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The Update
5/2006
Welcome to the official newsletter of the Greater Spokane PRSA Chapter. Past issues can be found by going to www.prsaspokane.org and clicking on the "Newsletters" link.
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Breakfast Meeting: Friday, May 5
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Join us Friday at 7:30 a.m. for the next joint breakfast meeting of the Greater Spokane PRSA Chapter and the Spokane Public Relations Chapter! The meeting will be held at Cataldo Hall on the campus of Gonzaga University from 7:30 to 9 a.m. and is open to any interested public relations professionals or students. The meeting fee, which covers breakfast, is $9 for members, $11 for non-members and $7 for students. Our speaker is Joe Albert from Gonzaga University. He will be giving a presentation entitled, "Internal motivation: moving from push to pull." More about our speaker:
Dr. Joe Albert is currently an assistant professor in the Department of Organizational Leadership at Gonzaga University in Spokane, Washington. For the past five years he has directed the Comprehensive Leadership Program for undergraduate students at Gonzaga. He holds a Ph.D. in leadership studies, a master’s degree in counseling- psychology both from Gonzaga and, an undergraduate degree in business management from St. Joseph’s University in Philadelphia. Joe has been at Gonzaga as a faculty member since 1994. Previous to this he was an elementary school counselor, did private counseling, and also directed a high school campus ministry program for six years. In addition to teaching, Joe provides consulting, training, and facilitation services to for-profit and not-for-profit organizations in a number of areas including: leadership and storytelling, motivation in work organizations, emotional intelligence in the workplace, organizational change and, organizational behavior.
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By GARRY MATLOW
Chapter President
 I hope you all had the chance to read the op-ed piece about departing White House Press Secretary Scott McClellan in the April 24 Spokesman-Review. It was written by John Farmer, national political correspondent for the Newark Star-Ledger. (If you missed it, it was still in the archive last time I checked.)
The column carried the headline of "McClellan's fault lies not with him" and started out talking about how tough it must be to be the press secretary for President Bush in light of all the turmoil in the administration. About halfway down, this paragraph caught my eye: "McClellan was only doing his master's bidding. But therein lies the problem. For every press secretary is at the mercy of his boss' willingness to keep him fully informed, tell him the truth and insulate him from the dissembling and disinformation that are part of ordinary political dialogue at the state or national level."
Many of the lessons taught by Steve Blewett in PR class at EWU revolved around these same themes: it is important to be at the table, be part of the dominant coalition, be in on the decision-making, because you'll look pretty darn foolish when it is revealed that you're nothing more than an ignorant dupe unintentionally misleading the public. Farmer writes that the perfect example of this was Nixon's press secretary, Ron Zeigler. "The press corps learned almost nothing of consequence at Zeigler's briefings," he said, "because Zeigler knew almost nothing of consequence."
Farmer listed some good press secretaries, such as Truman's spokesman Steve Early and Eisenhower's spokesman Jim Haggerty, and one whom I vividly recall, Gerald Ford's short-tenured first press secretary, Jerry ter Horst. These spokesmen were men who "had enugh sand in (them) to stand up to the boss and/or the boss' inner circle when they're wrong and so advise them. And to quit if ignored too often or on a seminal issue."
These are people who work at the pinnacle of the profession, but the lessons are the same as they are in our market. We are in the truth business, and we can't be effective if we aren't informed ourselves.
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Day on the Job Builds on Success
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PRSA’s 2006 Day on the Job received overwhelming kudos from the almost 40 students who participated in the event on April 7 Many of the students appreciated the time with professionals so much that many recommended a full day job shadow in the future. Students also requested keeping the professional panel and wrap-up, a new element of the day’s program. | “Getting actual experience and a first-hand look into what daily life as a PR practitioner might be like,” was the best part of the event wrote one student. Another student commented that the event “gave me information I do not learn in class.” |
After much discussion at the April Greater Spokane Chapter Board meeting, the board members decided to balance the desire for a longer job shadow with the time constraints of the professionals that host the students. They opted to keep the half-day shadow with professionals but add the panel again next year. The panel, “What Your Professors Didn’t Teach You,” consisted of four professionals in the early years of their careers providing tips on how to get into the workforce and what to expect once there. The board also decided to retain the successful networking breakfast. Many thanks to all who made the event possible – the professionals who donated their time and talent and the sponsors who helped financially (Avista Corporation, Desautel Hege Communications and the Spokesman Review). The North Pacific PRSA District also contributed a grant toward the event. Participating schools included: Eastern Washington University, Gonzaga University, University of Idaho, Washington State University and Whitworth College. 2006 Sponsors: 
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Free Teleseminar for Spokane PRSA Members
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Study Program: Public Relations Planning and Preparing for Crises
Tuesday, May 2, 2006
12:00 p.m. at Rock Pointe II, 316 W. Boone, Ste. 568 This one-hour interactive teleseminar is designed to help you study for the Examination for Accreditation in Public Relations, but will be of value to every Public Relations professional. Presented by Jim Haynes, APR, Fellow PRSA, and Doug Newsom, APR, Fellow PRSA. This session gives you an overview of the following knowledge, skills, and ability areas: For the Readiness Review:
-Creative conceptualization/creativity
-Initiative
-Management skills and communication skills
-Writing and editing For the computer-based Examination:
-Research, planning, implementing and evaluating programs
-Crisis communication management
-Media relations For more information or to RSVP, contact Jaclyn Jaquish at 325-7228 or jjaquish@sccu.net Date: Tuesday, May 2nd
Time: 12:00 p.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Location: Rock Pointe II, 316 W. Boone, Ste. 568
Cost: Free for PRSA members, $20.00 for guests
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PRSA is offering professional development classes that will lead to PRSA's accreditation (APR). Greater Spokane PRSA is offering ten classes which review the following areas: History of and current issues in public relations
Management skills & issues
Business literacy
Crisis communication management
Ethics & Law
Using information technology
Communication models & theories
Media relations
Research, planning, implementing & evaluating communication programs
Advanced communication skills The small group study meets Wednesdays at Shriners Hospitals for Children from 4:00 - 5:30 p.m. As PRSA members you are invited to attend any or all of the free classes for this series. The completion of the series provides the review for taking the readiness review through PRSA. For more information please contact Maggie Crabtree at 623-471 or at mcrabtree@shrinenet.org.
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EWU Launches Image Survey
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 | Help Eastern Washington University create a major new image campaign, and take a shot at winning one of six Apple iPod music player giveaways. Participate now in a 7-minute online survey. If the tagline you suggest is selected you can win an iPod Nano and be as hip as Eastern's mascot "iSwoop"! Eastern's very own PRSSA student chapter has been helping with the campaign marketing efforts for the survey! Go to www.ewu.edu/imagesurvey by May 5! |
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April Brast
Marketing Assistant
GeoEngineers
Spokane, WA 99202
Phone: (509) 363-3125
abrast@geoengineers.com Abi Weaver
Public Affairs & Community Education Director
Inland Northwest Chapter, American Red Cross
315 W. Nora Ave.
Spokane, WA 99205
Phone: (509) 326-3330 ext. 207
Fax: (509) 326-3336
weavera@spokaneredcross.org
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Have a story idea for the Spokane PRSA newsletter? Send your article, announcement or shameless plug to Lance Kissler by the last Wednesday of each month.Contact:
Lance Kissler
lkissler@cdc.gov
(509) 354-8085
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