Niagara College's Nicolas Mertens wins 2021 CPRS/CISION Student Award of Excellence

TORONTO, Sept. 23, 2021 /CNW/ - The Canadian Public Relations Society (CPRS) and CISION jointly announced Niagara College student Nicolas Mertens as the recipient of the 2021 CPRS/CISION Student Award of Excellence. Recent graduate of the College's Graduate Certificate Public Relations Program, Mertens was selected from this year's nominees for demonstrating an innate understanding of public relations principles, his volunteerism and for his freelance communications support to small business owners and non-profits during the pandemic.

"Thank you so much! As someone who left their job as a restaurant manager 18 months ago, I cannot express how humbling this honor and experience with CPRS has been this year. This award is incredibly reassuring that I'm going in the right direction," said Nicolas Mertens. "I'd like to thank Emily McInerney, Liz Luzza, Stephen Murdoch, Laura Hughes and Chris Bowman at Niagara College Public Relations, as well as Laurie Zakreski and Mike Shipticki at Zak Communications. I don't think it takes much to imagine how far this award and prize will go as I start my career. So thank you once again."

As this year's winner, Mertens receives a $1,000 prize courtesy of CISION and a one-year Emerging Professional membership to CPRS.

"Nicolas is a spirited, emerging public relations professional with a keen interest in polishing key competencies and learning the skills required to thrive in the profession," said Alyssa Lai, Corporate Communications Consultant, The Co-operators / CPRS Hamilton mentor . "He asks thoughtful questions and demonstrates a willingness to learn and understand the foundational pillars of PR. He's well ahead in the path to become a multifaceted PR professional."

Established jointly by the two organizations, the CPRS/CISION Award of Excellence recognizes student excellence in public relations. Winning students have been nominated by their co-ordinators or instructors and were enrolled in the final year (or equivalent) of a recognized, full-time Canadian public relations program at the time of their win.

About CISION
Cision Ltd. (NYSE: CISN) is a leading global provider of earned media software and services to public relations and marketing communications professionals. Cision's software allows users to identify key influencers, craft and distribute strategic content, and measure meaningful impact. Cision has over 4,000 employees with offices in 15 countries throughout the Americas, EMEA, and APAC. For more information about its award-winning products and services, including the Cision Communications Cloud®, visit www.cision.com and follow Cision on Twitter @Cision.

About CPRS
Founded in 1948, the Canadian Public Relations Society (CPRS) is a not-for-profit association of professionals dedicated to the practice, management and teaching of public relations and communications. Comprising 13 local societies, CPRS' mission is to build a national public relations and communications management community through professional development and accreditation, collaboration with thought leaders, a commitment to ethics and a code of professional standards, advocacy for the profession, and support to members at every stage of their careers.

Cision is the exclusive distribution partner of the Canadian Public Relations Society - National.

For further information: Dan LaBelle, Manager, Marketing and Communications, Canadian Public Relations Society (CPRS), dlabelle@cprs.ca, 416 239 7034 ext. 246