The 2016 Board of Directors for Central Illinois PRSA Chapter met on Saturday, January 16, 2016 from 10:30 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. in Springfield, IL to identify goals, meeting speakers and overall direction of the organization for the coming year. We are excited to share all of our ideas in the coming months and cannot wait to see you at our next meeting.
Did you know that Illinois public relations students are well represented across the country? The following schools have official PRSSA chapters that are recognized by PRSSA national.
Additionally, Olivet Nazarene University in Bourbonnais, IL has a new club as of Fall 2015 who are working towards PRSSA affiliation.
McClure Earns Accreditation in Public Relations
Chapter member, Kendra McClure, associate professor of communication at Parkland College in Champaign, has successfully completed the Examination for Accreditation in Public Relations, entitling her to use the APR professional designation. The announcement was made by the Universal Accreditation Board (UBA), a consortium of nine professional communication organizations, including Public Relations Society of America, that directs this competency certification program.
The Accreditation program aims to improve the practice of public relations by assessing competence in 60 areas of knowledge, skills and abilities associated with the profession.
McClure has worked in public relations for ten years, with five years at Parkland. Prior to that she served as an intern at Fleshman Hillard and St. Louis Art Museum. She earned a bachelor’s degree in public relations (magna cum laude) from Valparaiso University and a master’s in communication studies from Eastern Illinois University.
Standing before a diverse range of attendees – from students to seasoned professionals, executive leaders at Fortune 50 companies, entrepreneurs, government and academia officials, and consultants – #HultMarketing CEO Jim Flynn delivered a compelling message, explaining exactly how to empower brand momentum at each of our organizations.
We already received very positive feedback of this forum, and look forward to helping even more communication professionals at our next event in 2016!
#EmpowerYourself #LearnMoreToday #Network #Grow #JoinPRSA
For Immediate Release
January 6, 2016
Contact: Ruth Slottag
217-899-8117
Kauffman Earns Accreditation in Public Relations
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — Josh Kauffman, system director of communication and public
affairs for Hospital Sisters Health System in Springfield, Ill., has successfully completed the Examination for Accreditation in Public Relations, entitling him to use the “APR” professional designation. The announcement was made by the Universal Accreditation Board (UBA), a consortium of nine professional communication organizations, including Public Relations Society of America, which directs this competency certification program.
Continue reading “Kauffman Earns Accreditation in Public Relations”
It’s hard to believe that we are approaching our final meeting of the year and it is time to elect new officers and board members for 2016. Our nominating committee has selected some very qualified candidates to lead the chapter in the coming year and beyond. We hope you will join us on December 3 and participate in the election.
We are excited to have Jim Flynn, CEO of Hult Marketing in Peoria, as our speaker for the December meeting. Jim will share his expertise about branding. See more details about his presentation and how to register in the above article.
In the past, we have heard from some members who say they have difficulty attending meetings because of the distance. If you have that issue, please let me know. I will be happy to help connect you with others who are coming from your community, so you can arrange to car pool and hopefully make the trip easier.
As a chapter, we are very proud of Kendra McClure, who recently earned PRSA accreditation, and now can use the “APR” with her name. The APR distinction demonstrates knowledge and abilities in the public relations profession. I am sure Kendra would be happy to talk with you about how you, too, can earn the APR.
Congratulations also go to the ISU PRSSA chapter on their two awards which were presented at the national conference. (See article below.) Our chapter supports several student chapters in central Illinois by providing professional advisors as well as offering networking opportunities.
As we move into the New Year, please know that the chapter board is looking for volunteers who are interested in being part of the chapter planning and activities. Feel free to contact any of the board members to discuss your interest and learn how you can participate.
Happy holidays.
Ruth Slottag, APR
President
rslottag@aol.com
For Immediate Release
November 10, 2015
Contact: Ruth Slottag
217-899-8117
McClure Earns Accreditation in Public Relations
Kendra McClure, associate professor of communication at Parkland College in
Champaign, has successfully completed the Examination for Accreditation in Public Relations, entitling her to use the APR professional designation. The announcement was made by the Universal Accreditation Board (UBA), a consortium of nine professional communication organizations, including Public Relations Society of America, that directs this competency certification program.
Continue reading “NEWS: McClure Earns Accreditation in Public Relations”
Thanks #ISU for hosting our #PRSACentralIllinois chapter last week! We truly enjoyed networking with all our guests as we learned about the many innovative ways speaker Will Koch and #CountryFinancial utilize their digital marketing, social media and advertising assets to help their customers through major natural disasters. Enjoy the pictures, and we look forward to seeing you at our next event, too!
Mark your calendars to join us at Illinois State University on April 16 and listen to Will Koch, digital marketer at Country Financial, discuss how their social media response efforts helped tornado victims in Washington, IIl.!
Due to limited seating, register and reserve your spot ASAP at https://centralillinoisprsa.org/Register.htm. You won’t want to miss it!#CrisisResponsePlanning #CentralILPRSA#PRBestPractices
See what you missed? It was a pleasure learning about the many effective strategies, tactics and partnerships #IHSA utilizes to build a unique and memorable reputation and foundation throughout Illinois. Many thanks to Associate Executive Director Kurt Gibson for his insightful presentation, and also#BradleyUniversity for co-sponsoring and hosting the event! 
Central Illinois PRSA 