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Boise State, Saint John’s University (Minnesota) and UTSA staff members earn recognition for their innovative projects and initiatives created during the 2025-26 academic year. This is the sixth year of recognizing members for their work as part of the CSC ChangeMaker Innovation Awards.
by Becky Griesmer – CSC Director of Operations and Professional Development
Athletic communications staff members and colleagues from
Boise State University,
Saint John’s University (Minnesota) and the
University of Texas-San Antonio (UTSA) have been selected as recipients of the 2025-26 College Sports Communicators (CSC)
ChangeMaker Innovation Award for implementing recent collaborative initiatives.
The purpose of the ChangeMaker Innovation Awards is to recognize forward-thinkers who bring new ideas to life — and strengthen the position of CSC members and our work — with special content, a branding and messaging campaign, new storyteller packages, social media initiatives, a digital series, new event coverage, game management strategies and more. In its sixth year of the award, CSC has previously recognized 13 universities for their creative work.
Boise State’s winning entry focused on storytelling through a high-level, news-style production with the creation of
“Bronco Studios.” The award nomination was submitted by
Chris Kutz, Boise State Senior Associate AD, External Affairs.
“What makes Bronco Studios truly worthy of the ChangeMaker Award is how it flips the script on the athletic communications department, turning a traditionally cost-center unit into a direct revenue generator,” said Kutz.
The project was spearheaded by Boise State’s communications and live shows teams and allowed further engagement and impact to their fan base. The project generated $111,881 in measurable social media value on posts alone and achieved 4.7 million social media impressions, including 1.1 million video views across platforms, including YouTube.
Saint John’s University brought together two corners of campus that previously had little interaction – art and athletics – to create a collaborative storytelling project that redefines the game day experience.
“Plays to Portraits” was championed by
Ryan Klinkner, SJU Director of Athletic Communications and
Jordan Modjeski, SJU Assistant Director of Athletic Communications and pairs student-photographers with student-artists to capture live moments of competition and transform them into original artwork.
Modjeski mentioned in her application that the project “introduced a human-centered way to capture and share the student-athlete and student-artist experience – one that is both creative and collaborative. It created a model for how the institution can continue to think differently and bridge more “unlikely” partnerships to elevate voices of the entire campus community.”
UTSA’s winning entry,
“UTSA First Gen,” highlighted the fact that the university was the first school in the nation to implement specially designed jersey patches on the uniforms and gear for first-generation college student-athletes. The campaign was submitted by
Sean Cartell, UTSA Chief of Staff and Senior Associate Athletics Director for Strategic Initiatives and Brand Advancement.
“This has been a basis for UTSA Athletics storytelling in 2025-26 and is housed on a website that also provides first-generation student resources. UTSA Athletics is the first school in the nation to focus on this initiative, making it worthy of the ChangeMaker Innovation Award,” said Cartell.
“Congratulations to our 2025-26 CSC ChangeMaker Innovation Award winners. This honor recognizes three outstanding teams who are driving meaningful progress within their institutions and across our industry. Their leadership, innovation, and commitment to making a difference exemplify the very best of College Sports Communicators, and we are proud to celebrate their impact,” said Jason Yaman, CSC Executive Director.
“Congratulations to the winners of this year's ChangeMaker Innovation Awards, representing dynamic storytelling, content creation and brand enhancement strategies,” said Patrick Crawford, 2025-26 CSC President. “Big maneuvers or small changes, every step taken to drive the communications profession forward should be celebrated. The guiding principle for so many in our membership is to put the best possible representations of their schools and organizations outward to the public. In different manners, our three school honorees – UTSA, Saint John’s (Minn.) and Boise State – all found ways to uniquely elevate the visibility of their organization. Congratulations to our winners, once again, on behalf of CSC and thank you for all you have done to elevate our profession.”
The three winners will be honored during the
Special Awards Luncheon at
CSC Unite 2026 on Wednesday, June 10 at the Mandalay Bay Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada.
Here is a closer look at the three 2025-26 ChangeMaker Innovation Awards and the teams behind the projects.
Boise State: Bronco Studios
Submitted by: Chris Kutz, Senior Associate AD, External Affairs
Project collaborators:
Chris Kutz, Senior Associate AD, External Affairs
Jay Tust, Director, Digital and Live Shows
Colby Harms, Assistant AD, Creative Solutions
Craig Lawson, Assistant AD, Sports Communications
Suzanne Lavender, Assistant AD, Strategic Communications
Alex Semadeni, Director, Sports Communications
Jordan Beasley, Director, Sports Communications
David Dietrich, Assistant Director, Sports Communications
Camryn Edens, Assistant Director, Sports Communications
Nick Gruber, Graduate Assistant, Sports Communications
Dain Solberg, Graduate Assistant, Sports Communications
Kutz began his submission by sharing how the idea for this project was born during a weekend hike in 2024 and has grown into an important storytelling component for Boise State Athletics this season. Anchored by Bronco Studios Live presented by Ford — a 45- to 60-minute show airing three times a week across YouTube, the Bronco Sports app, Pac-12 Insider and soon a local TV affiliate — the initiative has grown quickly. Led by award-winning anchor Jay Tust, the program elevates Boise State’s voice with broadcast-level quality while expanding into pregame, postgame, spring practice and specialty programming that reaches all 18 sport programs. It has had 30,425 hours of watch time on YouTube, which is up 10 times from two years ago.
By creating sponsorable assets and investing in professional-grade equipment, the team transformed a traditional cost center into a revenue-generating engine — doubling its initial investment in year one and establishing a scalable model for the future. The studio has also strengthened campus partnerships, including a unique collaboration with Boise State’s national-champion esports program.
Kutz said he is looking forward to the future of Bronco Studios and that “the new formats of conversation and storytelling will positively impact our revenue generation and storytelling, while not sacrificing our ability to serve our media and further the brand of Boise State.”
By The Numbers
- More than doubled return on investment in equipment costs in year one
- Generated $111,881 in measurable social media value on posts alone
- Achieved 4.7 million social media impressions
- Secured 1.1 million video views across social platforms, including YouTube
- 30,425 hours of watch time on YouTube, which was up 10x from two years ago on the Boise State Athletics YouTube page
- Increased distribution across conference and local TV partners to establish more reach for new audiences
Saint John's University (MN): Plays to Portraits
Submitted by: Jordan Modjeski, Assistant Director of Athletic Communications
Project collaborators:
Ryan Klinkner, SJU, Director of Athletic Communications
Jordan Modjeski, SJU, Assistant Director of Athletic Communications
Frank Rajkowski, CSB+SJU, Writer/Video Producer
Darci Ulloa, CSB+SJU, Art Department Coordinator
Josh Johnston, SJU, Athletics Student-Photographer
Ella Carlson, SJU, Athletics Student-Photographer
Olivia Shaw, CSB, Athletics Student-Photographer
Elliott Johnson, CSB+SJU, Student-Artist
Phoebe Johnson, CSB+SJU, Student-Artist
Lucy Cunningham, CSB+SJU, Student-Artist
Tom Morris, CSB+SJU, Marketing & Communications Photographer
Jordyn Swoboda, CSB+SJU, Marketing & Communications Social Media Manager
Click here to view SJU's "Plays to Portraits" submission
Saint John’s University reimagined the game day experience by collaborating with the Saint Benedict and Saint John’s art department, marketing and communications office and student contributors to create a department-bridging learning experience. “Plays to Portraits” pairs student-photographers with student-artists to capture live moments of competition and recreate them as original artwork — all in real time.
The process is as creative as it is collaborative. Photographers capture early-game action and send images to artists stationed on the sidelines, who then spend the remainder of the contest transforming those moments into sketches, drawings or paintings. After the game, student-athletes receive a unique keepsake that reflects both the emotion of the play and the artistry behind it. The initiative has expanded to other sports and will culminate in a campus gallery where the artwork can be displayed and purchased.
By breaking down silos between academic and athletic departments, the project elevated storytelling, brought new students to athletics events and created a deeply human connection among the student body.
Modjeski shared that the project “elevated disciplines for all three involved parties: athletics gained a deeper storytelling element beyond photography and statistics, student-photographers captured images with a different artistic lens in mind and art students were given a high-pressure, real-world creative opportunity with a live audience. The results were nothing short of incredible — a dynamic gallery of original action artwork that reflects both individual artistic voice and specific athletic styles of play.”
UTSA: UTSA First Gen
Submitted by: Sean Cartell, Chief of Staff and Senior Associate Athletics Director for Strategic Initiatives and Brand Advancement
Project collaborators:
Sean Cartell, Chief of Staff and Senior Associate Athletics Director for Strategic Initiatives and Brand Advancement
Katie Meyers, Associate Athletics Director for Brand Engagement
Jake Rosas, Video Coordinator
Click here to view UTSA's "First Gen" submission
UTSA Athletics has emerged as a national leader in championing first-generation students-athletes, turning a core institutional identity into a powerful storytelling platform. With nearly half of the student body and more than one-third of student-athletes identifying as first-generation, “UTSA First Gen” was launched as a campaign that celebrates this community and provides meaningful resources.
The jersey patches were announced in July 2025 and received more than 65,000 impressions on UTSA Athletics social media accounts on the first day. This highly visible symbol sparked national attention from ESPN’s SportsCenter, major sports outlets and higher education media, elevating UTSA’s commitment to access and opportunity.
The campaign extends beyond branding. A dedicated website houses first-generation resources, personal stories and ongoing programming that highlights the experiences of student-athletes. As Cartell wrote in his entry, “this is an incredibly meaningful initiative not just related to how athletics are perceived, but really taking into account the whole person of a student-athlete.” He added that “this initiative not only generates attention for UTSA Athletics but has the potential to be transformational in the lives of our student-athletes and their families for generations to come.”
By centering first-generation identity in such a public and celebratory way, UTSA set a new national standard for how athletics can advance institutional mission and student success.
