2024 Most Promising Rising Star

The Most Promising Rising Star Award recognizes alumni who have made notable contributions to the advertising industry within 5-8 years of graduating from Most Promising Multicultural Students program. This accolade celebrates individuals who have demonstrated exceptional talent, leadership, and innovation in their careers, making a significant impact on the field and championing an inclusive industry along the way. Recipients of this award embody the values and excellence that the Most Promising Multicultural Student program instills in its inductees and serve as inspiring role models for current students and aspiring advertising professionals.

Kennedy Studdard
Director, MAIP Alumni & High School Programs
4A's Foundation

Kennedy Studdard is a strategic diversity, equity, inclusion & belonging (DEIB) practitioner and an avid champion for supporting and mentoring diverse industry professionals. By way of two multicultural fellowship programs – the 4A's Foundation's Multicultural Advertising Intern Program (MAIP) and the American Advertising Federation's Most Promising Multicultural Students Program—she understands the impact of how important programs like these will open doors and can change lives of diverse talent looking to break into the industry.

Kennedy found her career calling in DEIB, both in the agency side and in the nonprofit sector, because of those fellowships. Moreover, they allowed her to discover her life’s mission to help diversify the advertising industry through resources, programming and mentorship efforts. She has worn many different hats within the advertising industry, such as leading agency ERGs nation-wide and globally, building strategic campus recruitment efforts for early career talent programs, leading summer internships and programming across the US, helping diverse talent find a way into the industry, supporting alumni programming and relations, building partnerships & programming with industry and agency leaders, and so much more.

Most Promising Multicultural Students Program

Last Updated: February 2024