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March 2010 Newsletter
3/2010
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President's Letter Hello! My letter this month is even more of pleasure to write. At a time when we hear about Washington’s colleges and universities grappling with major budget cuts, and students and their parents facing alarming tuition increases, I’m able to share with you some good news in regard to tuitions. As you are likely aware, the Greater Spokane Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America has sponsored an annual scholarship fundraiser for years, but seeing today’s high education challenges, this year we were determined to raise more scholarship funds than ever before. It’s my pleasure to announce that our “SUDS For Scholarships” fundraiser, held Thursday, February 18th at the Steam Plant Grill, was a great success. Our event which – after expenses – brought in more than $3,700 in scholarship funds, will help ensure that several talented local public relations students will receive tuition assistance, and – hopefully – fulfill the tag line for our event: “An Evening Out to Keep Local Talent in Spokane.” Information and an Application Form for the PRSSA scholarship, as well as other student activities, are located on our Greater Spokane Chapter PRSA website, www.prsaspokane.org. I want to express my sincere appreciation to the co-chairs for this event, Renee Parkins and Nick Lawhead, for their dedicated efforts in making this event the best scholarship fundraiser ever. Additionally, thank you to our chapter Board and to hardworking members of the Fundraiser Committee, for their support. We are also indebted to the following people and organizations that have helped us ensure the success of SUDS for Scholarships. Our thanks go to: * AVISTA Foundation, a Silver sponsor of $1,000 to our scholarship fund;
* MDI Marketing, a Gold sponsor of in-kind marketing and publicity services;
* The Kalispel Tribe, a Bronze sponsor of $500 to our scholarship fund;
* The Steam Plant Grill, an Event Sponsor, providing in-kind services;
* KXLY’s Mark Peterson, our “SUDS” Emcee;
* Greater Spokane Incorporated’s CEO Rich Hadley, who spoke to the importance of keeping our young talent local;
* Colin Stapp Photography & Video, “Your Northwest Photographer”, for photographs of our event
* Our generous donors who provided fantastic auction items; * And – of course – our guests. Thank you to all for your support! -- Cher Merrill, APR
PRSA President PRSA NEWS
PRSA seeks scholarship applications Applications are now available for the Greater Spokane PRSA’s $1,500 student scholarships for the 2010-2011 academic year. Members of PRSSA chapters in the region as well as local affiliate members are invited to apply. Applications can be found at http://www.prsaspokane.org/scholarships.asp and are due on March 31, 2010. Please send completed applications to Alison Mallahan at 421 W Riverside Ave. Suite 450 Spokane, WA 99201. If you have any questions, contact Alison at alison.mallahan@hillandknowlton.com or 509.321.1184. The Greater Spokane Chapter of PRSA will announce the scholarship winners during the April 15, 2010 Third at Four membership meeting. DOWNLOAD APPLICATION
To the left is 2010-2011 scholarship recipient Wes DeShano, who attended our recent SUDS for Scholarships Fundraiser. PRSA Day on the Job Underway
The 2010 PRSA Day on the Job is successfully underway. A total of 25 job shadows have been arranged and are to be completed within the next month. Students from universities throughout the region will experience a day in the life of a communications professional. A big thank you goes to those professionals who volunteered to host a student! Any questions about Day on the Job can be directed to PRSA board member Alison Mallahan at 509.321.1184 or alison.mallahan@hillandknowlton.com. Calling all professionals!
Join us for a PRSSA student networking event
6pm – 7 pm Tuesday, April 13
We need you for a PRSSA networking event! The Gonzaga University PRSSA is hosting a student networking event the first week of April. Stay tuned for the specific date and time.
Students from all communications majors will be in attendance, so whether you’re a marketing director or PR executive, we want you!
The event is free and open to PRSA members and non-members. Refreshments will be served. More details to come! Programming
Huge thanks to everyone who supported our annual scholarship fundraiser!
As noted in our President’s Letter, PRSA Spokane held our annual scholarship fundraiser at Steam Plant Grill as our “Third at Four” February event. As co-chair for this event, I want to add to Cher’s comments, with my sincere thanks to all members of the Spokane community that supported this event, particularly our sponsors: MDI Marketing, Avista Utilities, the Kalispel Tribe of Indians and the Steam Plant Grill. There are countless organizations that donated auction items also and each of you had a large hand in making this a successful event.
We also want to recognize the 50+ individuals that attended the event. It was great to see all of you and we appreciate your ongoing support!
Speaking of successful, as our President mentioned, we raised more than $3,500 for student scholarships to be awarded to local students. Our planning committee thanks everyone, and is looking forward to improving on this achievement next year! -- Nick Lawhead, Programming Chair &
Co-Chair, SUDS For Scholarships Mark Your Calendars for PRSA’s April Third at Four
Networking and Teleseminar Meetings In these challenging times, you can’t afford not to invest in your career. PRSA Spokane Chapter offers opportunities for you to join other communications professionals once a month to enhance your career, to network and to meet other experts in their fields.
Our monthly meetings typically take place on the third Thursday, at 4 pm…”Third at Four.” Mark that date for the following valuable meetings, with plenty of time to network with your colleagues. Review the important information below, and then regularly check our website for updates! - Thurs., Mar. 18 PRSA Annual Spring Workshop:
Social Media BootCamp (see information below) - Thurs., Apr. 15
Teleseminar & Networking Event (see information below) - Thurs., May 20
PRSA Professional Development Meeting (see information below) - Thurs., June 17 TBD
Social Media BootCamp 2.0 Coming March 18!
Social Media and its measurement – not a fad, a fact of life. - Every month, myspace.com, YouTube and Facebook collectively get 250 million unique visitors
- In 2009, while newspaper advertising dropped by 18.7%, digital advertising grew by 18.1%
- Americans have access to 1,000,000,000,000 web pages
The apps may change, but social media is here to stay, presenting challenges that PR professionals can’t ignore. Want to learn more? Perhaps you've been meaning to set up a Twitter account, add a Facebook or Linked IN page, or get your company blog up and running. Or perhaps you're not sure how to apply social media methods to business objectives. Should your Twitter account have multiple people contributing to one handle? Is the way you've set up your Facebook fan page really reaching the audience you want it to reach? And how, oh how, are you going to measure it?
Our popular Social Media BootCamp 2.0 returns on March 18, 2010 to supply the answers! You've read the articles, heard case studies and attended numerous presentations on social media...now you have the opportunity to actually DO it! Stay tuned for the soon-to-be-released email with a lineup of speakers and presenters! COST: PRSA member $35, Non-Members $40 Students $20
Light breakfast snacks and refreshments are provided DATE: March 18, 2010 TIME: 8:00 – Noon LOCATION: WSU Campus MORE INFO: Nick Lawhead nickl@desautelhege.com 509.444.2350 x114
APR Accreditation Maintenance Credits = 1.0 NATIONAL NEWS Ways you can save money and still benefit from PRSA Membership
ASSOCIATE MEMBERSHIPS If you’ve considered joining PRSA, but are finding your budget is a bit tight, perhaps an “Associate Membership” is for you. Associate members do NOT pay an initiation fee, and save on other costs as well. Individuals may remain Associate Members for a maximum of two years (with exception of AMGS – see below), following which they will be upgraded to regular Membership.
Associates are not eligible to hold certain elected or appointed positions within PRSA (such as those that require the APR, or if stated in a Chapter’s bylaws, however Associates are able to enjoy numerous membership benefits. Here are the various Associate Membership types available: - Associate 1 (AM1):
Members with less than one year’s experience as public relations professionals. $115/year. After 1 year, automatic upgrade to AM2. - Associate 2 (AM2):
Members with greater than one but less than two years’ experience as public relations professionals. $155/year. After 1 year, automatic upgrade to regular member. - PRSSA Graduates (AMPG):
You must be a current paid member of PRSSA at time of graduation. Application needs to be submitted within two years of graduation, and may be submitted as early as five months prior to graduation. $60/year. After 2 years, automatic upgrade to regular member. - Graduate Students (AMGS):
An individual who is devoting full time to earn an advanced degree for the purpose of teaching public relations may apply for Graduate Student Associate membership. Proof of full-time matriculation is required and must be submitted with the application. Graduate Students may remain Associate members for a maximum of six years or as long as they are full time students. $60/year. After a max of 6 years, if a full time student, or completion or discontinuation of graduate students, upgrade to regular member.
RETIRED MEMBERSHIPS
PRSA has a special membership category for retired members who have been members for at least five years in good standing and who are employed for less than 50% of their time. The annual PRSA-National dues for retired members are $50.
Retired dues are not retroactive, but will be charged starting with the members’ next renewal. The member should notify National that they wish to switch to Retired member status (membership@prsa.org)
ADDITIONAL WAYS PRSA MEMBERS CAN SAVE: - Member Discount Programs: Membership in PRSA gives you access to preferred rates on insurance, shipping, car rental and financial planning, to lower your professional and personal expenses. In addition, the PRSA national website provides members valuable, free information and complimentary advice.
For example, PRSA has partnered with the Financial Planning Association® (FPA®) to offer our members complimentary access to audiocasts, tips, articles and more. The Finance Tip below is just one example of the type of helpful information available. (Members may click here to access these benefits, MyPRSA login required.) - Donated to Haiti? Deduct the Contributions on Your 2009 or 2010 Tax Return! A new tax relief law allows people who contributed in 2010 to charities providing earthquake relief in Haiti to take a tax deduction for the contribution on their 2009 tax return instead of their 2010 return, according to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS). This means that you can receive an immediate tax benefit, rather than having to wait until you file next year's return, the IRS said. Of note, certain requirements apply, according to the IRS' website:
Only cash contributions made to these charities after January 11, 2010, and before March 1, 2010, are eligible. This includes contributions made by text message, check, credit card or debit card. The contributions must be made specifically for the relief of victims in areas affected by the January 12 earthquake in Haiti.
You may deduct these contributions on either your 2009 or 2010 returns, but not both. Learn more about the new law. Also of note, the organization to which you donate must be a qualified charity. See if the charity is qualified. Last Updated: January 25, 2010 “A Community You Can Count On” Free PRSA Membership Do you know someone who has thought about becoming a PRSA member, but perhaps suffers from a tight budget? PRSA has some exciting news that just might be the cure! Overview: When a new member joins PRSA national during March or April and uses the promo code SPRING 2010 they will receive a free one-year membership to our local PRSA Chapter! PRSA National covers the cost of your first year Chapter dues! Be watching your email for further information and all of the information can be downloaded from the PRSA National website (CLICK HERE).
So let’s spread the good news and cure those budget blues! FINAL NOTES
SUPPORTING OUR COLLEAGUE
Sean Stanelun, former owner of Manito Video Productions, hospitalized since last September, lost his battle against Necrotizing Fasciitis (flesh eating bacteria) and kidney failure. Sean’s wife, our colleague Dawn Picken, must now face huge medical bills. If you can, help support Dawn Picken and her young family. She and Sean always went out of their way to help others. Now she needs our help! The Sean Stanelun Fund has been set up at Numerica Credit Union. Please make a donation.
Go to www.helpseanrecover.com for more details.
COMMITTEE MEMBERS WANTED
One of the best ways to get good value out of your Membership is to get involved! Every one of our activities – from meetings to special events to PRSSA student activities – needs people to help make them a success. It’s a wonderful way to get acquainted and with various levels of commitment, there is literally something to fit every schedule. Contact President Cher Merrill (509.326.6885 or cmerrrill@aiin.com) to volunteer today. And the survey says…
Joy Scott, former PRSA Spokane Board member is now in the final stages of finishing her Ph.D. degree at WSU. The purpose of her study is to explore awareness and perceptions of cultural change in terms of parents who stay home to care for their children. She needs people age 25 and older to respond to her 15-minute survey.
Responding to this survey will put you in the running for a $100 Amazon gift certificate. Measures have been taken to maintain responder anonymity. There are no identifying marks or questions on the survey. Only email addresses are collected separately for drawing the gift certificate recipient. Amazon has the option of sending e-gift cards, so there is no need to get further information.
If you would like to participate in the survey, email Joy: jscott5@wsu.edu and state which word processing program your computer accepts.
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