Dean Loy Singleton of the College of Communication and Information Sciences praised the many accomplishments of the college over the past year in the annual State of the College Address Wednesday.

The speech, which took place on the front steps of Reese Phifer Hall, celebrated the plethora of awards won by C&IS students, faculty and staff as part of the second annual C&IS CommUnity Gathering.

“This past year has been truly special,” Singleton said. “The numbers, varieties and significance of awards is really unprecedented.”

The student ad team won first place in district competition and finished second out of 141 teams in the Advertising Federation National Student Advertising Competition.

Although they finished runner-up, their plans book scored number one in the nation.

Other awards won by students include the Alabama Forensic Council, who won more than 350 regional and national individual awards, as well as first place team awards in 12 of the 14 tournaments, Singleton said.

They also took home their 19th national championship in the Sigma Rho-Tau Kappa Alpha National Tournament.

“It’s really inspiring hearing about all the great honors everyone has received here,” Amanda Perrucci, a freshman majoring in public relations, said. “It motivates me to do well in the College of Communication.”

UA students weren’t the only ones celebrated this year, as C&IS faculty also pulled in their fair share of honors.

Bruce Berger, an advertising and public relations professor, will receive the Institute for Public Relations’ Pathfinder award for contributions to scholarly public relations research. He will travel to the Yale Club in New York where the award will be presented on Nov. 8. Roy Clem, the director of Commercial Broadcast operations and general manager for WVUA/ WUOA, was honored as the 2012 Broadcaster of the Year by the Alabama Broadcasters Association. Clem was also named to the ABA Hall of Fame.

Jason Black, the assistant dean for C&IS, also spoke during the address. He concluded by emphasizing the importance of continuing to improve the college and building a close knit community as the campus grows.

“No matter what changes come down the road, let’s renew our commitments to each other,” Black said. “Let’s put our heads together to adjust for change and to think of how changes can make us better as a college.”

After the address, a C&IS Organization Fair hosted within the rotunda of Reese Phifer Hall offered students the chance to meet with members of various communication organizations.

These groups include the Alabama Forensic Council, Society of Professional Journalists, Capstone Agency, Radio and Television Digital News Association, The Crimson White, Public Relations Council of Alabama, Student Productions Association, and Alabama Student Society for Communication and Arts.

“It’s important for our college to host an Organization Awareness Fair each year to present the resources of our college to students,” Michelle McClinton, president of the C&IS Student Executive Council, said. “We need to educate and encourage our students to take advantage of the resources provided to them.”