A Beatles-inspired illustration that was commissioned for the fall 2018 issue of Monmouth magazine has been honored with a Bronze level Circle of Excellence Award from the Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE).
The full-page, “Where’s Waldo” style illustration, which was drawn by Victoria, British Columbia–based freelance artist Julie McLaughlin, challenged readers to find the dozens of references to Beatles songs and lyrics it contained. It accompanied a Q&A with Kenneth Womack, dean of the Wayne D. McMurray School of Humanities and Social Sciences and a world-renowned authority on the Fab Four.
In their report, CASE judges said of the illustration: “We had a great time with this one, figuring out the images and related songs. It touched on a lot of iconic Beatles things, lots going on, but not too much. The more you look, the more you find. We loved the color and felt it was a great interpretation of the original yellow submarine piece. For an alumni magazine, it felt unique—not what you usually see. It’s nice to see pop culture in an alumni magazine!”
According to the CASE website, the Circle of Excellence Awards program honors “outstanding work in advancement services, alumni relations, communications, fundraising, and marketing at colleges, universities, independent schools, and affiliated nonprofits.” In 2019, CASE received 2,856 entries for consideration in 100 categories by 611 member higher education institutions, independent schools, and nonprofits from 20 countries.
