Looking back on my year as Minnesota PRSA president

Now that the end of 2012 is upon us, I'm taking a moment to reflect on my year as the president of the Minnesota chapter of the Public Relations Society of America.

Probably the best way to sum up the year is with the speech that I gave at the chapter's annual meeting/holiday party on Dec. 6 at Pinstripes:

Welcome! I’m Brant Skogrand, president of Minnesota PRSA. I’d like to call the 2012 Minnesota PRSA annual meeting to order. Thank you all for being here tonight.

          I would like to hit on some quick highlights of the year.

          First, we updated our website. Mnprsa.com now is a lot more interactive and engaging. Be sure to check out the Perspectives Blog for public relations insight, event recaps and more.

          We have visited in person all of the PRSSA chapters. This has strengthened our bond with future public relations professionals. I have enjoyed getting to know the students and seeing them become involved in PRSA upon graduation.

          We hosted some very compelling Programming, including a visit by the editor-in-chief of PRWeek, a creativity workshop that was featured in PRSA Issues & Trends, and events that connected our members with the media and with each other.

          At the Classics, we announced the winner of our first Young Professional Award. Congratulations again to Marnie Kopischke.

          In April, Minnesota hosted its first PRSA National APR Boot Camp. This brought professionals from San Diego, South Carolina and places in between to achieve their APR and APR+M.

          Our National membership numbers were up this year, putting us at more than 400 and giving us five Assembly delegates to represent our chapter nationally.

          After going through a review process, Minnesota PRSA has switched to a new association management company. Our new firm is called Creating Order, and representatives from Creating Order are here tonight. As such, Minnesota PRSA’s mailing address and phone number have changed. The new contact information is on our website.

          Thanks to our board members this year. Please raise your hand when I mention your name:

·       Theresa Skillrud, APR – Director of Business Community Outreach

·       Susan Buckles, APR – Director of Classics

·       Susan Beatty, APR – Director of Accreditation and Career Center

·       Heather Cmiel, APR – Director of Professional Development and Networking

·       Jason Sprenger, APR – Director of Internal and External Communication

·       Linda Kohl, APR – Director of Student Relations

·       Michael Porter, APR – Ethics Officer

·       Brooke Worden, APR – Immediate Past President

·       Joel Swanson, APR, MACT – Secretary and Director of Membership

·       Anna Long, APR – Treasurer

·       Tracy Carlson, APR – Vice President

Thanks to all of our volunteers for helping us accomplish these achievements. Now, on to some official business with the Secretary’s report, Treasurer’s report and election of the 2013 officers.

Here's to an excellent 2013 for Minnesota PRSA with Tracy Carlson as the chapter president!