Mother-daughter duo support UW COJO department |
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For the vibrant mother-and-daughter duo, Gwinavere and GG Johnston, giving to the University of Wyoming is a heartfelt commitment.
The UW alumnae gave $25,000 to the UW Department of Communications and Journalism. The money will be allocated for scholarships that will give students an opportunity to attend a national Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) conference and a one-week intense internship at JohnstonWells, a public relations firm in Denver founded by Gwin Johnston 35 years ago.
“When Gwin started JohnstonWells, she established an expectation and standard, which is to always support the community not only in terms of dollars, but in terms of our time and energy,” says her daughter, GG.
The dynamic duo would like to see the gift help students to see a path from their education to the reality of becoming productive members of the business world and have the ability to support their communities.
“I think sometimes with education, it’s really important to see the context to which you are going to apply what you are learning and to get a real sense of what’s happening in a PR industry,” says GG.
The goal of the internship is to allow the students to learn and plunge into life in a busy PR firm.
“We want to do whatever we can to support the students at our beloved alma mater,” GG says of the gift to UW.
GG is the president and COO of JohnstonWells, where she manages the firm’s operations and oversees client accounts. She also oversees the firm’s human resources and professional development programs. Gwin is the founder and CEO of the firm. Both obtained their bachelor’s degrees in journalism from UW.
Gwin is a member of the board of directors for the Two Percent Club, an organization that promotes companies that give two percent of their gross income back to the community.
“I think that is a part of our heart and soul that we give back, and we do that in a lot of different ways. There are big ways to get involved, there are everyday ways to get involved, and we try to do both,” GG says. “UW has remained a special place for both Gwin and me, and the success of our business really started at UW. The Wyoming tenacity that we’ve learned and being a part of the Wyoming community for so many years has helped us make our business successful. We have a real soft spot and a love for Wyoming , and since UW is such an important part of the fabric of the state, we wanted to do something special.”
JohnstonWells is one of the largest public relations firms in the Rocky Mountain region and has been named one of the best agencies to work for by leading PR-industry watchdog Paul Holmes, author of The Holmes Report.
“I believe I got a very fine education at UW, and I was challenged in a way that I don’t think I would have been at any other public university,” GG says. “UW will continue to be a very fine institution that offers a very quality education for a very affordable price, and I don’t know if it can get much better than that.” Posted on Friday, March 17, 2006
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