FPRA SWFL Chapter Member of the Year

Phyllis Ershowsky, APR, CPRC

Phyllis Ershowsky, APR, CPRC 

Named the 2011 FPRA Southwest Florida Chapter Member of the Year

Each year the Southwest Florida Chapter selects one member who exemplifies the FPRA spirit and gives generously of his or her time to make our chapter successful. Characteristics of this individual often include:

• Actively participating in chapter programs and projects
• Supporting the chapter to help raise the level of professionalism in our community
• Displaying a professional attitude and standard of conduct at all times
• And, is always supportive of fellow public relations professionals.

It’s always difficult to select our chapter member of the year as so many members contribute above and beyond on a regular basis to make our chapter successful. This year’s recipient is a little different though in that much of her work is actually with another FPRA chapter – our student chapter at Florida Gulf Coast University.

Dedicated to supporting our next generation of PR professionals, Phyllis Ershowsky, APR, CPRC has been our chapter’s education chair for the past two years, serving as our professional chapter’s liaison to the student FPRA chapter and now, she also has the honor of being named our Chapter Member of the Year.

During her time as education chair, Phyllis has:

• Helped triple the number of student members
• Attended virtually every student event
• Helped the students gain university funding for next year
• Helped promote student activities throughout the year in the professional chapter newsletter
• Purchased FPRA blue honor cords for graduating PR seniors
• Coordinated student scholarships for this year’s state conference
• Conducted student focus groups to gather information for the state conference student track
• Serves on the team coordinating the student track at state conference
• And lastly, this summer she brought back the chapter’s internship program.

Outside of FPRA, Phyllis is the owner of PKECreative, Inc., as well as an adjunct professor at FGCU. She also serves on the board of directors for the Bonita Springs Chamber of Commerce and serves as vice chair for AMI Kids. In her spare time she runs marathons and enjoys sharing her personal and professional experiences on her blog.