President's Message
 Dear Colleagues,
Greetings everyone! On behalf of our chapter, I am very happy to announce that Ms. Alessandra Vaughn is the recipient of the 2007 Frank R. Stansberry/Orlando PRSA Scholarship for UCF PR students.
The scholarship entitles Alessandra to a $500 scholarship to be used to pay for tuition, textbooks, fees, and any other items included in the cost of education. Alessandra is a sophomore in the Nicholson School of Communications, majoring in Ad/PR with a minor in Spanish.
This year, the judging for the scholarship took place on April 24 and Alessandra was selected from an accomplished group of the industry's future leaders. Special thanks to the panel of judges including senior PRSA leadership — Lorri Shaban, APR and Kena Lewis, APR and UCF Communications Instructors — Ryan Sheehy and Dr. Kristin Davis.
I would also like to thank our chapter scholarship chair Hue Lien Duxbury, APR for coordinating this year's efforts. Great job! In addition, I want to recognize Bette Jore who participates on the scholarship committee and worked very hard last year to establish the agreement with the UCF Foundation. Big thanks to Ryan Sheehy who has been instrumental in serving as the UCF contact. And finally, thank you to Briel Zagarow, a graduating senior at UCF who developed and implemented a communications plan to create awareness of the scholarship at the student level.
Congratulations to Alessandra! Please plan to join us at this month's luncheon as we recognize the 2007 scholarship winner.
—Lorelie Johnson, APR
Making the Web Work For You: Emerging Technologies for the PR Pro
Blog. Wiki. Screedosphere. Social Network. Vlog. RSS Feed.
 Huh? If that's your response, then join us as Matt Certo, President of WebSolvers, presents the emerging technologies and online tools that Public Relations professionals need to know.
Don't let the web be an unused PR tool! Learn how to use the web to your full advantage and see the rewards for you and your clients.
Matt Certo is co-founder and President of WebSolvers, one of the area's leaders in web-based marketing and related services. Matt founded the company in 1995 while still a student at Rollins College. In 2001, he released the highly-successful book Digital Dimensioning: Finding the ebusiness in Your Business (McGraw-Hill). In 2002 he was invited by President George W. Bush to speak at the Economic Forum near his Crawford ranch concerning ebusiness trends.
Whether you are a technology novice or consider yourself up to speed on using technology for your public relations efforts, you won't want to miss this opportunity to learn from one the area's most respected web gurus.
Entrée: Pan Seared Grouper
Dessert: Key Lime Pie
Where: The Citrus Club, 255 S. Orange Avenue, 18th Floor, Orlando
When: Thursday, May 17, 2007
Networking/registration begins at 11:30 a.m.; lunch begins at noon
Cost:
$20 for members
$30 for non-members
$15 for students
Walk-ins are welcome, but seating is not guaranteed and admission will not be discounted.
Ten Minutes/Ten Questions
Name: Carla J. Parks
Occupation: Executive Vice President, Public Relations at Gilbert Manjura Marketing
PRSA Involvement: Member (national member for 12 years; Orlando chapter for about three)
Person who has most influenced your life: My father, who taught me to work hard, enjoy life, always be truthful and never take yourself so seriously that you lose the ability to laugh.
Quote to live by: "If you think you can, you can. And if you think you can't, you're right." (Mary Kay Ash)
What made you choose PR as a profession? I majored in PR on the suggestion of my high school guidance counselor. I'm still in the industry today because it exercises a variety of skills and every day is different.
Best PR advice you ever received: The basics — always remember that your audience wants to know "What's in it for me?" and that "involvement equals ownership."
Greatest accomplishment: While it's in my nature to always believe that the best is yet to come, if I had to choose something, I'd say that it's growing our agency's PR department both in terms of adding new clients and increasing the size and caliber of our PR team.
Favorite thing to do on the weekend: Ride my bicycle on the local trails, work on projects around the house and take Henry, my Jack Russell Terrier, on an outing.
Something nobody really knows about you: I'm a gearhead. Not only do I love cars, but I could change your oil, spark plugs and wires, rotate and balance your tires, and replace your brakes.
Sunshine District Conference, July 26-28
Get Ready to Upgrade to HDPR: Creating the Clear Picture
 What: Sunshine District Conference
When: July 26 - 28, 2007
Where: Disney's Contemporary Resort in Orlando, Florida
Conference Sessions:
- Media Training and Presentation Skills
- Emerging Technologies in PR
- The Art of Relationship Development
- Florida's Political Landscape
- The Value of Internal Communications
- The Power of Images
- Maximizing Your Hispanic PR Initiatives
- PR and Media Ethics Panel
Complete details and online registration are available now at prsaorlando.org/hdpr.
THINK BIGGER
PRSA Offers Free First-Year Chapter Membership with Paid National Membership
From May 1 through June 30, public relations professionals can join PRSA for $290 (national dues of $225 plus the $65 initiation fee) and receive, as a bonus, a free one-year membership to the PRSA Chapter of their choice. Former members who have been inactive for at least one year may also participate. This offer is not valid for the Associate membership.
To take advantage of this special offer, new members can join by using one of the following methods:
- Go to prsa.org and click on the Think Bigger icon; be sure to use promotion code "CHAP2007"
- Request a membership application from the Orlando Chapter by contacting
Scott Toncray
- Contact PRSA's Members Services department at either membership@prsa.org or (212) 460-1400
2007 PRSA Orlando Regional Chapter Annual Directory
It's that time of year once again!
The Orlando Regional Chapter of PRSA is currently developing our 2007 Annual Membership Directory, which will be distributed this summer.
To ensure that you are listed, please confirm that you are a member of our local chapter by visiting prsa.org, and also be sure to update your contact information. ONLY local chapter members are listed in the Directory.
Interested in promoting your services or recognizing a colleague? Consider an advertisement in our Directory. For more information, contact Co-Chair, VP Membership Jessi Blakley no later than May 25th.
Universal Accreditation Board Announces Quarterly Results
On March 6, the Universal Accreditation Board (UAB), the leading certification body for public relations professionals, released Oct-Dec 2006 quarterly statistics for the Examination for Accreditation in Public Relations.
This report covers the second quarter of the Accreditation program's fourth year, reflecting the inception of the computer-based Examination with Readiness Review on July 1, 2003.
Click here for the full version: www.praccreditation.org/News
If you are interested in learning more about the APR programs offered by PRSA Orlando, please contact:
Laura E. Richeson, APR at (407) 478-4040 or lricheson@bennettandco.com
AAPA Public Relations Seminar
Who: American Association of Port Authorities (AAPA)
What: Seminar focusing on effective community and public relations to support port development
Featured presentations will include:
- Communicating Your Message Via New and Emerging Technologies
- Bringing the Brand to Life
- Interactive Exercise on Community Relations and Port Development
- Communications Challenges for the Cruise Industry
- Workshop on Community Image & Perception Polling
- And more!
When:
June 13 from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
June 14 from 9 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
June 15 from 8:30 a.m. to noon
Where: Radisson Resort at the Port, 8701 Astronaut Blvd., Cape Canaveral, Fla.
Cost: $710 AAPA and PRSA for members; $825 for non-members. Be sure to identify yourself as a PRSA member to receive the discounted rate.
More information about AAPA's PR Seminar is available at www.aapa-ports.org (click on the "Programs & Events" tab) or by calling AAPA's Ed O'Connell at (703) 684-5700.
New Members and Other News
PRSA Orlando welcomes the following new members:
- Ross Garcia - President, Centaur Design Group
- Felicia Visser - PR Manager, Fiserv CBS Worldwide
Cluny McCaffrey has accepted a position with The Nature Conservancy in Seattle.
As director of marketing and communications for the Conservancy's Washington Chapter, she will provide strategic leadership at a time when the organization is expanding its reach and influence throughout the state and beyond. She also will be responsible for planning, creating, and implementing marketing and communications strategies that maximize the visibility of the Conservancy in Washington, developing new and existing constituencies that will help the organization achieve fundraising, public policy, and conservation and science objectives.
Check out the Job Bank
Keep checking PRSA Orlando's up-to-date job bank for the latest openings in Central Florida.
Or, if you're looking for the best talent in the area, post your company's open positions on the site.
Click below to check it out!
Submissions
To submit stories or ideas for the PRSA newsletter, please contact Communications VP Michelle Lynch.
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