Public Relations
- minor
Adrian College also offers
a minor in Public Relations. Students interested
in a career in PR --one of the fastest growing
fields in the world--take classes that give
them both the theoretical background and the
practical experiences to succeed in this dynamic
profession.
Most of the classes in this area are taught
by Dr. Joanna Schultz who has more than 15
years of experience as a PR professional,
first as the director of Public Relations
for a Michigan school district and later as
a freelance consultant. Her private clients
included school districts and human service
agencies throughout the Midwest as well as
the Michigan Department of Education.
Janet Creque, Dr.
Schultz, & Erin Vanhala in Berlin,
Germany for the John F. Kennedy School
PR project. |
Students who minor in PR
learn the basics in an introductory PR course,
followed by an advanced course where they
work with real-life clients. Several years
ago, the class worked with an off-campus client
that set the record for distance--the John
F. Kennedy School in Berlin, Germany. The
class analyzed the school's website, proposing
changes that made the website much more useful
to parents preparing for an upcoming move
to Berlin. Two students in the class, Adrian
alums Janet Creque and Erin Vanhala, then
traveled to Berlin with Dr. Schultz during
spring break and conducted focus group interviews
with over 60 parents and students. Their task
was to assess the school's communication strengths
and challenges. [Read
the news release here.]
Other clients through the years have included
a literacy council, a school for unwed teenage
parents, a local United Way chapter and the
Adrian Chamber of Commerce. This year's client,
the Maumee Trading Company (a unique import
store in Adrian) is the 18th off-campus client
in the history of the class.
