Membership

CPRS Toronto Student Steering Committee Profile: Terrence Freeman, Vice President, External

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Meet your 2015/2016 Student Steering Committee!

Stay tuned for more Student Steering Committee profile postings in the coming weeks.

Terrence

Terrence Freeman

Humber College, Bachelor of Public Relations, fourth-year

Hello!

My name is Terrence Freeman – I am currently a fourth-year student studying towards my bachelor of public relations degree at Humber College. I moved to Toronto about six years ago to pursue post-secondary education in a city full of opportunities. I am looking forward to the new experiences my role as VP, external will bring.

Where are you from?

Hamilton, Ontario

Do you have any other post-secondary education?

I studied sociology for one year at Ryerson University.

What are you most excited for this year?

This year, I am most excited about our fall Passport to PR event! Having participated in last year’s Passport to PR event, I am excited to help plan an event that is able to provide so much insight for students.

What event did you enjoy the most last year?

Last year I most enjoyed the Passport to PR event. I had the opportunity to tour and learn about PR at Sears Canada and the Eaton Chelsea. The PR teams at both organizations provided lots of great insight.

Have you interned anywhere?

In the beginning of my PR program I interned at a boutique lifestyle-focused PR agency. The summer after my second year I worked at a lifestyle agency called Rock-It Promotions, supporting the agency’s annual Tastemakers gifting lounge at TIFF. Finally, this past summer after my third-year of school, I completed an internship at Metro (the grocery chain).

What is your dream job?

My dream job would be communications director of an international corporate consumer packaged goods company like Procter and Gamble or PepsiCo.

What do you do outside of school?

Outside of school, I work part time at a restaurant and enjoy spending time with friends while catching up with them over dinner.

Tell us something unexpected about yourself:

I’m a twin!

 

Find Terrence on:

Twitter: @itsterrence

LinkedIn: ca.linkedin.com/in/terrenceGfreeman

5 reasons to join a professional association

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by Alex Sévigny, PhD, APR, MCIPR, @AlexSevigny

In 2009, my colleague, mentor and friend Terry Flynn, suggested that I join the Canadian Public Relations Society. I did, and I have found it to be incredibly rewarding. I now recommend joining a professional society to every professional communicator I know.

Here are five reasons to join a professional association:

  1. Ethics Code: One of the most valuable aspects of membership in a professional association is the ethics code that the association requires you to submit to. This may seem abstract until you face an ethical quandary and are able to say “My professional association ethics code doesn’t allow me to do this.” That’s a powerful argument for you to keep your practice ethical despite pressure.
  2. Professional Accreditation: A postsecondary degree or diploma is an important first step toward building a career as a professional communicator, but validation by your professional peers provides a level of recognition that marks you as a seasoned and trusted professional. I am very proud of the APR designation that I earned through CPRS. I know colleagues who hold the ABC designation from IABC are equally proud of their achievement. Accreditation means that your industry peers think you are an ethical, competent strategic communicator – that’s golden!
  3. Cultural and Social Capital: Membership is a first step toward building relationships, but the longer you remain a member the deeper your roots in the organization can grow. You can build serious social and cultural capital by being elected to association boards or sitting on committees.
  4. Professional Development: It is hard to keep at the cutting edge of the profession after leaving college or university because time is a precious commodity. Professional associations have the resources to bring the best national and international experts to you so that you can meet them and learn from them.
  5. Awareness of Opportunities: Professional associations are a great way of meeting like-minded people with whom you may share common goals and outlook. Those people can make you aware of professional and personal opportunities… a new job, client or friendship may await you!

Goal

Professional associations can help keep your career fresh. Below, you can find a brief bio of my involvement with CPRS, IABC, CIPR and others – I hope it inspires you get involved. If my positive experience is any guide, you’ll have a great time once you join your professional association of choice!

My professional society bio

Since 2009, when I joined CPRS Hamilton, and especially since I became program director of the McMaster-Syracuse MCM program, I have also joined the Toronto Chapter of the International Association of Business Communicators and the Chartered Institute for Public Relations (UK).

In 2011, at the invitation of committee chair Colleen Killingsworth, I began sitting on the National Education Council of the Canadian Public Relations Society, and also as Professional Development Chair for the Hamilton Chapter of CPRS. In 2013, I began sitting as CPRS’s representative to the international Commission on Public Relations Education.

This post originally appeared at AlexSevigny.ca. Alex is Program Director, McMaster-Syracuse Master of Communications Management (MCM) and Editor-in-Chief, Journal of Professional Communication (JPC). 

Chance to win: Call for professional development topic suggestions

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Attention CPRS Toronto members! We would much appreciate your feedback about topics of interest for professional development this year.

CPRS Toronto is offering members an exclusive chance to win one free pass to the next CPRS Toronto PD event for those who submit their suggestions to the following questions:

1. Which professional development topics are of most interest to you?
2. Do you have any recommendations for esteemed public relations/communications practitioners located in the Toronto-area to lead a PD event this fall?

Please submit your suggestions to Christina Stefanski, CPRS Toronto Professional Development Chair at christina_stefanski@sony.ca by July 31, 2012 to be entered for your chance to win one free pass to the next CPRS Toronto PD event in the fall.

Do you ever question the value of your membership?

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If you’re like most members of voluntary professional associations, you question the value of your membership when you get your annual renewal notice. You also take some measure of value every time you interact with the association.

This is all well and good since the volunteer leaders of CPRS Toronto are accountable to the members for responding to your expressed needs and interests, delivering relevant programs and services, and advancing the profession of public relations.

Another fundamental fact about associations is that members derive more value by getting involved than they do by being passive.

Our member surveys show time and again that individuals who take advantage of networking, professional development programs, awards, accreditation, volunteer opportunities, etc. are much more satisfied with the value of their association than those who do not.

This fact will come as no surprise to public relations practitioners who communicate daily with active and latent publics. This widely-cited article describes the multiple stages of latency, Inactive Publics: The Forgotten Publics in Public Relations, finding among other things that there is a direct correlation between an individual’s perception of an organization’s relevance and their degree of personal involvement.

If you are not involved or you need a reason to re-engage, here are a few ideas to get you started:

New professionals

Intermediate practitioners

Senior practitioners

  • Help us to shore up the public relations brand by bringing slander to our attention – both CPRS Toronto and CPRS National are engaging media and other stakeholders who make inappropriate references to public relations practice.
  • Lead the way by volunteering for local, national or international initiatives.
  • Share your experience and knowledge as a guest lecturer at a public relations degree-granting institution in the GTA.
All members
  • Consume every free professional development program that we offer and attend in person those PD events that are relevant to your practice.
  • Read the annual report to the members and exercise your member vote.
  • Come out to our celebrations. Never miss a free event!

Please also give us feedback. Be specific about what’s working and what’s not. Contact any of your volunteer board members directly or write to our helpful staff.

Archived webinar: National Membership Survey (28:07)

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David Scholz, Executive Vice President, Leger Marketing presented the results of the 2011 CPRS National membership survey including key insights on accreditation, social media use and salaries. The presentation took place on Sept. 20, 2011 at the CPRS Toronto board meeting. Follow @Dave_Scholz

Press play beneath the slides to hear the audio. The screen can be enlarged in the bottom right corner. (Slides in PDF)

View more webinars from CPRS Toronto