“PR in the Age of the #MeToo Movement” is the luncheon topic at Temple University’s Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) for the Mid-Atlantic Regional Conference, Saturday, March 23. Panelists include Mary Austen, President and CEO of Tierney; Afia Ohene-Frempong, Communications Manager at PECO; and Megan Smith, Founder and President of Brownstone PR. The panel will be moderated by LiRon Anderson-Bell, Assistant Professor of Instruction at Temple University.
“As we’ve seen, the #MeToo movement is a crucial issue in the workplace today,” says Brianna Greco, Temple PRSSA conference coordinator. “We are very excited to bring this topic to our Regional Conference and allow for students to hear from top professionals regarding how the social action is changing our industry.”
The regional conference is a two-day event beginning with a Friday night reception on March 22 at the Hard Rock Café from 7-9 p.m. The second day, Saturday, March 23 will feature an opening address from Philadelphia mayor, Jim Kenney starting at 9 a.m. Mayor Kenney’s address will be followed by nine breakout sessions taking place throughout the day. Interested attendees can purchase tickets at templeprssa.org/regionalconference.
The list of sessions includes Agency/Client Relations, Fake News & Ethics, Diversity, Special Events, Professional Development, Corporate Social Responsibility, Engaging Influencer Campaigns, and Analytics. Students will have the opportunity to connect with PR professionals as well as their peers during a networking session to end the day.
The most recently added session, the Convergence of Advertising and PR, will feature top advertising and public relations leaders in the Philadelphia Region. The panelists are Martha Gaston, President of PRSA Philly, Nina Scimenes Rodebaugh, President of the Philadelphia Public Relations Association (PPRA), and a member of leadership from Philadelphia Advertising Club.
The list of confirmed speakers includes Darla Price, Senior VP Executive Account Director at McCann; Gabriel Escobar, Editor and Vice President of the Philadelphia Inquirer; Tiffany Tavarez, Vice President of Community Relations at Wells Fargo; and Linda Burkley, President of Ardis Communications.
The chapter is partnering with Mighty Writers, as the charitable beneficiary for the conference. Throughout the conference, the chapter will be collecting donations from attendees to be donated to the Mighty Writers program. Attendees are encouraged to bring reading books for ages 5-18. Monetary donations will also be collected that will go toward one of their many programs.
