December 12, 2006 From the Students... Alumni come home before the holiday Thirty-seven alumni attended the event. Some of the alumni were recent grads, but there were alumni in attendance who had been in the program back in the 1970s. The theme for the evening was the 'Past, Present and Future' of the public relations program. In keeping with the theme, three people shared thoughts with the group. Elaine Dixson, who worked tirelessly as Chair and instructor in the ‘80s and early 90s spoke to the program's past. Caitlin Mercer, a current second year student, demonstrated that some things have changed, but some things have stayed the same for hard-working PR students. Chair Janice Robertson gave an update on the road ahead – from what will happen when Mount Royal becomes a university, the new foundation degrees, the program’s expansion to how critical it is that our alumni connect and work with us to make the program strong and sustainable over another three decades – or more! All of us students who worked hard to make this first PR alumni gathering a success feel even more excited about the future after meeting our alumni, our future employers and colleagues. Thanks to all who came. We look forward to meeting you again – soon! Greetings Alumni, You remember how it feels. The fall semester is nearly over. Faculty are sagging a little under the weight of all the papers and projects they have to mark as students move to final exam mode – heads down, studying…worrying (but so glad the group work is over!). Knowing that all the hard work will be over for a week or so makes the holiday season even more special. This past semester was made even more exciting for us by our first alumni event – held on November 21 here at Mount Royal. Hosted as a class project by our second year students from the Event Management class, the evening entitled “A PR Christmas Carol” celebrated gifts of the past, present and future. We only sent 100 invitations because we could only accommodate 50 people in total and we had only that many confirmed contacts with alumni. We tried to make sure we had good representation from the ‘70s, 80s, 90s and since 2000 and were very pleased with the turnout – 37 alumni in total. Our goal for you? We hope you will form a PR Chapter then work with us on a number of initiatives in 2007, including creating a mentorship program, a variety of classroom opportunities and helping us attract even more alumni to at least two events that will benefit students and the program. The word is out and we now have many more names and addresses. Elizabeth Lennox, our new PR Outreach Coordinator is busily putting them all in the database so we can continue to expand our reach to alumni. Please feel free to forward this newsletter to your classmates so we can continue to find people. Every great post-secondary program has great participation by their alumni. Our applied communications degree in public relations is 10 years old, and the diploma goes back at least 30 years. As we begin the transition to the next degree, we will need your interest and support more than ever, and we plan to earn it. Happy holidays to all of you. I look forward to lots of contact in 2007! Janice
Robertson, APR, MCS It was wonderful meeting all of you at the alumni event on Nov 21. For those of you I have not yet met, I am the new Coordinator of the Public Relations Outreach program. What does that mean? It means I am here to connect you back to the PR program and Mount Royal for a mutually beneficial relationship. We hope to attract you to participate in a variety activities that will strengthen us and benefit you - mentoring, working directly with students, networking opportunities, chapter development, sharing of job opportunities and more. Send me a note if you are interested in any of the above or simply update us on what you are doing. You’ll find me at 403-440-5698 or elennox@mtroyal.ca. Hope to hear from you soon!
Lori Grant is a MRC alumna (Public Relations’96) and a board member of the recently formed Mount Royal College Alumni Association. At the recent PR Alumni event, Lori spoke briefly about her great experience with the PR program and its eventual payoff in her fairy-tale job as a Director of Public Relations with Fairmount Hotels and Resorts. She described how alumni chapters enhance the alumni experience when a group of alumni of the College come together because of shared interests, experiences or field of study while at Mount Royal College and stays active to “give back” to the College in ways that work for everyone. We need a small (but soon to grow) group of committed PR alumni to create the Public Relations Chapter of the MRC Alumni Association, please hold the date! PR Alumni meeting: January 23, 6:00 – 7:30 Location to be announced soon. The purpose of this meeting is to continue discussions on launching the Public Relations Alumni Chapter and identifying individuals who will help with this. Faculty and staff from the Public Relations Program will also be there to get people interested in and committed to some of the alumni program ideas already on the radar screen. RSVP - Shirley Reynolds, Coordinator of Alumni Chapters & Events, @ (403)440-7047 or sreynolds@mtroyal.ca. Remember to keep your address updated by contacting the Alumni Affairs Office. Phone locally at 403-440-700, toll free at 1-866-6101 or email at alumni@mtroyal.ca. First Initiative 2007 – Mentorship Program Remember what it was like to be a senior student at Mount Royal faced with the overwhelming task of searching for that first career position? Did you wish there was someone you could talk to; to guide you as you entered the world of work? Well, here is your opportunity to mentor a junior in your field while gaining valuable experience to add to your skills and accomplishments. Many of you who completed our questionnaire indicated an interest in mentorship. We want to hear from you. If you have some expertise in this area or simply want to become involved, please email Elizabeth Lennox to let her know how to reach you. Our mentorship program is in the early stages of development. Stay tuned for more information in January. Centre for Communication
Studies |
Public
relations alumni returned to Mount Royal College on November 21,
for an event hosted by 15 students in the public relations program's
Event Management course. The event invited alumni back to reminisce,
catch up on personal and professional news and understand their
part in forming the future of the public relations program.
Elizabeth
Lennox joins the public relations team as the new Coordinator
of the Public Relations Outreach Program
