Waynesburg University’s Public Relations Student Society of America chapter, led by President Nicole Tobias, held their annual public relations week last week.

“PR Week is a celebration of the field,  Tobias said. “It’s a way to provide opportunities.”

Throughout the week, students were exposed to many speakers involved in the public relations field. Each speaker was diverse in what specific branch of public relations they worked in.

“It was beneficial to see professionals in the field,”  Silas Mays, freshman public relations major, said. “It solidified my choice to become a public relations major.”

PR Week is about educating and celebrating a field that may be overlooked at times, said Mays. In Mays’ case, this helped him realize the for-profit sector of public relations is the field he would like to pursue.

“I loved all of [SVP Senior Director at Burson Cohn and Wolfe] Steve Radick’s speech,” Mays said.  “He knew what he was talking about, and it definitely impacted me.”

Radick was the keynote speaker who kicked off the week. his speech mainly focused on his professional journey and how hard work and being authentic can be rewarded.  Mays found that PR week positively impacted his thoughts on the field.

“It is a week-long celebration of the study of public relations,” Richard Krause, faculty advisor of Waynesburg University’s chapter of PRSSA and chairperson for the Department of Communication, said. “Basically we are trying to develop a series of events and activities that will build skills and serve as professional development.”

Tobias and the Waynesburg University PRSSA chapter are credited with organizing PR week annually.  Tobias directly organized and executed the unique event that has become essential to the Waynesburg University public relations major. Waynesburg’s is the only chapter known to hold an entire week dedicated to the major. This event has lead to the chapter being recognized at the PRSSA National Conference.

Tobias reached out to Pittsburgh public relations professionals through the PRSSA network to come speak at this event.

“The biggest issue or task was trying to find speakers,” she said. “But, once I got in touch with them they were more than happy to attend.”

Tobias found  speakers with different backgrounds and experiences. She provided a diverse group of public relations professionals, this helped students find out more about different aspects of the field.

For Tobias personally, the event that impacted her most was the Stronger than Hate: Tree of Life Synagogue panel.

“Orchestrating [the panel] was a huge task, more so because that was only a few months ago,” Tobias said. “I knew it would be an important session to do.”

Tobias worked on her event planning and communication skills during the time of preparing for PR Week.

Public Relations Week is not only meant for public relations majors, as everyone is invited to learn more about what the profession has to offer.