Hall Named 2015 American Advertising Federation's Distinguished Advertising Educator

Steve Hall, Lecturer in Advertising for the Charles H. Sandage Department of Advertising at the University of Illinois, has been named the 2015 American Advertising Federation (AAF) Distinguished Advertising Educator.

For the past 23 years, Steve Hall has inspired students, inside and outside of the classroom, as a professor and as the faculty advisor for the largest chapter in the AAF collegiate network.

“Steve is tireless in his devotion to students,” said Dr. Jacquie Hitchon, head of the Charles H. Sandage Department of Advertising. “He not only welcomes hundreds into his classes — and treats them as if the interaction were one-on-one — but he also seizes every opportunity to introduce students to alumni in the industry, learns what interests them most, and helps them find their professional niche. He is as much beloved by faculty as students, and I cannot think of anyone more deserving of this immense honor.”

Awarded annually, the Distinguished Advertising Educator Award recognizes the best advertising professors in the United States. Nominees for the AAF Distinguished Advertising Educator Award must demonstrate excellence in teaching and student advisement, a record of scholarly research, publications and professional experience as well as active involvement in advertising organizations, the industry, academia and the community.

Hall¹s career and passion for advertising began like that of many of his students: in a University of Illinois classroom, where he earned a BS in Business Administration and Marketing and an MS in advertising. In 1996, he published Advertising in Contemporary Society: Perspectives Toward Understanding through the University of Illinois Press and is an active speaker on topics related to advertising education.

Hall has been a consistent mentor to students and helped launch a number of successful advertising careers. By leveraging his connections in the advertising industry, Hall has consistently created opportunities and experiences for his students that go far beyond the classroom, effectively meshing the advertising theories he teaches with the reality of the marketplace. In addition to advising his school¹s National Student Advertising Competition (NSAC) team, Hall is actively involved in professional organizations, including the AAF where he currently serves on the National Education Executive Committee.

“Steve is an educator in every sense of the word. He is a terrific recruiter, educating prospective students about a career in advertising,” stated Jan Slater, dean of the College of Media. “He is an incredible teacher (and he teaches to the masses) because he connects with each student - whether it is 30 or 300 in the class. He is the best Ad Club advisor in the country, because he gives the students his time all the time. He is a trusted resource for students when they graduate. And he can remember every student, what year they graduated and where they have worked. He is amazing.”

Hall will be honored at the NSAC luncheon, as part of the AAF’s national conference, ADMERICA. Every year the conference brings leading advertising professionals, agencies, clients, media companies and college students under one roof for education, inspiration, innovation, collaboration and celebration of the advertising industry.