06/05/12 mcw

HAYS, Kan. -- Fort Hays State University's online presence has earned it a spot in the Social Madness challenge sponsored by American City Business Journals.

The challenge consists of three categories based on the number of employees each organization or company has. All nominated companies can receive votes during the first phase, which ends June 18. FHSU is leading the large company (500-plus employees) bracket by almost 100 votes. At the end of the first phase, eight companies leading each category will move on to the local bracket phase and receive rankings based on the number of votes earned within the first phase.

The local bracket phase is divided into three rounds. Voting for the phase begins June 19 and ends July 16. Round 1 lasts a week and ends with eight companies advancing to the following round two. Voting in this round also lasts a week, but ends with four advancing companies.

Voting in the third round lasts two weeks and will end with two companies moving to the national competition. The top 21 companies with the most votes within each category will also advance to the national competition. A week-long break from voting will follow this phase.

The national bracket phase lasts from July 24 to Sept. 10 and is divided into seven rounds. The first five rounds last a week each and kick off with 64 contenders. The final round lasts two weeks and will have two companies in each category. Winners in each bracket are scheduled to be announced Sept. 11. The three winning companies will choose the recipients of $10,000 charitable donations made on their behalf.

Voting opportunities and company rankings are available on bizjournals.com/socialmadness. FHSU is listed under Wichita.