St. Catherine University's first Shout Out St. Kate's Day drew participants from St. Paul to Cape Town, South Africa. Alumnae, faculty, staff and students spread the good news about St. Kate's through photos, social media, video and old-fashioned in-person networking.
Our community members showed their Katie spirit throughout the day and into the evening, but a few went "above and beyond" to Shout Out St. Kate's. The following people will receive Katie gear as awards for their efforts. Judging was based on creativity, reach and overall impact.
Highest Impact
Millions of Today Show viewers could not miss our Katies on the plaza outside Rockefeller Center in Manhattan. St. Catherine University Development Officer Amy Polski Larson '91 and New York City–area alumnae Teresa Rolling Radzinski '86, Beverly Diederich '92, Mary Habstritt '82 and Margot Note '99 brandished Shout Out St. Kate's signs that were in full view each time the Today Show cameras cut to the plaza. Their efforts also caught the attention of the Today Show staff who featured the women on the show's blog.
Most Creative Photo
Andi Westergard Moffatt '94 took her love of St. Kate's under the sea with a photo taken while scuba diving off the coast of Riviera Maya, Mexico.
Best Video — Creative Use of Ensemble
Check out the videos created by current St. Catherine University students as part of the “Spirit of St. Kate’s” video contest.
The special song and dance performed by the Nursing Department's "Katie and the Kates" captured the hearts of the St. Catherine community and left us wondering: Will we see an encore next year?
Farthest Away
Jennifer Quayle '11 sent her Shout Out photo from Cape of Good Hope, South Africa – more than 8,800 miles from St. Kate's campus. On Renren, China’s version of Facebook, Yanshuo Zhang '10 ensured that the country's residents read about what a difference a small Minnesota university 6,700 miles away made in her life.
Best Social Media Reach via Multiple Platforms
Not only did she tweet her entire network and local news personalities throughout the day, but Katie Maas '07 also put her personal St. Kate's story and photos of her baby decked out in Shout Out stickers on her Facebook page, the University Facebook page and Mercy Hospital's Facebook page. Maas didn't stop there. She also uploaded photos to Pinterest throughout the day to Shout Out her spirit.
Most Substantive Tweets
Gwen Schimek '04 was going for quality as well as quantity with her Shout Out tweets. She tweeted personal reflections of her education, stats and bragging rights, research pointing to the quality of a St. Kate's education as well as news about some of the spectacular things going on right now at the University and with alumnae.
Best Retweet
Melissa Ezarik captured the attention of Hanover Research, a higher ed think tank that retweeted St. Kate's Shout Out campaign.
Best Personal/Professional Story via Social Media
Anne Wagner shared the story of working with a patient who, when learning that she graduated from St. Kate's said, "I knew it! I can always tell when my nurse is a Katie. There is something special about you all."
Most Engaged Corporate/Business partner
As our "official" coffee shop of the day, Espresso Royale pulled out all the stops in showing its support, including offering a generous 40 percent discount, giving a "shout out" on its street sign and having baristas sport St. Kate's apparel.
Honorable Mentions
Several people gave notable efforts that are receiving an honorable mention, including
Freesia Carlson for her Facebook poem, Kit Leary '74 for sharing her St. Kate's story on the University Facebook page, Elizabeth Child for her creative use of Shout Out stickers in a photograph sent from Tortola, British Virgin Islands, and Brian Dusbiber and the Office of Institutional Research, Planning and Assessment for their staff tweets.
Government Relations
A special Shout Out thanks to government officials near and far who showed support of St. Kate's. Minnesota Congresswoman Betty McCollum '87 created a special video greeting, and the St. Paul City Council passed a resolution declaring Wednesday, February 29, 2012, "Shout Out St. Kate's Day."