PR Panel

Hello Everyone!

Midterm grades are in and fall semester is officially half way over, crazy isn't it? I hope everyone had a wonderful fall break and that this post finds you rested and ready for what this half of the semester has to offer. Your PRSSA officers have some fun plans for fall including some volunteering options and fundraising opportunities but the first thing we have planned is our Professional Panel coming up this Wednesday, Oct. 26th. We will be hosting two fabulous Charleston Professionals; Adam Temple and Will Bryan.

The two come from very different PR fields so together they should be able to answer a wide range of questions from different interest groups.

Will Bryan is the Associate Director of Athletics Communications at College of Charleston and the primary contact for baseball, volleyball, and swimming. Bryan, a Charleston native, attended Davidson College before earning his masters in sports management from St. John’s University in New York. Prior to coming to CofC, Bryan worked in the athletic department at St. John’s as the primary contact for men’s lacrosse and women’s track & field and cross country. Bryan has also worked in media relations for the NFL's Carolina Panthers in 2008, as well as a research associate for Street & Smith's Sports Business Journal, and as a media relations volunteer with the NFL's New York Jets and Super Bowl XLIII in Tampa, Fla.

Adam Temple is the Managing Director at JDA frontline, a strategic communications and public affairs firm with offices both here in Charleston and in Washington, D.C. He obtained his degree from University of Tenessee-Knoxville in 2001. Prior to Working for JDA Frontline, Temple worked as the Press Secretary for John McCain's 2008 campaign and as Press Secretary for U.S Senator Jim DeMint.

We are so excited and grateful that these two awesome people have agreed to give us their time so that we can benefit from their knowledge and experience. Please come prepared to ask questions.

Speaking of questions, as always feel free to email me at mkcarr@g.cofc.edu with any that you may have.

As a reminder, the membership deadline for PRSSA dues is today! However, Dr. Ruth has agreed to accept dues and applications until 5:00pm on Monday. If you're not ready to commit, there will be another opportunity to become an official member in the Spring. However, if you're really interested in being a part of this organization we urge you to get in the applications and dues asap so you can start cashing in on the member benefits.

See ya'll Wednesday!

October Update

Hey Everyone!

All of the officers were so thrilled with the turnout for our field trip to Rawle Murdy on Wednesday. You guys asked some great questions and I hope you all enjoyed the tour and learned something new about the world of public relations and marketing.

The field trip may be over, but we have a lot more in store for ya'll this month. The first thing I want to highlight is this month's PRSA luncheon at Virginia's on King. On October 18th at 11:45 am (lunch served at noon) the Charleston chapter of PRSA will be hosting a seminar titled "What's Your Google Ranking" featuring Melissa Allan, Communications Manager for Motley Rice LL, sharing her secrets for search engine optimization.

The price for students is only $15. Those of you who are familiar with Virginia's know that's a really great deal! As always the PRSSA strongly urges you to attend these luncheons if you can. Not only is it a great deal for fabulous food but it's an incredible networking opportunity.

The second thing I want to mention that we have planned for this month is our PR professional panel. Within the next week there will be a post specifically dedicated to this panel but heres a little sneak peak. We will have local professionals from different areas of the PR world ready to talk about the journey from a college degree to a successful career. We'll have someone representing political PR, sports PR, and the non profit sector.

One final reminder, PRSSA annual membership fees are due by October 21st. If you would like to become a full member of our organization please submit your membership application and member fees to Audrey Horne asap. If you need a copy of the application let me know and I will be sure to get you one.

As always feel free to email me at mkcarr@g.cofc.edu with any questions you have! I hope everyone has a fabulous friday, a wicked weekend, and a fantastic fall break!

Fall Field Trip

Hello everyone!

Your PRSSA officers held a meeting this week with our fabulous advisor Dr. Ruth-McSwain to discus how we would like to conduct the rest of the semester. We came to the conclusion that instead of holding a chapter meeting every two weeks we would put on one event, field-trip, or forum a month. This is good news for those of you who had tuesday night schedule conflicts because our events will take place on different days of the week to help assure that everyone interested has a chance to participate.

Our first scheduled event is a field trip to one of our favorite local agencies, Rawle Murdy on Wednesday, Oct. 5 at 5p.m.

This agency reserves one internship position each year for a member of the CofC PRSSA so those of you who might be interested should definitely come check out the environment you would be working in.

We will meet on campus at 4:45pm (location TBD) and walk over to their office on Beaufain street where we will have the pleasure of observing one of their weekly team meetings followed by lots of Q and A.

Furthermore anyone interested in getting involved in some event planning should speak to Chris Piedmont. He's been working with the MOJA arts festival and they could use volunteers to help with their Reggae Block Dance next Friday night from 6:30 until 11:00 p.m. at Brittlebank park.

You can email me for more information and I will forward it along to Chris.

Feel free to email me, or tweet me with any questions you might have and enjoy the rest of the weekend!

mkcarr@g.cofc.edu

@mkloveee

Meeting Recap and September Luncheon

Happy Wednesday PRSSA!

The week is half over and that means we're that much closer to the weekend. The other officers and I wanted to thank everyone who came out to our first meeting on Tuesday. Some great ideas were shared and we are so excited to begin planning activities and events for us to work on throughout the year. We're still hoping to build membership and after receiving multiple emails about conflicting schedules we are considering holding a second informational meeting on a different night for those who could not attend on Tuesday so look out for more information on that. In the meantime I have a great networking opportunity to tell you about! The South Carolina chapter of the PRSA is holding their monthly luncheon Thursday, September 9 upstairs at Virginia's on king. Networking and registration will begin at 11:45 with lunch being served at noon. For those of you who aren't familiar with downtown restaurants, virginia's is a great one. The student rate for these luncheons is only $15 and this opportunity, not to mention the food, is definitely worth your time and money. The topic of discussion is something we're all very familiar with, social networking! Specifically how social media marketing may threaten the code of ethics that PR professionals abide by.

If you are able to attend they ask that youRSVP by Tuesday, September 27th. To register online visit www.scprsa.org.If you are not registering online you may contact DuncanC@Lowcountrygradcenter.org.

PS- anyone who has schedule conflicts on Tuesday nights and would be interested in attending an introductory session held on a different night please shoot me an email at mkcarr@g.cofc.edu.

Student Organization Summit Fall 2011

This Saturday morning at 9:30am Keisha and I were up bright and early to represent the PRSSA at the bi-annual Student Organizations Summit.

Upon arrival we were greeted with a wonderful breakfast buffet complete with fresh fruit, muffins, yogurt, granola, cinnamon rolls and lots of coffee...suddenly being awake that early on a weekend wasn't so difficult :).

We were here to get a refresher course on all things related to the managing of a student organization. We learned about proper event planning protocol and risk assessment then got a full run down on all things financial from our SGA Treasurer, Luke Rozansky.

After taking a break to be fed yet ANOTHER awesome meal (THANKS COFC!) we were able to spend some time networking with the representatives of some of the other organizations. Victor Wilson, Vice-President of student affairs was correct when he called us, "A wonderful group of vibrant student leaders." We were truly in the company of some awesome people and we are exploring possibilities of teaming up with other organizations later in the semester.

By far the most useful part of the meeting came after lunch when we were given a crash course on the new ORG-SYNC software. This campus wide online tool, reminiscent of an oldschool facebook page, will allow student organizations to become virtually paperless thus helping the school on the way to becoming more "Green." Keisha is in the process of setting up the ORG-SYNC PRSSA page. Once it is up and running we will be able to access event and organization calendars, join committees, and send out text messages to our members. The software will even give you a google map to the location of any event that you RSVP for....seriously...this software is awesome!

Once everything is set up I will post a blog with details on how to log in and join our group. Of course we are still very excited for our first meeting this coming Tuesday, Sept. 13 in room 111 of the education center. The meeting starts at 6pm. You can RSVP on facebook using the link posted below. Don't forget, there will be PIZZA. Bring your friends, everyone is welcome!

See you all on Tuesday!

Your Director of PR

-Mikayla

http://www.facebook.com/event.php?eid=279173488761854

First Meeting Location

Hello Everyone!

We finally have an official location for our first meeting! We will be in room 111 of the Education Center. As mentioned in the last post the meeting will be Tuesday, September 13 at 6pm. Can't wait to see you guys there!

In the meantime check out our facebook group, RSVP to the meeting via the event page so we know how much pizza to buy, and have an awesome weekend!

New Year and New Officers

As September bring us much needed relief from the South Carolina summer heat, the new officers of the CofC PRSSA are thrilled to be kicking off the fall semester with a Pizza Party next Tuesday Sept. 7 (location TBD). We want everyone to come and hear our new and exciting plans for this school year! But before we do that we thought we should introduce ourselves!

Meet your 2011-2012 Officers!

President

Keisha Murray

A senior here at the College of Charleston, Murray has been a member of the PRSSA since 2010 and holds a double major in Communication Studies and Political Science. After graduation she hopes to work in the Public Relations industry in Atlanta, Ga. for a few years before attending law school. A fun fact about Murray is that while studying abroad in Morocco she road a camel into the Sahara Desert to watch the sunrise. Now how cool is that!

Vice President

Janae Tanti

Also a senior and member since 2010, Tanti is a communication major with a media studies concentration. From Lakeport, Calif. she hopes to work in sports PR and her dream job would be to do PR for th

e New England Patriots! As a current athletic communications intern here at the college, Tanti manages the men and women's tennis teams. S

he also interned as the executive editor for IEM Study Abroad: Valencia (Spain) this past

summer where she oversaw the writing of the student handbook. In the spring, she will be interning with the college again, as well as with A Charleston Bride Wedding Planning as their social media intern.

Director of Internal Communications

Audrey Horne

Horne has been an active member in the organization since the spring of 2010. Originally from

North Carolina, this senior corporate communication major swapped the

mountains for the beach and doesn’t plan on leaving anytime soon! She hopes to stay in Charleston after graduation and start a career in public relations and marketing. Although she aspires to one day open her own pr firm, she would love to continue working for one of the local agencies or in the marketing/communications department for a larger corporation.

Mikayla Carr

Director of Public Relations

Carr is also a senior with a major in Communication Studies and a Minor in Psychology. A member since 2010 she enjoys wake-boarding, and any other water activities. This past summer she interned here in Charleston for JDA frontline where she worked on campaigns for the USO, TV Watch, and the American Diabetes Association. After finishing here at CofC she plans to attend graduate school and continue to study communications and public relations before finding a job in the non-profit sector of PR.

We hope to see ya'll next Tuesday. Come with any ideas you may have for what we can do to help the rest of you get the most out of your PRSSA experience.

GO COUGARS!

Want to get some planning experience?

Here are a few photos from our St. Patty's Day event planning session last Wednesday!

If you want to join a committee, let us know. We'd love the help and it's great experience!

Win the Pot of Gold!

Hopefully everyone is having a great Monday! I know most of you are all looking forward to Spring Break as much as us officers are, but don't forget about PRSSA before you go!

On Wednesday, March 16 we will be hosting the St. Patty's Day Olympics from 3-5pm in the Stern Center Ballroom. We encourage all of you to get involved in the planning of the event, and/or participate in the games!

This is how it works: Sign up a team of 3-5 people by this Thursday for only $10 per team. On the 16th, all teams will come together to compete in a series of games for the shot at the pot of gold! Ok, so not literally...but there will be prizes for 1st-3rd place!

Music, food and drinks will be provided to kick off your St. Patrick's Day celebrations.

Contact PRSSA President Monique Dyer at mddyer@edisto.cofc.edu to register your team RIGHT NOW! Hurry!

Have a great rest of the week!

If you still need to sign-up to become and official CofC PRSSA member with all of the awesome, exclusive benefits, you need to fill out and turn in the registration form by February 26! It's only $65 for an entire year-long membership! Contact Keisha Murray, treasurer, if you need a form. Her email is ktmurray@edisto.cofc.edu.

Also, our parent organization PRSA awards a scholarship to a member of each PRSSA chapter in the state. It is so great that they reward active members in this way and encourage our growth in the PR profession. Contact Dr. Ruth-McSwain (ruthmcswaina@cofc.edu) for an application. Due March 1.

Finally, local PR and Marketing firm Rawle-Murdy has joined with CofC PRSSA to reserve one internship position each semester for one of our members. Don't let this opportunity pass you by. This is one of the best agencies around and we are so thankful for their partnership with us. Contact Dr. Ruth-McSwain if interested!

That's all for now. See everyone at our next meeting, February 23.

Successful party and more to come!

Last night we hosted our first "Post-Super Bowl Party" where our very own Dr. Benigni led a discussion on the hype of the Super Bowl ads and what it takes to be a successful ad. I can't speak for everyone, but I thought it was very interesting (and the pizza, snacks and free cans of Simmer, a new 'relaxation drink' weren't bad either!)

Dr. B, with a background in sports PR, shared some valuable insight about why certain ads were created in certain ways. For example, remember the Bud Light commercial where the guy was dog-sitting and had the dogs serve everyone at the party? Well, did you notice that throughout the whole commercial there was subtle blue lighting, or blue objects (like the dish cloths and plates)? This is all done on purpose, to engrain Bud Light's blue image in our heads.

PR and advertising work hand-in-hand. As future PR professionals, or professionals in any communication-related field, we need to understand our customers and what will grab their attention.

Other than the main topic of discussion, we announced our spring event which will be on Wednesday, March 16. So mark your calendars now! More details are to come, but for the time being just know that it will be a team-based competition that is open to any and all students on campus! For a small registration fee, teams will sign-up to participate in a series of St. Patty's Day games and the winners will receive prizes! Please plan on joining us for the event in the Stern Center Ballroom that evening for some food, fun and music!

Last but not least, don't forget to check out the Dept. of Communication's spring break trip to DC/NYC! Only 25 students will be able to attend the week-long trip where you will have the opportunity to network with professionals and go on multiple site visits. For more info, see here: http://blogs.cofc.edu/communication/2011/02/09/washingtonnew-york-spring-break-experience-to-be-held-march-7-11-2011/

Thanks again to everyone who came to our little party last night. I hope everyone enjoyed it as much as we did!

Back in Action...and ready for some football!

I know this is way past due, but welcome back to PRSSA and the spring semester!

We have already kicked off the semester with our first meeting, where we discussed volunteer opportunities, membership dues, communication methods for the chapter, among other things.

Last Sunday, several PRSSA members volunteered their time at the Crisis Ministries Soup Kitchen. To everyone who attended, THANK YOU! It is important for our organization to do what we can and help out the community and city that we all love so much. If you missed out on this opportunity, don't worry! We will be partnering with Crisis Ministries more throughout the semester.

We have many more exciting events lined up for the semester, but for the immediate future, the most important date to mark down is Wednesday, February 9. Our chapter meeting will have the theme- Super Bowl After Party: Commercials of 2011 - Touchdown or Fumble? Food will be provided as we discuss the good and bad Super Bowl advertisements. The meeting is open to all so bring your friends for a good time! For more information, check out the Facebook event page here.

We have several more announcements to come so keep checking back!

Have a great weekend, everybody!