Waterloo - The theme of this year’s Canadian Council for the Advancement of Education (CCAE) national conference was “Hidden Treasures.” But after accepting two gold, one silver and two bronze Prix D’Excellence awards at the June 8 award ceremony, Laurier’s treasures were shining for all to see.

The Laurier Virtual Tour – an online campus tour for prospective students that replicates Laurier’s in-person tours at the Waterloo and Brantford campuses – earned Laurier’s Public Affairs and Student Recruitment departments a gold award for “best e-innovation” and a bronze for “best department or program site.” The virtual tour also came second to Oxford University as a runner-up for the Association for Commonwealth Universities (ACU) Marketing and Communications Award earlier this year.

“We designed the tour with video and a high level of interactivity to provide a similar experience to those on campus,” says Tony Frost, associate director: web and graphic services, who led the project team made up of staff from Public Affairs, Student Recruitment and Media Technology.

The site is rich in text, image and video content (there’s even an outtakes video). Users can participate in quizzes with a chance to win an iPod. “What is most unique about the site is the way users can navigate through it; they can customize a tour, navigate by map, select from a list or scroll through thumbnail images much like you would on an iPod,” says Frost.

Since the tour was launched in October, it has attracted visitors from around the globe and Canadian visitors outside of Laurier’s typical catchment area.

In addition to recognizing Laurier’s e-innovation in attracting students, CCAE awarded Laurier’s efforts with its alumni.

The Alumni Relations department earned a gold award for “best alumni event” for its Evening of Comedy: Laurier Alumni presents Russell Peters.

“It was a bit of a coup to secure someone of (Russell Peters’) calibre,” says associate director: alumni relations Roly Webster of the event’s high profile. “Our priority was to provide value to alumni by offering advance tickets and also giving students a discount.”

The third annual Evening of Comedy event was taken off campus and held at the Kitchener Memorial Auditorium for the first time last year. The sold-out event attracted 6,200 people and increased visibility for Laurier Homecoming.

Alumni Relation’s Homecoming 2008: Purple Reign was awarded silver in the “best alumni program” category. Webster credits the reunion programming, in which special events are organized for alumni at milestone reunion years, with continuing to develop Homecoming. Adding the Laurier Loop, a community running event that attracted 450 runners in its first year, has also allowed the surrounding community to join the Homecoming celebration.

“Under Teresa Smiley’s leadership, we’ve been able to make Homecoming a complete weekend for Laurier alumni, students and the community,” says Webster.

Laurier also won a bronze award in CCAE’s “special event” category recognizing the tribute dinner for recently retired vice-president of advancement Arthur Stephen. The special event was a joint effort between Public Affairs, Development and Alumni Relations.

“We loved how the event was tailored for Arthur Stephen,” reads the feedback from one of the award judges. “It was a good, heartfelt event.”

The gala dinner, attended by 240 of Stephen’s friends and colleagues, honoured his significant impact on Laurier throughout his 35-year career. The event featured a video compilation and speeches, as well as bagpipes as a nod to his Scottish heritage. Proceeds from the dinner established a scholarship in military history in Stephen’s name.

“They thought of every little detail to ensure that he was recognized,” wrote another judge.

CCAE is an association for educational advancement professionals. This year’s national conference, “Hidden Treasures” was held in Hamilton.