Fran Gregory, coordinator of Conestoga’s Public Relations degree program, has been inducted into the Canadian Public Relations Society’s (CPRS) College of Fellows.
Fran Gregory, coordinator of Conestoga’s Public Relations program, has been inducted into the Canadian Public Relations Society’s College of Fellows.
The CPRS is a national not-for-profit organization comprised of more than 1,800 members who engage in the practice, management or teaching of public relations and communications. To attain Fellowship status, a public relations professional must be a member with the Society for at least 10 years, have a minimum of 20 years of experience within the profession and be accredited in public relations (APR).
Gregory joined Conestoga in 2003 bringing years of corporate communications expertise and a passion for teaching to the college. Since then she has been instrumental in developing Conestoga’s Public Relations degree program. It launched in 2011 and was the first public relations degree program to be approved in Ontario and the fourth of its kind of Canada.
As an active CPRS member over the last 15 years, Gregory has worked as director of membership for the Hamilton chapter and serves on the CPRS National Council on Education. She is the longest-standing member of the Waterloo chapter of the International Association of Business Communications and has served as its president and vice president.
Gregory holds her M.Sc. degree in Communications Management from Syracuse University, and earned her APR from the CPRS in 2007. She is also one of three authors of the Canadian definition of public relations.
Members of the CPRS College of Fellows offer time and skills to advance the state of public relations in Canada, mentor others, speak and write about the value of effective public relations and agree to be involved in one or more College initiatives.
In a news release issued by the CPRS, national president Renee McCloskey stated that "earning Fellowship with the Canadian Public Relations Society is a career milestone, one that requires significant contributions to the profession and the highest degree of professionalism.”
There are currently 115 members in the College of Fellows, including this year's 6 inductees, and 17 Honorary Fellows. Gregory and the other inductees will be honoured for their professional achievement at the annual College of Fellows Luncheon during the World Public Relations Forum in Toronto next May.
For more information about Conestoga’s Bachelor of Public Relations degree, visit the program page