentation of Sawyer’s Blacktopia: Detroit 3000 exhibition, a series of AI-generated artworks that collectively imagined a futuristic, inclusive Detroit. 

Other Ferris student winners included:

• Graphic Design student Koree Bemiss, who won a Gold ADDY the Book Design category for the project "I Wonder Why I Over Wonder" (faculty: John Koziaetk) and a Silver ADDY in the App category for the project "Scroogal App” (faculty: Jason Alger).
• Graphic Design student Laura Funes, who won a Gold ADDY in the Illustration - Single category for the project "Details. Details. Details” (faculty: Joan Sechrist).
• Graphic Design student Emilee Holzwarth, who won a Gold ADDY in the Campaign category for the project "Schwinn Brand Refresh” (faculty: Joan Sechrist)
• Design student Elisa Barry, who won two Silver ADDY Awards in the Integrated Brand Identity Campaign category for her projects “First Love” (faculty: Alison Popp) and " Maggie’s” (faculty: Nic Mata). 
• Graphic Design student Kyle Beam, who won a Silver ADDY in the Campaign category for the project "Burton Your Heirloom Ad Campaign" (faculty: Joan Sechrist).
• Graphic Design student Isabelle Buckler, who won a Silver ADDY in the Campaign category for the project "Want to race?" (faculty: Joan Sechrist).
• Graphic Design student Kennedy Rouse, who won a Silver ADDY in the Magazine Design category for the project "Roots Publication Design” (faculty: John Kozaitek). 

Entrants who win Gold ADDY awards automatically advance on to the district level of competition, while those who win Silver ADDY awards can do so with an additional entry fee. District winners will be announced by the American Advertising Federation in early April.