By Alicia Mistry, Director of Professional Development, CSUN PRSSA
PRSA-LA hosted the 4th annual PRSSA One-Day Conference on Saturday, April 9 at Loyola Marymount University (LMU). More than 70 students from 12 PRSSA chapters were represented at the event, most from California, and a few students from Arizona State University (ASU).
PRSSA students started the day mingling with other chapter members during the continental breakfast. Melissa Robinson, senior vice president of brand marketing & communications at PMK*BNC delivered an inspirational keynote address titled “U Brand 101: Lessons in Building the Most Important Brand You’ll Ever Work for: YOU.” Great tips from Melissa included:
- Surround yourself and collaborate with the smartest people you can find
- Get past core classes to study topics you’re genuinely interested in and that get you thinking
- Your brand is the only thing you fully control
- Remember to be consistent, committed and controlled
Moderator Alissa Zitto of Step Up led a powerhouse panel of public relations professionals including: Marisol Barrios, APR, Hillsides; Diane Bergman, APR, Los Angeles Opera; Kenneth Chancery, Cerrell Associates; Jackie Chase, Cunard Lines; Linda Martin, APR, Porter Novelli; Alex Munson, Rogers & Cowan; and Jim Wetmore, Weber Shandwick. Panelists answered questions from the audience and gave students the insight and knowledge to succeed while in school and after graduation.
After lunch, all of the attendees divided into groups for the afternoon campaign challenge known as Bringing a PR Concept to Life: Collaborating with Peers, Learning and Sharing Best Practices, hosted by Allison + Partners and Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles. Scott Pansky, co-founder + senior partner of Allison + Partners was the facilitator, and PRSA-LA’s Young Professionals group assisted in the campaign as mentors. The judges included PRSA-LA President Victoria LeLash, APR, RSE; Ericka Iniguez, The LAGRANT Foundation; Amy Taylor, Toyota Financial Services; Patti Johnson, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles; and Shelli Hill, 360 Music and a board member of Big Brothers Big Sisters. Each group was required to devise a strategy to target the assigned demographic and help Big Brothers Big Sisters recruit much-needed adult volunteers (“Bigs”) to match with “littles” in the San Fernando Valley.
“I thought the event was a really good opportunity to network with students and industry professionals,” said Anthony Baca, CSUN PRSSA member. “It also allowed me to collaborate with PRSSA peers and develop hands-on business skills in the public relations field.”
Thanks to PRSA-LA, LMU, PMB*BNC, Allison + Partners, Porter Novelli, Cunard Lines, Hillsides, Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles, The LAGRANT Foundation, RSE and Weber Shandwick for inspiring and influencing our PRSSA chapter members.
