Biola University’s Chapter Vice President of the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA), Heather Tanji, was one of eight students recognized for a winning campaign at this year’s PRSSA National Assembly.

The competition was centered on creating a strategy to raise awareness of Michelle Obama's Let's Move! campaign. The campaign focuses on fighting obesity in children. Participants of the day-of competition were divided into seven teams and were each given an hour to create a plan to raise awareness for an audience in Seattle, WA. Each team had eight minutes to present their plan to the judges, including a two-minute Q-and-A session.

"It was a great learning experience to brainstorm with public relation students, especially when we only had an hour," Tanji said. "Our team members had great strategies and creative ideas. I learned a lot from them."

The winning team included members from eight different chapters, including Heather Tanji, a junior. The team won based on research, measurable objectives and use of social and traditional media to reach elementary school children and their parents. Each member of the team received a prize of $50 and a certificate acknowledging each student's participation.

A yearly event for PRSSA, the National Assembly provides an opportunity for students from chapters across the nation gather for four days to vote on by-laws and the national committee for the upcoming school year.

PRSSA is a national organization focusing on developing public relations expertise in future professionals. Students are given the chance to network with over 20,000 public relations professionals within the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) and join a network of over 10,000 PRSSA members. Students are also given opportunities to apply for internships, scholarships and compete in several competitions.

"Being in PRSSA has given me direction in working towards my career," Tanji said. "Through attending National Conference and National Assembly I developed more drive toward reaching my career goals and received new inspiration and vision for Biola's chapter."

More information about the National Assembly and PRSSA can be found at www.prssa.org.