A photograph of five UConn students performing headstands in a dormitory study lounge captured first prize in the UCTV Photo Contest last fall. This spring, UConn students can once again vie for the opportunity to win a $250 giftcard to the venue of their choice from the student-run television station.
Photo entries will be accepted until Wednesday, April 16, 2008 and should be e-mailed to uctvmarketing@gmail.com, according to a press release. Furthermore, the winner will be invited to attend UCTV's Annual Spring Weekend special event on April 24 in the Student Union lobby.
Samantha Freda, an 8th-semester in journalism and communications double major, has been involved with UCTV since her freshman year. In her role as UCTV Marketing and Promotions Director, she led the committee - dubbed the "Street Team" - that organized the competition, the first of its kind, last fall.
In order to be eligible, photos must include a UCTV T-shirt. Students who have yet to come across a T-shirt can pick one up at the UCTV office while supplies last. Other than the T-shirt requirement and the aforementioned rules, contestants have free rein.
For example, using Photoshop is not exactly prohibited or sometimes even discernible, Freda said. She added as a suggestion to all who choose to enter, "[Entrants] have to be creative. We will pick the funniest one that strikes us the best." Ultimately, she and her staff will choose a favorite among the qualified candidates.
"I think that students who have original and unique ideas will have the best chance of winning the photo contest," said Thomas Murawski, a 6th-semester actuarial science major and the UCTV general manager.
The creative quintet that set the bar last semester recalls last fall's experience fondly. Shelley Plude, a 6th-semester civil engineering major, summed up the group's efforts.
"The craziness of the T-shirts lend themselves to doing a crazy photo, so we just played around taking pictures until we found something that worked."
Sarah Morris, a 6th-semester political science major who was also on the winning team, was excited about the renewal of the contest.
"My advice to the people entering would be 'Have fun!' Don't be afraid to look silly," she said.
Freda explained that the goal for holding the contest is for UCTV to become more popular with the UConn student population. She added, "Without the students, UCTV would be nothing. We want all the students to have input."
"UCTV is holding this contest to gain more exposure and have students tune in to Channel 14," Murawski said. "We thought that this contest was appropriate because it highlights the UCTV T-shirt which is the focal point of our marketing strategy."
The effort to make UCTV a mainstay with the student body will be bolstered by an upcoming St. Patrick's Day celebration March 17, at which representatives will host tables in the Student Union passing out free dark green T-shirts, contest flyers, and other promotional items.
Freda expects that the number of entries will skyrocket from last semester because hundreds of UCTV T-shirts have already been given away from the stockpile of a thousand T-shirts that were ordered specifically for the contest.
"If the contest goes well, we'll definitely continue to do it," she said.
Contact Sabrina Jara at
Sabrina.Jara@UConn.edu.
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