CHICAGO, IL / AGILITYPR.NEWS / March 18, 2026 / Contact: Amy Gwiazdowski, agwiazdowski@ama.org

2026 International Collegiate Conference Award Winners Announced by the American Marketing Association

Students and advisors from around the world gathered in Chicago for conference and competitions

Chicago, IL—The American Marketing Association (AMA) is excited to announce the competition and scholarship winners from this year’s 2026 International Collegiate Conference (ICC) held in Chicago. The conference is an opportunity for the next generation of marketers to make professional connections in the marketing field, learn and grow skills, and compete in marketing competitions. 

“The marketing talent on display at the 2026 International Collegiate Conference was nothing short of inspiring,” said Bennie F. Johnson, CEO of the AMA. “Our winners and scholarship recipients didn’t just meet the bar; they raised it. This year’s theme, Level Up, perfectly captured the drive and ambition our collegiate members brought to every competition. These students have proven they have the skill and vision to lead the next generation of marketing.”

“I also want to extend my gratitude to our conference co-chairs, Dr. Delonia Minor-Cooley and Dr. Loran Jarrett. The success of this event is due to their brilliant leadership, wisdom, and commitment to helping our students excel,” said Johnson. 

Competition Winners

• Case Competition – co-sponsored by Major League Baseball & Deloitte Consulting

          1st Place: 

          University of Wisconsin - Whitewater

          2nd Place:

          British Columbia Institute of Technology

          Montana State University - Bozeman

          Florida State University

          3rd Place:

          University of Cincinnati

          High Point University

          University of Nevada - Reno

          George Washington University

          Ferris State University

          Temple University 

          University of Pennsylvania

• Marketing Strategy Competition – sponsored by Medill School of Journalism & PPAI

          1st Place: 

          Bob Jones University

          Zan Herzog & Eric Weist

          2nd Place: 

          Montana State University - Bozeman

          Lizzy Totten & Lindsay Posewitz

          3rd Place: 

          Plymouth State University

          Thomas Giessler & Carissa Adams

• Perfect Pitch Competition – sponsored by Gartner 

          1st Place: 

          Hailey Hesseltine, Texas State University

          Madison Silcox, Virginia Commonwealth University

          2nd Place: 

          Mohamed Turay, Virginia Commonwealth University

          Michael Van Offeren, University of Wisconsin - Whitewater

          3rd Place: 

          Ashlynn Chavez, California State University - Long Beach

          Kayla Lee, Virginia Commonwealth University

          4th Place: 

          Paris Graham, Florida State University

          Peter Waning, Marian University

          5th Place: 

          Kaarthika Vinayak, Virginia Commonwealth University

          Nicholas Williams, University of Tampa

          6th Place: 

          Eli Givens, Marian University

          Lexi Urbassik, Bloomsburg University - Pennsylvania

          7th Place: 

          Zane Herzog, Bob Jones University

          Ella Crouch, Lipscomb University

          8th Place: 

          Nicole Nowak, University of Tampa

          Addison Villegas, Texas State University

          9th Place: 

          Diego Vacaflores, Texas State University

          Russell Magpayo, Virginia Commonwealth University

          10th Place: 

          Caitlyn Muniz, North Carolina State University

          Valeria Collazo Muñiz, University of Puerto Rico - Rio Piedras

• Sales Competition – sponsored by Insight Global

          1st Place: 

          Paris Graham, Florida State University

          Jordan Rosenblum, Florida State University

          Luis Lopez, University of Texas - Arlington

          2nd Place:

          Adam Hvitfeldt-Matthews, Virginia Commonwealth University

          Valeria Ruiz, Kennesaw State University

          Isaac Oh, California State University - Long Beach

          3rd Place:

          Dylan Green, California State University - Chico

          Abby Zimmerman, University of Wisconsin - Whitewater

          Victoria Adams, Virginia Commonwealth University

          4th Place:

          Daniela Jarpa Sarmiento, Lipscomb University

          Joshua Fisher, Robert Morris University

          Taylor Wojcinski, University of Wisconsin - Whitewater

          5th Place:

          Michael Van Offeren, University of Wisconsin - Whitewater

          Jason Schiltz, St. John Fisher University

          Chloe Pasquet, Florida State University

• Marketing Business Simulation Competition – sponsored by Marketplace Simulations

          1st Place: 

          Florida International University

          2nd Place: 

          California State University - Long Beach

          3rd Place: 

          Missouri State University

          4th Place:

          St. John Fisher University

          5th Place: 

          John Carroll University

• Digital Marketing Competition – sponsored by Minus33 & McGraw Hill

          1st Place: 

          North Carolina State University

          2nd Place: 

          Pennsylvania State University

          3rd Place: 

          Rice University

• Design Lab Marketing Competition – sponsored by Polymarket

          1st Place: 

          Virginia Commonwealth University

          2nd Place: 

          West Chester University

          3rd Place: 

          Robert Morris University

Award Winners

• Faculty Advisor Lifetime Achievement Award Winner
• Delonia Minor- Cooley, Texas Southern University 
• Hugh G. Wales Faculty Advisor of the Year
• John Davis - University of Oregon
• Student Marketer of Year
• Anjali Sharma, University of Maryland - College Park

Chapter Winners

• International Chapters of the Year: Small Chapter Division
• Bellarmine University 
• International Chapters of the Year: Large Chapter Division 
• Pennsylvania State University
• University of Nevada - Las Vegas
• University of Puerto Rico - Rio Piedras

Scholarship Recipients

• Diversity Leadership Scholarship
• Billy Zheng, University of Pennsylvania
• Ryan Dong, University of Pennsylvania
• Kayla Dahmer, University of Southern Indiana
• Dwight R. Smith, University of Maryland Global Campus
• Yisel Irizarry, University of Puerto Rico Mayagüez
• Robert DeLay Social Impact Scholarship
• Maggie Gu, University of Pennsylvania
• Christopher Kwok, University of Pennsylvania
• Uma Mukhopadhyay, University of Pennsylvania
• Stryker Buoncristiano Scholarship
• Samuel Richards, California State University Chico
• Andie Lovejoy, University of Maine
• Lee Epstein Scholarship
• Caitlin Eng, Clemson University
• Christian Kim, University of Pennsylvania
• EBSCO Student Scholar Award
• Kate Ahn, University of Pennsylvania
• Giana Colonna, University of Maryland College Park
• Luke Robinson, University of Maryland College Park

Finally, a thank you to all of this year’s competition sponsors, exhibitors and recruiters:

Case Competition Co-Sponsors

• Major League Baseball & Deloitte Consulting

Sales Competition Sponsor

• Insight Global

Perfect Pitch Competition

• Gartner

Event Partner

• Enterprise Mobility & L’Oreal

Marketing Business Simulation Competition Sponsor

• Marketplace Simulations

Digital Marketing Competition Sponsor

• Minus33 & McGraw Hill

Design Lab Marketing Competition Sponsor

• Polymarket

Dinner Sponsor

• PPAI

Sales Showcase Sponsors

• Black Diamond Networks
• Cintas
• Gartner
• Goosehead Insurance
• Gray Television
• Insight Global
• Samsara
• Tom Jones

Skill Up Station Sponsors

• Enterprise Mobility 
• Gartner
• Purdue University
• West Virginia University Reed College of Media

Faculty Reception Sponsors

• Enterprise Mobility
• Digital Marketing Institute

Exhibitors and Recruiters

• Black Diamond Networks
• CED
• Chicago Fire FC
• Cintas
• Eight Eleven Group
• Enterprise Mobility
• Florida Atlantic University
• Gartner
• Goosehead Insurance
• Gray Media
• Harvard Business School
• Insight Global
• Jackson Family Wines
• Kambia
• L’Oreal 
• Marriott Vacations Worldwide
• Medill School of Journalism, Integrated Marketing Communications
• Polymarket
• Purdue University Daniels School of Business
• Samsara
• Savannah College of Art
• Tom James
• WPP Media
• WVU John Chambers College of Business & Economics

Next year’s ICC will take place April 8-10, 2027 in New Orleans, LA. More information: 2027 AMA International Collegiate Conference. 

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