December 19, 2007

Drexel University College of Medicine's Office of Communications and Marketing received several honors during the 39th annual Pepperpot and Achievement Awards reception. Each year the Public Relations Society of America's (PRSA) Philadelphia Chapter bestows awards for outstanding achievements in the field of public relations and communications. Top among these accolades is the Pepperpot award, one of the most coveted acknowledgments in the field.

The prestigious Pepperpot award was presented to the Office of Communications and Marketing in the Special Events Category for the 2006 Black Tie White Coat Ball, which raised $750,000 for HIV/AIDS research at the College of Medicine. The department also received two second place awards, including one for the 2006 Annual Report "Stepping Up to the Future." The other honor was in the Online Media Category for the Drexel Medcast^TM Podcast, a monthly medical podcast featuring leading academic physicians and scientists from the Drexel University College of Medicine faculty. The honors were awarded Dec. 6 at The Academy of Natural Sciences at 1900 Benjamin Franklin Parkway, in the presence of a crowded room filled with the region's top PR professionals.

"We are pleased to receive such recognition and are looking forward to another great Black Tie White Coat Ball on March 29," says Linda Roth, senior executive director of communications for the College of Medicine. This is the second time Drexel University College of Medicine has won the Pepperpot for the Black Tie White Coat Ball. The 2003 fundraiser, benefiting research in Alzheimer's and related diseases, also received the award.

History of the Pepperpot Awards
A former president of the PRSA Philadelphia Chapter and leader of Campbell Soup communications, William Parker, APR, named the award program in 1968. The award received its name from the famous pepper pot soup created during Washington's siege at Valley Forge. With little ingredients, the soldier's cook was ordered to feed a group of hungry men and produced a concoction made of tripe, peppercorns and whatever other scraps he could find. This aromatic and ample soup hit the spot and was known as the pepper pot dish that rallied excitement and strength among the men. Parker felt that good public relations campaigns incorporate the same idea, combining many ingredients to conjure excitement, energy, and some good-humored intrigue.