Report Sponsored by Industry Icon Jim Weiss and Launches November 3 in Chicago
Download PDF: Commission on Public Relations Education Release Future of PR Workforce and Weiss Donation Oct 2, 2023
CHICAGO, (9.28.2023): The Commission on Public Relations Education (CPRE) announced today that its sixth signature report will focus on the future of PR education. This report is sponsored by Real Chemistry Founder and Chairman Jim Weiss. The formal introduction of the report will take place at a special CPRE 50th anniversary event at 8:30 a.m. (Central) Friday, Nov. 3 in Chicago.
Titled “Navigating Change: Recommendations for Advancing Undergraduate Public Relations Education,” its issuance coincides with the Commission’s anniversary. “Navigating Change” focuses on six areas: The Future of the Workplace; Public Relations as a Driver of Social Change; Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion; Ethics; Technology and Data Analysis; and the State of Undergraduate Public Relations Education, with a focus on critical thinking. CPRE’s reports are used by more than 200 accredited public relations programs at colleges and universities in the U.S. and abroad.
“The support of Jim Weiss and his sponsorship of the report is a meaningful, tangible and valued acknowledgment of the Commission’s work by one the industry’s leading icons,” said CPRE 2023 co-chair Maria Russell. “It recognizes that the public relations profession has never been more valued, nor more in demand, but at the same time never more in need of well-educated, trained professionals to meet the future challenges of organizations and society.”
The milestone report captures the current and future state of the public relations/communications profession from the perspectives of education and curricula, the workplace knowledge, skills, and abilities (KSAs) needed, and employer expectations. The analysis details considerations and recommendations for industry leaders, managers, educators, students, and academic decision-makers.
“Continual learning has always driven my career and the company I founded,” said Weiss. “I designed and evolved Real Chemistry to stay one step ahead of the technology and data revolutions that will only become more important in the future. That’s why education in this sector has to evolve and change to keep pace with the needs of employers today and tomorrow.”
Weiss will be a featured speaker at the Commission’s Nov. 3 meeting, to be held at the Union League Club of Chicago, 65 W. Jackson Blvd., Chicago. In addition, the report’s authors will present brief highlights of their findings and recommendations followed by a “call to action” to implement those recommendations.
The CPRE reports also have been instrumental in guiding accrediting institutions such as the Accrediting Council on Education in Journalism and Mass Communications and the Public Relations Society of America when evaluating public relations programs. Like previous CPRE reports, the latest report will be available starting Nov. 3 on CPRE’s website at www.commissionpred.org
Public Relations and communications educators and professionals can register for the Commission’s complimentary breakfast event on Nov. 3 at https://secure.givelively.org/event/commission-on-public-relations-education-inc/celebration-for-cpre-s-50-years-of-advancing-pr-talent.
They also are invited to attend the Emerging Leaders DEI Summit and Mentoring Gala on Nov. 2 at the Union League Club, hosted by The Plank Center for Leadership in Public Relations. The DEI Summit is set for noon-5 p.m. followed at 5:30 p.m. by the Mentoring Gala. The cost for both of the Plank Center events is $200. A separate registration for the Plank Center events is available:
https://plankcenter.ua.edu/wpcontent/uploads/2023/06/2023_MIM_SponsorshipPacketFINAL.pdf
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About CPRE: The Commission on Public Relations Education, the authoritative voice on public relations education, was founded in 1973 by the Public Relations Division of the Association for Education in Journalism and the Public Relations Society of America to address the quality of public relations education in the United States.
Since then, CPRE has issued periodic research reports and recommendations on undergraduate and graduate education in public relations for universities, accrediting bodies, and professional associations around the world. Today, with 24 member organizations in the U.S. and abroad, CPRE operates year-round as a 501(c)3 organization in partnership with the Institute for Public Relations and continues to offer a forum for public relations education with a global perspective.