Brigham Young University Wins Top Place in PRSSA's 2025 Bateman Case Study Competition
May. 9, 2025
This Year's Campaign Aimed to Increase Awareness for EveryLibrary's Mission
NEW YORK, May 9, 2025 – The Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA), the foremost organization for students interested in the public relations and communications fields, announced today that Brigham Young University's (BYU) True Blue Team has been selected as the winner of the 2025 Bateman Case Study Competition. The University of Alabama won second place and Syracuse University finished third.
This year's Bateman Case Study challenged students to develop a campaign on behalf of EveryLibrary and the EveryLibrary Institute. EveryLibrary is the only national 504(c)4 political action committee for libraries. Their mission is to support public libraries on Election Days, stabilize school library budgets, guard against book bans and engage with state legislatures alongside partner organizations. The Competition focused on positioning EveryLibrary as the leading national organization for library activists, donors and users.
“What makes this PRSSA program so valuable is that it lets students navigate real-world challenges,” said Ray Day, APR, 2025 PRSA Chair, Stagwell vice chair and Allison Worldwide executive chair. “They’re creating campaigns, solving problems and seeing firsthand how strategy creates measurable impact. These experiences help empower our students to become exceptional communicators and professionals.”
The Bateman Case Study Competition began in 1973 as a national initiative designed to help PRSSA members develop and apply critical thinking and problem-solving skills in public relations. In 1983, the Competition was renamed in honor of the late J. Carroll Bateman, APR. Bateman was a past president of PRSA and instrumental in the founding of PRSSA.
BYU's “For the Love of EveryLibrary” campaign was a strategic public relations initiative for EveryLibrary centered around National Love Your Library Month. The goal was to turn Utah mothers — who overwhelmingly love their libraries but lacked awareness of advocacy efforts — into informed and active supporters of library funding and access. The campaign raised awareness about threats to libraries — like book bans and budget cuts — but at its heart, it was a rallying cry to support local libraries, essential community spaces, while amplifying EveryLibrary’s mission to protect them.
The True Blue Team used influencer collaborations, community events, targeted social media content and a key partnership with Let Utah Read. Their message reached nearly 50,000 people, generated over 140 email sign-ups and drew 142 event attendees. “For the Love of EveryLibrary” transformed Utah mothers’ passive appreciation into tangible advocacy for the future of libraries.
“When a hardworking team listens to their client, stays research-focused and leans into creativity, the reward is seeing real change happen through your work," said Maurielle Cook Celaya, a BYU True Blue Team member. "We were lucky enough to witness that firsthand as we focused on loving EveryLibrary, and we’re so grateful for the experience. It was both inspiring and incredibly motivating.”
PRSSA received 45 entries for the Bateman Competition from colleges and universities across the nation. In addition to the three finalists, nine entries received honorable mention:
- California State University, Long Beach
- Chapman University: Team 3
- High Point University
- Louisiana State University
- Montclair State University
- Texas State University: CommCats
- University of Florida
- University of Oregon
- University of South Carolina
About EveryLibrary and the EveryLibrary Institute
EveryLibrary helps public, school and college libraries win funding at the ballot box, ensuring stable funding and access to libraries for generations to come. The organization also supports grassroots groups across the country defend and support their local library against book banning, illicit political interference and threats of closure. The EveryLibrary Institute is a companion organization to EveryLibrary, the first national political action committee for libraries. The EveryLibrary Institute’s mission of research, training librarians and programmatic support for libraries is closely aligned with EveryLibrary’s 501(c)4 mission of building voter support for libraries.
About PRSSA
The Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) is the foremost organization for students interested in public relations and communications. Since 1967, PRSSA has served hundreds of thousands of student members, offering educational programs, resources, scholarships and mentorship opportunities that prepare students for a successful career in communications. For nearly 50 years, the organization has hosted the Bateman Case Study Competition, which challenges student teams to implement a public relations campaign for an actual client. PRSSA is active on college and university campuses across the U.S., as well as Argentina, Colombia, Mexico, Peru and Puerto Rico. For more information, visit www.prssa.org.
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