The energy ball is back this year as The University of Akron debuted its latest commercial with President Luis M. Proenza during the Super Bowl on Feb 2. Through the years this flash of gold and light has represented the spark that is this dynamic campus environment — one that continually ignites innovation and student success.
"Catch the Energy" begins airing during Sunday's Super Bowl game.
In turn, this energy is a catalyst for new knowledge and jobs — sending positive ripples in the Northeast Ohio region and beyond. It is what Proenza envisioned when he became president in 1999, and it is what audiences will see in the faculty and students who share that sense of energy and excitement with him in this new commercial.
As in past years, UA's commercial ran regionally during the game at a much lower rate than what advertisers pay for a national spot. Now the spot will air over the next two weeks on broadcast, cable and satellite systems (Dish/Direct TV) in the Cleveland/Akron/Canton market. Viewers watching Olympics programming on WKYC-TV will also see the spots. Messaging on billboards and online ads will complement the TV schedule.
While the TV spot will be the last with Proenza, who completes his presidency on June 30, the momentum created during his years at the helm is a lasting legacy.
Elliot Georgiadis is one of several UA students featured in UA's new commercial.
"It's what brought me here," says Elliot Georgiadis, one of the many UA students from various majors who responded to the casting call for the commercial and appears in it.
"The best part about being a UA student? The endless possibilities," says Georgiadis, an honors education major who will be teaching history, government, economics and geography to students in grades seven through 12 after she graduates in 2015.
"I knew it would be a place that allowed opportunities for me to explore my different interests," adds Georgiadis, a graduate of Wadsworth High School who has been active in campus activities and is president of UA's Omega Chapter of Alpha Gamma Delta sorority. "I loved the energy of the campus, which is big enough and close enough to downtown for the large campus feel, but small enough to feel connected to everything."
Would you like to see more? The gallery of TV commercials is available online.
Media contact: Eileen Korey, 330-972-8589 or korey@uakron.edu.