Behind the scenes of a great presentation spring

2013 Media

Relations

@HawkTheVote

The importance of graphic design in communication

ent

COMMNOVEMBER 2012

Volume 2, Issue 2

AN RWU PRSSA PUBLICATION

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Y&^jieinmoehop:Fake It To Make ItRWU CEN & PRSSA present...

When: Friday, November 9th @ 9p.m.

Where: Upper Commons

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A lip-syncing contenst with guest judges and awesome prizes!

Early morning on October 11, 13 girls sporting “Life’s a pitch” shirts were running at full sprint, surprised by the angry words of several !ight at-tendants. It was 7:58 a.m. and the Roger Williams University chapter of Public Relations Student Society of America had o"cially made the entrance of all entrances onto their !ight departing from Logan Interna-tional Airport. This kicked o# the $rst of many adventures these mem-bers experienced on the west coast.

The 2012 PRSSA National Conference, titled “Bridging the Gap,” was held in the heart of San Francisco and hosted PRSSA Chapters from all states throughout the country. The girls from Roger rocked the future PR pros at the opening roll call with a witty song inspired by Queen’s “We Will Rock You.”

The RWU Chapter was honored to present a chapter development ses-sion about their Alumni Relations program. President Kitty McTeague, Vice President Theresa Agonia, and Bateman member Alexa Roberto were thrilled to see an increase in their Twitter followers after their in-formational yet funny presentation.

That $rst night, called “A day in the bay,” o#ered an opportunity to meet students from other chapters. RWU wasted no time in handing out eye

patches to promote their new student-run $rm, Jolly Roger Public Rela-tions.

Other highlights from the conference include the $rst night opening celebration, a keynote from the co-founder of Twitter, dynamic media training, creativity inspiration, lessons on restaurant and hospitality PR and the chance to network with members from PRSA.

“PR by day, California by night” was the motto of the six-day trip. The girls were able to make friends throughout the country and even those from abroad while being the quintessential tourists.

The most memorable part of the trip was hiking the steep hills of San Francisco in heels - in true PR fashion. But besides the blisters, the girls loved traveling by cable car, cruising under the Golden Gate Bridge and around Alcatraz Island, exploring Ghiradelli Square, Fisherman’s Wharf, Pier 39, Haight-Ashbury, and taking in all that the city had to o#er.

To experience an adventure like no other, make sure you check out infor-mation on next year’s conference held in Philadelphia!

They Left Their Hearts in San Francisco

Elizabeth Monahan_COMMunicator

It’s the end of the semester and you are ner-vously preparing your schedule to show to your advisor during your bi-annual meeting. It is re-ally easy to pick out all of the communications courses you want to take but you are entirely unsure of what your minor should be. Panic sets in. There are so many options from marketing to visual arts to anthropology and sociology. More panic and confusion. After going over this pestering question in your head for weeks (you might even have nightmares about it), you $-nally get to meet with your advisor who quickly approves of all of your selections but brings up that pestering question yet again, “what are you going to minor in?”

You start naming o# a multitude of options that you have considered (she aggressively shakes

her head no at every single option). When you are done (and winded from the long list you just read) your advisor suggests graphic design. Communications is a course of study that en-ables you to communicate across a wide range of situations with media or data communica-tion. How does that relate to graphic design? It doesn’t seem like a bad idea but isn’t design a $ne art? How is that going to help you? There is no doubt about it; graphic design is an art form. You can convey a message with something as subtle as the colors you choose, the symmetry or lack thereof, and the moods that your adver-tising and designs trigger.

As all of these thoughts run through your head, you are still questioning how in the world an art form is going to help you in the real world as

#designproblems

the importance of graphic design in the communications

field and why every

communications student should embrace it

a communications student. Design has nothing to do with Twitter or Facebook or writing press releases. However, you don’t want to disagree with your advisor so you reluctantly nod yes and sign into some graphic design courses. After all, it is just a couple of classes you can check o# the list of requirements you really aren’t inter-ested in taking. Then you think to yourself, “I’m not going the design route, so it doesn’t really matter, its just a minor so I can graduate.” Plus, it would be pretty cool to learn how to work Photoshop, because let’s face it, we all want to know how to make ourselves look like Giselle Bundchen, right?

Wrong. Design courses o#er much more than how to work Photoshop (although it is a plus). They teach us the importance of a clean lay-out, proper alignment, and appropriate size. They also educate students on how to create memorable logos and posters. Graphic design

is a $eld that is growing exponentially and it encompasses many di#erent $elds, including communications, especially when it comes to creating advertisements or packaging for a product. Think about it: Design is everywhere. How could it not be useful? As a communica-tions student you are in a $eld where you need a diverse skill set to compete. Yes, you need to be able to write, yes, you need to understand social media and you also need to understand design.

Communications interns and practitioners use basic design elements on a regular basis. It is crucial for communications students to un-derstand design (and vice versa) because ulti-mately, that is how their message is going to be conveyed. By understanding what good design is they can more easily communicate not only with their target audience but also with the

designer they are going to have to work with.

The student described in this article, Jenn Hamilton, who is a media communications major with a minor in graphic design, explains that her minor only came about in order to ful$ll Roger Williams University’s core require-ment.

“Knowing graphic design has helped me these past four years,” said Hamilton. “Everything I do combines the knowledge I have learned in my PR classes as well in my graphic design classes. From involvement to my internships, I am constantly combining the two di#erent sets of skills to better accomplish my tasks. Even at my current internship, I am working with the Development Communications de-partment but because I know graphic design they have asked me to help them with projects for publications.”

On the other hand, Katie Wilson, a graphic design major with a minor in communications, explains that “the fact that I was able to major in graphic design and minor in communica-tions at Roger Williams was one of my big deciding factors on coming to Roger Williams.” As a graphic design student she is aware of the strong connection to the two $elds and be-lieves that because of her experience in com-munications and design, she will be a “strong competitor” in the workforce.

So next time you are given the opportunity to take a design class, don’t tune out your pro-fessor because they might just help you set yourself apart in the job market. Who knows, it might help you get an internship or even a job.

Blair Carroll_COMMunicator

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Now that the fall semester is in full swing, and everyone is into the groove of his or her new classes, it’s a great time to start looking for future internships. Although it may be too late to score a position for this semester, now is the ideal time to investigate winter internship opportunities (or “winternships”). If you’re unfamiliar with this term, check out the Boston Globe Magazine’s article “More students spend-ing winter break in ‘winternships,’”featuring PRSSA alumna, Mary Concannon.

Winter or summer internships are just as valuable as interning during the fall and spring semesters. If you’re undecided on when to get your internship credit completed, check out the pros and cons list:

Things to Remember:

1. All students must complete RWU’s internship workshops prior to registering for an internship

2. The internship workshops teach you valuable job-search skills

3. Register for your internships on Hawks’ Hunt for credit

Pros & Cons of Short-Term Internships

Even if sacri!cing your precious hours during the winter and summer months sounds unbearable, think of the big picture. Graduates are facing a bleak job market so any additional experience that will help strengthen your resume will improve chances of post-graduation employment.

Alternatively, just take Mary’s advice from the Globe’s article.

“You really have to have experience,’’ Concannon said. “I had three others before Marlo, and that’s not really considered a lot. So I’m taking this opportunity. My friends are sitting home on the sofa now, but I’d rather have a job in the spring than extra sleep now.’’

Pros ConsYou can give 100% to your internship without the stress of regular classes during the semester.

If you want academic credits for the internship, you have to pay RWU’s summer/winter tuition course.

Your dedication to the program will shine.

Less time to “relax” during vacation.

Internship advisors will recog-nize your willingness to prepare for your future by working through your vacation.

Instead of laying out in a bikini

be dressed in business wear.

You can get more experience by doing a non-credited in-ternship to save money!

You can’t get credit for an internship you did last semester (summer) but didn’t register for.

Elizabeth Monahan_COMMunicator

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Alexa Roberto_COMMunicatorPresenting at the 2012 PRSSA National Con-

ference in San Francisco was a nerve-rack-

ing, yet extremely rewarding experience. All I

knew was that I was going to be presenting on

Alumni Relations with PRSSA President, Kitty

McTeague, and Vice President, Theresa Ago-

nia. So yes, I guess you could say I was a tad

bit nervous.

Our preparation started to get going during

the month of August. We had conference calls

and Skype appointments with Brian Price, the

Vice President of PRSSA Chapter Develop-

ment. When going over our presentation, hav-

ing a fourth set of ears was very helpful. Bri-

an was able to catch some mistakes we had

missed, but most importantly he was able to

give us some great ways to extend our presen-

tation, since it had to be 25 minutes.

Perfecting our written speech took up the bulk

of the preparation time. Kitty, Theresa, and I

spent two to four hours a day working on this

speech. We wanted to perfect our speech to

the best of our abilities, but our main goal

was to be able to demonstrate how great our

alumni relations are.

Once we had our speech written and com-

pleted, it was time to create the visual. Since

we were presenting in front of other college

students, we knew we needed a visual to keep

their attention. Using a PowerPoint presenta-

tion allowed us to show and animate all of our

material. One objective of the PowerPoint was

for the students to get a better sense of how

and why we do alumni relations. We utilized

alumni photos, screen shots of our Facebook,

Twitter, and web pages, as well as maps and

logos.

As I said previously, we had to present to a

room full of college students. For us, we knew

that by just lecturing to these students, and

spitting out a bunch of facts, we would lose

their attention. We chose to present our mate-

What you can take away from my experience:1. Read your presentation out loud to others2. Take time to prepare for a presentation3. Know your audience4. Don’t use note cards5. Use visuals6. Personalize your presentation7. Practice makes almost perfect8. Have fun with it and be yourself!

rial in a more conversational manner. We were

able to do so by personalizing each of our top-

ics, and throwing in some jokes.

Once our presentation was perfected, it was

time to start rehearsing the presentation. One

specific aspect I tried to work on was mini-

mizing my Boston accent, which I think I was

able to do. I know for myself, I also rehearsed

alone in front of my mirror, to my roommates,

in my car, and while sitting in classes.

After weeks of rehearsing, we were ready

for San Francisco. Our 25 minute presenta-

tion flew by, and if I should say so myself, we

nailed it. The best part of presenting was that

we actually helped many students and their

PRSSA chapters. Our presentation definitely

exceeded my expectations and I could not be

happier with the results.

Behind the Scenes of a Great PResentation

Alexa Roberto, Theresa Agonia, and Kathryn McTeague pose for a photo before giving their presentation about RWU PRSSA Alumni Relations.

Interested in entertainment public relations? Earn three credits while in Los

Angeles at the heart of it all January 2-14, 2013!For roughly $2,500 (including three academic credits) you can stay right o! Hollywood

Boulevard and learn "rst hand from people in the "eld about entertainment PR! Students will attend the People’s Choice Awards, tour Warner Brother Studios, watch a sitcom be "lmed, and

tour many great "rms. Don’t miss this opportunity! Talk to Dr. Shelton if you are interested.

DID YOU KNOW?Interesting facts from the 2012 PRSSA National Conference

every PRofessional should know

For every child born, there are smart phones activated. @TimothyJordan3 of people talk more online than in real life. @TimothyJordan57%

Word of mouth is actually the method to spread awareness. @JenniferPBrownbest

Everyone should have a second personal summary. -Joseph Trahan, III25-40The average American is subjected to messages per day. @SteveZanof3,000For every minutes someone is on camera for a news conference,

they should have hours of prep time. -Joseph Trahan, III

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Theresa Agonia_COMMunicator

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HAWKTHEVOTE

Special Topics Media Relations course offered spring 2013!

The media relationship is key to successful public relations, whether it’s for a corporation, non-profit or

advocacy organization.“”In this course, you will learn to:

Think strategically about your organi-zation and its key messages.

Understand what is news, and distin-guish news from fluff and fillers.

Understand and appreciate the symbiotic relationship between public relations and journalism/media.

Give reporters usable, on-message information.

Provide radio and television interview-ers with sound bites they can use.

Counsel the organization on best practices in communication during a crisis.

COMM 431 Dr. Hume Johnson

Future events can be live streamed

at www.HawkTheVote.com

@HawkTheVote

@HawkTheVotenees

Don’t forget

to vote on

November 6!

New York City Firm Tours!

November 8, 2012

and more!

Editor-in-ChiefSofia Giovannello

COMMunicatorsTheresa Agonia

Blair Carroll

Kinsey Janke

Elizabeth Monahan

Kyrie Perry

Alexa Roberto

Want to write for us? Contact: rwucomment@gmail.com

@RWUCOMMent