Best of CASE District III Award
 

Institution: Samford University

Title of entry: Believe In Yourself: Vivian Cunningham Earns Samford Degree at 78

About this entry: Vivian Cunningham earned her Samford University degree in 2021 at the age of 78, persisting through the COVID-19 pandemic after decades of hardships and piecemeal higher education. The single mother had deferred her own dreams in the 1960s and worked overnight as a custodian for more than a decade to provide for her children. When the children were grown they encouraged her to continue her education with the support of an employee college benefit. She enrolled in several colleges in her native Birmingham, Alabama, but finally found her academic home at Samford, largely due to the support and encouragement of the university’s staff and faculty.

To tell Cunningham’s inspiring and moving story for maximum impact, Samford’s Division of Marketing and Communication created a short video documenting her journey to earn her bachelor's degree from Samford. First, we conducted an in-person interview with Ms. Cunningham to develop an initial video to support the telling of her story. Then, just weeks later, we conducted a secondary interview and captured highlights from her graduation day. As a result, her story and our video content was featured in national and international media including "The Today Show," "People Magazine," "Good Morning America."