NEW YORK (Oct. 31, 2008) — Committed throughout his career to advancing public relations education, Ron Rhody received the 2008 David Ferguson Award at the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) 2008 International Conference in Detroit. Sponsored by PRSA’s Educators Academy, the award recognizes outstanding contributions to public relations education by a practitioner.
Rhody has served on several university advisory boards and has been a guest and visiting lecturer at numerous universities. He is recognized for his service to local and national Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) Chapters and programs, his creation of the public relations internship program at Bank of America, and his role as founding chairman of The San Francisco Academy.
“No work being done anywhere in the field is more important than that of the educators in our colleges and universities who are preparing the bright, creative young men and women attracted to public relations to take their place as effective and responsible professionals,” said Rhody. “I’m flattered and honored to be chosen by them for this award.”
In his role as chief executive of The Rhody Consultancy (TRC), Rhody works with and advises CEOs and senior executives in the business, academic, and nonprofit sectors on a wide range of communications and public relations issues. Prior to forming TRC in 1994, he was executive vice president and director of corporate communications and external affairs for Bank of America and BankAmerica Corporation. He also was a member of the corporation’s Senior Management Council. At BankAmerica, he was responsible for the public relations and communications strategies, policies, and programs during one of the most significant decades in the company’s history.
Prior to joining BankAmerica, Rhody was corporate vice president and director of public relations and advertising for Kaiser Aluminum & Chemical Corporation where he served on the managing committee and directed the communications strategies for the intense marketing battles and international expansions and downsizings that were endemic in the world aluminum industry. Before his work with Kaiser, he was a daily newspaper reporter and editor, a broadcast newsman and news director, and was involved with the state government in his native Kentucky.
Rhody has received numerous honors and recognitions for his work, including Public Relations Professional of the Year by the professional journal, Public Relations News; the Rex Harlow Award for outstanding professionalism; being named one of the top 10 public relations professionals in the United States by Public Relations Reporter; the International Association of Business Communicators Distinguished Communicator Award; a Fellow of PRSA; the Lifetime Achievement Award from Inside PR Magazine; and Arthur W. Page Society Hall of Fame membership.
Rhody is past chairman of the Public Relations Seminar and is the author of “The CEO’s Playbook: Managing the Outside Forces That Shape Success”; “Public Relations and the Law,” for the college text “Public Relations Principles”; “Financial Public Relations” for Lesley’s Handbook of Public Relations and Communications; “Public Relations and the CEO” for the book, “Practical Public Affairs”; “Wordsmithing: The Art & Craft of Writing for Public Relations,” with Dr. Carol Ann Hackley of the University of the Pacific; and “The Soccer Book: A Spectator’s Guide.”
Also honored at the Conference were:
- Betsy Plank Graduate Research Competition Student Award Winner
Katie R. Place, University of Maryland, College Park Paper: “What's Guiding the Profession? An Examination of Public Relations Ethics”
- PRSA Top Faculty Paper Award:
Denise P. Ferguson, Indiana Wesleyan University; J.D. Wallace, Lubbock Christian University; and Robert C. Chandler, Pepperdine University
Paper: “Transforming Crisis into Confidence: Public Relations Professionals' Perceptions of the Effectiveness and Ethicality of Image Repair Strategies”
About the Educators Academy
Established in 1978, PRSA Educators Academy comprises college and university public relations educators and practitioners who share a commitment to improving the quality of teaching and scholarly research in public relations. The Academy sponsors seminars on teaching issues, techniques, and scholarly research, and in conjunction with PRSA's Educational Affairs Committee, conducts research into the role, function and status of undergraduate and graduate public relations education.
About the Public Relations Society of America
The Public Relations Society of America (www.prsa.org), headquartered in New York City, is the world's largest organization for public relations professionals with nearly 32,000 professional and student members. PRSA is organized into 109 Chapters nationwide and 20 Professional Interest Sections and Affinity Groups, which represent business and industry, counseling firms, independent practitioners, military, government, associations, hospitals, schools, professional services firms and nonprofit organizations. The Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) has 289 Chapters at colleges and universities throughout the United States.
