Professional Communication Award Winners 2023

Aidan Austria is from Markham, Ontario and is currently in his second year at TMU. Aidan enjoys basketball, graphic design, music, food, and spending time with his family. In the future, Aidan wants to pursue a career in creative marketing, which he hopes will allow him to use his communication skills to make a positive and lasting impact.

Stephanie Pilla is from Toronto, Ontario and is currently in her third year at TMU. In high school, Stephanie developed a love for writing and design, which led her to pursue her BA in Professional Communication. She currently works in marketing and communications at the Bartley Skills Development Program, a not-for-profit organization based in Brampton.

Annalise Cajic is a graduate of the Professional Communication BA program and, after a year running her freelance illustration business, she has returned to TMU to pursue her Master of Professional Communication degree. Annalise has a passion for visual communication and her research in the MPC program will focus on media aesthetics and AI generated art. She is honoured to receive the Ontario Graduate Scholarship and thrilled to have the opportunity to further her skills and continue learning from the professors and leaders at TMU.

Chiara Marcello recently graduated from the Professional Communication BA program at TMU with a double minor in Public Relations and Events and Live Entertainment Management. She's currently pursuing her Master's in Professional Communication and hopes to build a career in health communications and media relations. Chiara is an extroverted and creative person who is always looking for exciting opportunities in both her personal and professional life.

Denée Kiara Rudder is a recent graduate of the Master of Professional Communication program at TMU and she is driven by a passion for wellness, entrepreneurship, and social justice. In particular, Denée is focussed on addressing environmental justice issues. During her undergraduate degree in Journalism at TMU, she received the Penny Park Travel Journalism Award for an interactive map she created to shed light on environmental racism. Denée has held roles in public relations, digital marketing, and entrepreneurial ventures. Through her varied work experience, she's learned how to adapt to a variety of workplace cultures, including non-profit, start-up, and agency environments. She is the founder of My Centrepeace, a small business that provides creative content development services such as copywriting and digital marketing. In the future, Denée plans to pursue museum curation and hopes to work on projects that create meaningful change and make a strong impact.

Lee Eldridge served as Director of Advanced Technologies for more than 15 years at CJ Graphics, the world’s most award-winning print company, and was Associate Editor of DesignEdge, the Canadian trade magazine for graphic designers for seven years. He is currently a contract lecturer at TMU, where he teaches in the Graphic Communications Management program, as well as the Creative Industries program. As an academic consultant, Lee is developing course materials focused on generative AI technologies to integrate into some of the Creative Schools' most popular courses. His research focuses on mapping industry trends in the graphic communication industries, as well as the integration of AI-powered tools into creative professions and workflows.