Local PR professionals selected for prestigious leadership program

Ocala’s Allison B. Campbell and Gregory Davis have been selected for LeadershipFPRA, an intensive Florida Public Relations Association leadership program featuring seminar-style training classes from a faculty of some of the most accomplished professionals in the state. The program is designed to further strengthen public relations roles and the communities and industries where public relations practitioners live.

Launched in 2016, the yearlong program includes an orientation session, five seminars and graduation ceremony. Class VI seminars cover topics including leading and managing; economic development and higher education; cross functional business strategies; government, law and ethics; and leadership development. Selection to the class is competitive, and only 12 public relations professionals are accepted into each cohort. Campbell and Davis each received a scholarship from the FPRA Ocala Chapter to attend the program.

Campbell was elected to the Marion County School Board in November 2020. An Ocala resident for nearly 20 years, she earned and maintains her Accreditation in Public Relations (APR) and Certified Public Relations Counselor (CPRC) credentials. She is a former FPRA Ocala Chapter president and also served on the state FPRA board of directors, the Public Education Foundation of Marion County and the NonProfit Business Council. 

Campbell has professional experience in public relations for both corporate and nonprofit entities. Currently, she is the director of strategic communications at the Community Foundation for Ocala/Marion County. She and her husband also own A&A Campbell Group.

Campbell is a doctoral student at Regent University studying strategic communications. Her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in telecommunications and political communications come from Lee University and Regent University, respectively. She’s also an adjunct professor at the College of Central Florida and Southeastern University (Ocala campus).

“Though I am a seasoned public relations professional, I also consider myself a lifelong learner,” she said. “After just one LeadershipFPRA session, I’ve already learned more about myself, leading in a team and my role in the class. This program isn’t just for those who are new in their careers, and I’m excited to learn from all of my classmates from around the state.”

Campbell has three sons, all students in Marion County Public Schools. 

Gregory Davis is a public relations practitioner with more than seven years of experience. Working as the public relations officer for Marion County Public Schools, Davis is responsible for the district’s communications plans and the 52 schools that encompass it. He also works as a freelance multimedia specialist and serves in the Florida Army National Guard.

In addition to FPRA, Davis is a member of several public relations organizations, including the Sunshine State School Public Relations Association (SUNSPRA) and National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA). He is currently serving as the social media chair for the FPRA Ocala Chapter.

Davis said his passion for public relations centers on his devotion to using creative and critical thinking strategies.

“It will be interesting to see how the different areas and organizations lead their communications processes,” he said. “I think this program will take me outside of my comfort zone within the school district and test my critical thinking with public relations as a whole.”

Lt. Col. John W. Dillin, APR, CPRC, established FPRA in 1938. It is the oldest organization of public relations professionals in the world with more than 1,200 members from 15 professional chapters and 13 student chapters across the state.

FPRA members come from many backgrounds, including private and public corporations, government entities, nonprofit organizations and consulting firms. Members share a common goal of enhancing the public relations profession in Florida through ethical and standardized practices.

The FPRA Ocala Chapter was established in 1980 and provides professional development, networking and professional recognition opportunities for its members.

For more information, visit www.fpraocala.org.

LOCAL PUBLIC RELATIONS AND COMMUNICATIONS PROFESSIONALS WIN STATE AWARDS

OCALA, Fla. (Aug. 7, 2019) — The Florida Public Relations Association recognized several local professionals for excellence in public relations and communications at the state Golden Image Awards banquet in Tampa, Tuesday Aug. 6.

The Golden Image Awards have become a standard of public relations excellence in the state of Florida. Winners demonstrate the very best examples of innovation, planning and design. To qualify for judging, an entry must incorporate sound public relations research and planning. Entries also must meet the highest standards of production, execution and evaluation of results and budget.

In all, 12 Golden Image awards were given to various professionals. Listed are the winners:

Heather Danenhower, APR, CPRC and Duke Energy for their public relations program: Crisis Communications category—Golden Image Award– Hurricane Michael Response;

Allison Campbell, APR, CPRC, Lauren Delorio and the Nonprofit Business Council, Community Foundation and A&A Campbell Group for their public relations program: Internal category – Award of Distinguished and Judges’ Award – Aim: Training to Hit Your Target;

Tina Banner, APR, CPRC and Karen Donnelly for their public relations program: Promotional Marketing category- Award of Distinguished and Judges’ Award – Big Hammock Race Series Season 3;

Allison Campbell, APR, CPRC, Lauren Delorio and the Nonprofit Business Council, Community Foundation and A&A Campbell Group for their printed tools in public relations: Magazine category – Award of Distinguished and Judges’ Award – Nonprofit Business Council’s Guide to Charitable Giving;

Tina Banner APR, CPRC, and the College of Central Florida for their digital tools in public relations: Online Audience Engagement category – Grand Golden Image Award and Golden Image Award – College of Central Florida Social Media Platforms;

Tina Banner, APR, CPRC and College of Central Florida for their digital tools in public relations: Online Newsletter category – Award of Distinguished and Judges’ Award – College of Central Florida’s Insider Employee E-Newsletter;

Kevin Christian, APR, CPRC and Marion County Public Schools for their digital tools in public relations: Website category – Award of Distinguished – “Community Reads” initiative.

Other recognitions included the Ocala Chapter being awarded with the “Smart. Engaged. Fun.” President Award, FPRA Ocala Chapter member Heidi Gutierrez with Citrus County Public Schools was recogni

zed the Ocala Chapter’s Joe Curley Rising Leader award and Ocala Health’s Lauren Debick, APR and city of Inverness’, Elizabeth Fernley, APR were recognized for achieving their Accreditation in Public Relations from the Universal Accreditation Board.

FPRA is dedicated to developing public relations practitioners, who, through ethical and standardized practices, enhance the public relations profession in Florida. FPRA is comprised of 15 professional and 12 student chapters throughout the state, providing professional development, networking and professional recognition opportunities.

The Ocala FPRA Chapter,www.fpraocala.org, was established in 1980.  Members and guests meet the third Friday of each month at 11:30 a.m. at the College of Central Florida.

Kevin Christian Receives the Doris Fleischman Award From the Florida Public Relations Association

Ponte Vedra, Fla.,  Aug. 7, 2018— Marion County Public Schools Director of Public Relations & Multimedia Productions Kevin Christian, APR, CPRC has been awarded the prestigious Doris Fleischman Award from the Florida Public Relations Association (FPRA).

The Doris Fleischman Award is intended to honor the heretofore-unrecognized contributions an individual FPRA member has made to the public relations profession and/or to FPRA. In essence, this is an “unsung” hero award intended to reward that individual who consistently provides support and assistance to the Association.

FPRA asks each of its 15 chapters to submit nominations for this honor. The Ocala Chapter submitted the following narrative to nominate Christian to receive the recognition based on the characteristics of the award’s namesake, Doris Fleischman.

On behalf of the board of directors for the Ocala Chapter of the Florida Public Relations Association, we proudly nominate Kevin Christian, APR, CPRC for the 2018 Doris Fleischman Award.

Trailblazer– Doris Fleischman may have been behind the scenes, but she took risks when necessary to advance the profession. As president of the Ocala chapter in 2013-14, Kevin Christian, APR, CPRC took a significant risk. The Ocala Chapter website was very outdated and managed completely by code. This made updates challenging and the only member able to manage it was not easily accessible. This was not acceptable to Kevin. He felt as the County’s top communicators, the Ocala Chapter should have a website reflective of the caliber of its members. He led his board through the daunting task of migrating content and developing a new website. The web design fee was a significant investment for the chapter. He, no doubt, had some questioning his judgement. Somewhere amidst all the hustle and bustle–and financial stress of his presidency–Kevin managed to earn his CPRC! The new site was a hit, garnering the  FPRA President’s Award in Communication in 2014. Since that time, his dedication to our chapter has been unwavering.

Skilled– Immediate Past President is supposed to be the easy role, right?  He was an anchor and solid support for the president following in his footsteps. That could have been his time to quietly slip out and take a break. Instead, he stepped up to chair the Advanced Communicator Enrichment Series (ACES) program. During that year, the president moved, pushing the president-elect, his former treasurer, into the presidency six months early. Kevin agreed to remain in his role as immediate past president on the board for another term (2015-16), while coordinating 12 monthly, ACES programs that year. He ran ACES like a charm with engaging roundtable conversations, out-of-town guests and thought provoking current event topics of the day, Kevin was certain to include tremendous opportunities for our seasoned members in all sessions. During the fabulous 2016 Mid-Florida Local Image Awards held at the Reilly Arts Center, Kevin’s emcee skills were over-shadowed by his musical talents behind the exquisite baby grand on the stage. The prelude for guests entering was as if they were coming in to Carnegie Hall. Music during dinner was captivating. Despite performing, Kevin humbly bowed credit to the beauty of the stage and the baby grand he said he was honored to play.

Committed– During the 2016-17 year, Kevin served as our chapter’s chair of Accreditation, a role in which he currently serves and has just agreed to serve in that capacity for yet a third term for 2018-19. It was a challenging time as to serve the Ocala Chapter’s accreditation bench was pretty deep. He persisted with leadership, guidance, and study sessions, despite no APRs that year. This year one Ocala APR and a Lake County member he mentored have received their APR and he currently has several others in the process of sitting for their exams as well.

When the UAB reached out to APRs to participate in item-writing and technical reviews for the APR Examination, Kevin jumped at the chance. He wrote questions and participated in the review process, which are both critical to the integrity of the accreditation process.

Additionally, this year, Kevin served as the co-chair for the Chapter’s Wilton F. Martin Communicator of the Year awards. Now in the 13th year, Kevin was the second recipient of the honor in 2006, before he was an FPRA member.

Humble– Kevin has continued to grow his involvement and commitment to FPRA. He encourages and mentors others to do the same. The spirit of Doris Fleischman was one of being in the background, not getting much attention for the work she did to ensure her husband’s PR success. Kevin Christian, APR, CPRC is a gentleman, humbly operating behind the scenes for our chapter. Yet, when called upon, without hesitation, he will come out from behind the curtain to take the stage, not for his glory, but for the good of the chapter. We are honored to nominate Kevin for this honor he so richly deserves.

The Ocala Chapter meets the third Friday of each month at 11:45 in the teleconference room of the Ewers Century Center at the College of Central Florida. For additional information on the Ocala Chapter Name of FPRA please call Ocala Chapter Communications Director Ginger Broslat, APR, CPRC at 352-861-0252.

The Florida Public Relations Association is dedicated to developing public relations practitioners who, through ethical and standardized practices, enhance the public relations profession in Florida. The organization’s 15 professional and 12 student chapters provide professional development, networking and recognition opportunities for nearly 1,200 members across the state. FPRA is the nation’s oldest public relations organization, established by Lt. Col. John Dillin, APR, CPRC in 1938. For more information, visit www.fpra.org.

Local Public Relations Professionals Win Golden Image Awards

Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., Aug. 8, 2018— Six members of the Ocala Chapter of the Florida Public Relations Association (FPRA) were presented with Golden Image Awards for excellence in public relations programming at the Association’s annual banquet and conference held recently at the Sawgrass Marriott Golf Resort in Ponte Vedra, Fla.

 

 

 

Among the winners and awards were:

In Division A, Public Relations Programs:

Devon Chestnut, APR, CPRC, Cox Southeast Region and Cox One Team, Internal category, Golden Image Award, CoxOne Launch Campaign

 

 

 

 

 

Ginger Broslat Communications, KSC Incorporated, Digital Fury and Neptune Advertising, Promotional Marketing category, Award of Distinction,

 

 

 

 

 

In Division B, Printed Tools of Public Relations:

JJ Fields, Allison Campbell, APR, CPRC, Lauren DeIorio and Public Education Foundation of Marion County, Division B, Other category, Award of Distinction, Coupons for Education

 

 

 

 

 

Kevin Christian, APR, CPRC,Award of Distinction for the school district’s annual calendar

 

 

 

 

 

 

In Division C, Digital Tools of Public Relations:

Marc Rice of Digital Fury and Ginger Broslat, APR, CPRC, Judges’ Award and Award of Distinction, Ocala Police Department recruitment video,

 

 

 

 

 

 

Kevin Christian, APR, CPRC, Golden Image Award and Judges Award for the school district’s ALICE protocol video

 

 

 

 

Marc Rice of Digital Fury and Ginger Broslat, APR, CPRC, Golden Image Award for the 2017 FPRA Annual Conference video.

 

 

 

 

 


As former VPs of Golden Image, Tina Banner, APR, CPRC and Toni James, APR, CPRC were invited to present awards for Division B.

Ocala Chapter member Laura Byrnes, APR, CPRC served as the 2017-2018 vice president of Golden Image on the Association’s state executive committee. She led local Image chairs through the 10 local ceremonies prior to the statewide competition.

The Golden Image Awards have become a standard of public relations excellence in the State of Florida. Winners demonstrate the very best examples of innovation, planning and design. The awards competition includes four categories: Public Relations Programs, Printed Tools of Public Relations, Audio/Visual Tools of Public Relations, and Student Projects in Public Relations. More than 250 Golden Image entries were received in the statewide competition.

 

The Ocala Chapter meets the third Friday of each month at 11:45 in the teleconference room of the Ewers Century Center at the College of Central Florida. For additional information on the Ocala Chapter Name of FPRA please call Ocala Chapter Communications Director Ginger Broslat, APR, CPRC at 352-861-0252.

The Florida Public Relations Association is dedicated to developing public relations practitioners who, through ethical and standardized practices, enhance the public relations profession in Florida. The organization’s 15 professional and 12 student chapters provide professional development, networking and recognition opportunities for nearly 1,200 members across the state. FPRA is the nation’s oldest public relations organization, established by Lt. Col. John Dillin, APR, CPRC in 1938. For more information, visit www.fpra.org.

 

FPRA Ocala Earns Statewide Recognition from FPRA for Chapter of the Year and Strengthening the FPRA Brand

Ponte Vedra, Fla., Aug. 6, 2018— The Florida Public Relations Association (FPRA) recently recognized the Ocala Chapter for two awards at the President’s Luncheon at the 80thFPRA Annual Conference.

FPRA State President Ryan Gerds, APR, CPRC first recognized the Ocala Chapter for strengthening the FPRA brand in the community. Gerds mentioned how the chapter further informed community members about the statewide association through the Mid-Florida Local Image Awards and Wilton F. Martin Communicator of the Year program, Monthly Mixers, regular communication as well as through the chapter’s annual Toolkit for Success seminar.

Culminating the President’s Luncheon, the Ocala Chapter was announced as Chapter of the Year among the Association’s 15 statewide chapters.

“The Ocala Chapter has a rich heritage of leadership for FPRA locally, as well as on the State Association’s executive committee,” said FPRA Ocala Chapter President Lisa Varner, APR, CPRC of Ocala Brodcasting. “It’s been my honor to serve as president this year. It’s easy to lead an organization when you have such a deep bench of seasoned professionals who remain committed on the local level. When you team that with newer members with great enthusiasm and a vision for the future, it’s a game plan for success.”

The Ocala Chapter meets the third Friday of each month at 11:45 in the teleconference room of the Ewers Century Center at the College of Central Florida. For additional information on the Ocala Chapter Name of FPRA please call Ocala Chapter Communications Director Ginger Broslat, APR, CPRC at 352-861-0252.

The Florida Public Relations Association is dedicated to developing public relations practitioners who, through ethical and standardized practices, enhance the public relations profession in Florida. The organization’s 15 professional and 12 student chapters provide professional development, networking and recognition opportunities for nearly 1,200 members across the state. FPRA is the nation’s oldest public relations organization, established by Lt. Col. John Dillin, APR, CPRC in 1938. For more information, visit www.fpra.org.

Katie Hunicutt Inducted to 2018 Joe Curley Rising Leader Class

Ponte Vedra, Fla.,  Aug. 7, 2018— Ocala Health Marketing and Communications Manager Lauren Debick graduated from Leadership FPRA at the Florida Public Relations Association (FPRA) Annual Conference recently.

The Joe Curley Rising Leader Award is intended to identify and honor up-and-coming individual FPRA members that demonstrate emerging leadership traits along with dedicated active involvement in FPRA Chapter activities, programs, functions and events.

The goal of the award is to help recognize personal dedication and engagement of members with two to five years of membership, and to help build a healthy leadership stream at the local chapter level.Each class member participated in LeadershipFPRA orientation the day prior to the start of the 2017 Annual Conference, followed by five seminar-styled leadership training classes from a faculty of some of the most accomplished professionals in the state. The curriculum is challenging, and participants are required to attend the orientation, graduation and four of the five independent classes of the program instruction.

The Ocala Chapter meets the third Friday of each month at 11:45 in the teleconference room of the Ewers Century Center at the College of Central Florida. For additional information on the Ocala Chapter Name of FPRA please call Ocala Chapter Communications Director Ginger Broslat, APR, CPRC at 352-861-0252.

The Florida Public Relations Association is dedicated to developing public relations practitioners who, through ethical and standardized practices, enhance the public relations profession in Florida. The organization’s 15 professional and 12 student chapters provide professional development, networking and recognition opportunities for nearly 1,200 members across the state. FPRA is the nation’s oldest public relations organization, established by Lt. Col. John Dillin, APR, CPRC in 1938. For more information, visit www.fpra.org.

Local Public Relations Professionals Recognized for Service on the FPRA State Executive Committee

Ponte Vedra Beach, Fla., Aug. 7, 2018— Seven members of the Ocala Chapter of the Florida Public Relations Association (FPRA) were recognized for their year of service as executive committee members of the Association’s Board of Directors at its recent annual conference in Ponte Vedra, Fla.

The following members were recognized by FPRA State President Ryan Gerds, APR, CPRC as outstanding leaders for the statewide association.

Lauren DeIorio of the Community Foundation for Ocala Marion County served as VP of Finance.  Tina Banner, APR, CPRC of the College of Central Florida served as the chair of the FPRA Education Foundation. Ginger Broslat, APR, CPRC of Ginger Broslat Communications served as VP of accreditation and certification and will continue in that role for 2018-2019. Laura Byrnes, APR, CPRC served as VP of Golden Image and was installed as VP of professional development for 2018-2019. Allison Campbell of A&A Campbell Group served as VP of student services. Devon Chestnut, APR, CPRC of Cox Communications served as VP of member services. Carole Savage, APR, CPRC completed her two-year term as the Association’s first VP of Leadership FPRA.

Marion County Acknowledged in FPRA’s 80th Anniversary Museum Reveal

Association leaders unveiled new panels of the FPRA Museum.

Marion County was showcased on a newly added segment of the Florida Public Relations Association museum. The Association celebrated its 80-year legacy at its annual conference at Sawgrass Golf Resort in Ponte Vedra this week.

One of the Association’s newest members, Tammy Gantt with the Florida Thoroughbred Breeders and Owners Association, was happy to see an image of Champ, the Horse Fever horse that remains at FTBOA, surrounded by the 20!6-17 members of The Association’s executive committee. Three of the four executive committee and state board meetings were held in Ocala. As members traveled from across the state, they were greeted with Marion County Hospitality as local businesses sponsored receptions. The first session showcased the equine industry with a tour of the FTBOA Museum. The second session featured the arts and Downtown with a reception at Brick City Center for the Arts. The final event was hosted at Golden Ocala in May of 2017, shortly after the announcement of the World Equestrian Center.

Members enjoyed spotting their own pieces of history on the new panels. Carol Savage, APR, CPRC, dressed in her favorite decade attire,  spotted her year as Association president.

Tina Banner, APR, CPRC and Allison Campbell, APR, CPRC recreated their image, nine years later. Campbell credited Banner with introducing her to The Association.

The museum was first unveiled at the 75th Annual Conference at the Vinoy in St. Petersburg. Ocala’s Laura Byrnes, APR, CPRC served as VP of Communications and played an instrumental role in gathering the historical pieces to create this tribute to The Associations legacy.

Tina Banner Announces Record Year for FPRAEF Fundraising

As chair of the Florida Public Relations Association Education Foundation, Tina Banner, APR, CPRC announced a milestone gain for the Foundation. Banner announced more than $10,500 had been donated by members and chapters across the state. This amount exceeded Banner’s fundraising goal for the year by 68 percent.

Banner, who serves as the College of Central Florida PR/Marketing manager, was especially pleased to introduce to attendees one of the two college students who received scholarships from the Foundation.

“I’ve always had a passion for professional development and pursuing education goals,” says Banner. “After joining the staff at the College of Central Florida, that passion has grown as I see first-hand the excitement of students preparing for their careers. The timing of my job change and serving as the chair of the FPRA Education Foundation this year was a bit of serendipity to bring two areas of my career together in a meaningful way.”