January 2008

Welcome to the PRSA College of Fellows Web page. It is indeed an honor and a pleasure to lead the College as chair during 2008. I will be joined by fellow executive committee members, Mike Herman, chair elect; Judy Phair, vice chair; and Deanna Pelfrey, secretary-treasurer.

2007 Chair, Debi Miller set the stage for an aggressive effort to increase the visibility of the College and reach out to those many PRSA members who are worthy of Fellow status. We were proud to bestow Fellows’ medallions on nine new members at our 2007 induction dinner.  However, we know there are many more PRSA members who have had long and illustrative careers who should also be among our ranks.

In 2008 we will continue to recruit candidates with fervor. We will also continue to offer assistance to each applicant via our Good Fellows program, which assures applicants that they do not have to go it alone — we will help demystify the process and the application.

Other initiatives that we will focus on during 2008 include getting Fellows into the classroom as teachers and students.

A few years ago, we created the College of Fellows Endowment to fund scholarships that will allow Fellows and other senior practitioners to enhance their careers with continuing education. The Endowment’s initial goal is to have each and every Fellow make a $600 commitment toward this effort. If every Fellow gave just $600 we would have nearly a quarter million dollars for scholarships. As Immediate Past Chair, Debi Miller will lead this effort for 2008.

Our second initiative, to get Fellows back into the classroom as teachers, is called “Brain Dump 400.” The goal of this program, working with PRSA educators, is to tap into the brains of all 400+ Fellows. We feel that each Fellow should be asked to teach at least one university communications class each year. Fred Bagg, APR, Fellow PRSA will lead this effort in 2008.

So there you have it. I look forward to working with each and every one of you in our continuing pursuit of recognizing professional excellence and giving back to members of our profession.

Sincerely,

Bob Frause, APR, Fellow PRSA, Chair, College of Fellows
Chairman CEO, Frause