McMaster University has won five awards for outstanding achievements in communications from the Canadian Council for the Advancement of Education (CCAE).
At the recent 2026 Prix d'Excellence Celebration, the university earned Gold Awards for Best Creativity on a Shoestring, Best Advertisement or Poster (online & print), and Best Photograph and Silver Awards for the Best Indigenous Peoples/Reconciliation Initiative and Best Donor Relations/Stewardship Initiative.
The awards are a testament to the outstanding work done by the University's communicators, said David Estok, advisor to the President for Communications, Marketing & Public Affairs (CMPA).
"Every day, our staff and faculty share compelling stories, create engaging visual content, build meaningful connections, and drive our success in countless other ways," said Estok. "This recognition reflects the quality, consistency and care our colleagues bring to their work. It's something we can all be proud of here at McMaster."
Learn more about the Prix d'Excellence award winners.
Setting the Course: Swinging into community engagement
Award: CCAE Prix d'Excellence Gold Award
Category: Best Creativity on a Shoestring
Setting the Course, an initiative that started out as a way to welcome McMaster's new president, became an institution-wide engagement platform used for events and the University's strategic planning process.
Because President Susan Tighe is a golf fan, Communications partnered with Facility Services, Athletics and Recreation, and Media Production Services to build a portable, McMaster-themed, two-hole mini-putt course and paired it with a short-form video series called "Mini Putt & Chat with Susan." The course contained some quick facts about McMaster and about President Tighe.
Setting the Course has been used at multiple community events, including a summer Strawberry Social to introduce the new president and international student welcome events. The metaphor resonated so strongly that "Setting the Course" was adopted as the name and creative framework for the University's strategic planning process, which launched in November 2025 - helping make executive engagement and strategy-building approachable, interactive and distinctly McMaster, while keeping costs low through in-house design and production.
People of McMaster Engineering graduate research
Award: CCAE Prix d'Excellence Gold Award
Category: Best Advertisement or Poster (online & print)
The Faculty of Engineering communications team launched a poster campaign about graduate students after receiving feedback that the existing posters in the main engineering building were outdated and did little to convey the true experience of 1,300 graduate students in the Faculty.
The team created 24 posters that each featured a student along with a quote about what makes McMaster special, an explanation of their research, and a QR code that directs people to the graduate studies webpage.
Every academic department was represented at least once on the posters which are mounted in the lobby, stairwells and key hallways of the John Hodgins Engineering building. This project not only improved relationships with graduate students, but also spread awareness of their impactful research, accrued resources for future marketing, and improved awareness about graduate studies among the undergraduate student population.
Canada's Nuclear University: Training Tomorrow's Reactor Workforce
Award: CCAE Prix d'Excellence Gold Award
Category: Best Photograph
A photograph that features two graduate students in McMaster's nuclear engineering program was created to highlight the hands-on training opportunities that make McMaster Canada's leading institution for nuclear education and research. The photograph, which shows the students working with reactor-related imaging equipment, supports a feature story on Canada's nuclear university: How McMaster is fueling the future of nuclear.
The composition, industrial framing and authentic depiction of advanced imaging research convey the sophistication of McMaster's nuclear capabilities and the experiential learning environment offered exclusively on campus. The image was published in the Globe and Mail, used in an international ad campaign, posted in McMaster News stories and on social media channels, and played a central role in reputation-building and recruitment storytelling and in encouraging students and researchers to explore nuclear training pathways.
Truth and Reconciliation Communications Standing Committee
Award: CCAE Prix d'Excellence Silver Award
Category: Best Indigenous Peoples/Reconciliation Initiative
The Truth and Reconciliation Communications Standing Committee has mobilized McMaster's campus community to turn reconciliation from a symbolic day into sustained, year-round action. By coordinating communications, education and engagement, the committee increases participation in National Day for Truth and Reconciliation initiatives, supports Indigenous learners through targeted fundraising, and reduces the burden on Indigenous faculty, staff and students. With equal numbers of Indigenous and non-Indigenous members, the committee shares responsibility for planning and delivery, embedding reconciliation into everyday university communications and creating a scalable, institution-wide model.
Members are guided by three principles: reconciliation begins with education, requires ongoing commitment, and must endure. In 2025, the committee coordinated institution-wide support for Indigenous History Month and National Day for Truth and Reconciliation, aligning messaging, events and leadership engagement. A pilot mini-campaign, Support Indigenous Learners at McMaster, raised $4,235 from 33 donors. The committee launched a website and FAQ for internal audiences, designed by non-Indigenous members and reviewed by Indigenous colleagues to reduce repeated questions directed to Indigenous faculty, staff and students. It also coordinated personal messages from senior leaders reflecting on steps they are taking to grow their understanding and practice in support of reconciliation and Indigenous education.
The committee works to embed Truth and Reconciliation into the fabric of campus communications and community engagement throughout the year. Its goals are grounded in McMaster's commitment to Indigenous Strategic Directions and the Truth & Reconciliation Commission of Canada's Calls to Action, and it aims to ensure that reconciliation becomes part of everyday practice.
The McMaster Field Book: A Tribute
Award: CCAE Prix d'Excellence Silver Award
Category: Best Donor Relations/Stewardship Initiative
The McMaster Field Book was a tribute created in gratitude for a donor and volunteer at the university as they concluded their term on the Science Advisory Board. This one-of-a-kind gift was a custom notebook filled with personal messages from university leadership, faculty, staff, volunteers, and students who were eager to thank the donor for their generosity over the years. This highly collaborative stewardship initiative celebrated the donor's final meeting on the board with a meaningful memento that signified their outstanding legacy at McMaster.
