OTM Tips from the 2001-2002 NEACURH Judging Committee

  Check your grammar
  Use specific, concrete examples.  Don't just say, "She did a great job!"  Tell us exactly what she did.
  Get to the point.  Don't put so much fluff into the OTM that you never get into the substance of the submission.
  Originality and creativity help.
  Tell us something that will make the OTM stand out.
  For program OTMs, show us the effectiveness the program had.  Tell us about the goals you had, etc.
  Make sure your OTM fits the category, and show us that it does.
Utilize the word count wisely.

OTM Tips from the NRHH National Office
Special thanks to Deidra “D” Tate, the past National Associate Director of OTMs.

  Be month specific! Sure it is nice background to know that Bubba has been a
great RA all year but these are Of the Month awards so what did Bubba do this month
to make it so special. Same goes with an annual program. If it is Bubba’s fourth
annual Ping-Pong Tournament, what made this one so much better than the other
three before it?

  Don’t waste words! Too often people ramble on for the first 100 words or so of the
OTM saying that Bubba is the best NCC and is always in the office when he is needed.
Bubba is always volunteering to do stuff and Bubba is a really good friend. That is all
great information but it isn’t month specific, nor should it cut into the list of great
things that Bubba has done this month. Flowery phrases like “Bubba went above and
beyond this month and he rocks my world!” are only nice when the OTM also says how
he did so much or how he rocked.

  Don’t forget to say what is normal for the position. Not all schools have the same
job description for the same positions. If Bubba is nominated for the Exec Board
Member OTM because he is the “IRHC’s Ombudsmen” - that doesn’t tell the reader
anything. So what does that mean? What is an ombudsman? Does that have to do with
marijuana? Make sure to give a brief job description or some expectations of the
position - it makes it easier to see someone has gone “higher than expected.”

  Make sure you proofread it! Sounds simple enough but running spell check is
not enough to catch all of your miss steaks. Have someone else read it two and see if
that helps. Reading an OTM that hasn’t been proofed makes it difficult to under sand
some fines.

  When reading an OTM the committee and “D” look at quality as much as quantity.
This means that if Bubba was involved with 10 programs last month but if all he
did was count people at the door then he may not have done as much as BettyAnne
who only did three programs but did them all by herself.

  Everyone knows the Program of the Year last year was great - hence why it got
POTY. Isn’t it kind of silly to give it an OTM later on? Now sometimes if a great
program has been recognized in the past it will be recognized again? Why? Because if
it was designed to be a program for a school of 40,000 students put on by 50 students
and a school of 4000 did it with 5 students then that is some serious adaptation. No
program is a sure winner - say how you did it different than the other fifty schools that
did it that month or did it last year and it will help the strength of your OTM.

  As a favor to the National Office, make sure that you have the nominee’s name
and address correct. There is nothing more embarrassing than misspelling Bubba’s
name on an OTM and then us sending his OTM pin and certificate to the wrong place.

Most of all there are no special tricks to winning OTMs. There are no sure fire
winning programs or people. OTMs are judged on strength which is a relative measure-ment.  In other words - it all depends on what was turned in that month. Some months
competition is fierce and others even Bubba could win!