The Communicator

Boston University is home to one of the oldest Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) Chapters, the Edward L. Bernays Chapter. While weekly meetings feature professional development workshops, guest speakers, and group-bonding activities, the organization’s impact extends far beyond Wednesday nights in COM217. Here are four ways BU PRSSA is growing this spring semester:

1. Competing on a National Stage

Boston University’s chapter of the Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) has entered the Bateman Case Study Competition, where student teams from across the country build a PR plan for a real client. This year’s client, ACCESS Newswire, is a PR distribution and media-monitoring service looking to drive adoption of its professional education program. 

“With this being our first year competing, we were obviously a bit hesitant on where to start,” said Wendy Wei, vice president of BU PRSSA. “But our team has dove headfirst into strategy and implementation, and we are excited to see the results that the implementation period brings.” 

The five-member team is promoting ACCESS Newswire through student-run PR-agency collaborations, social-media features, news coverage, and College of Communication-specific events to spread awareness of ACCESS’s initiatives on BU’s campus and beyond.

“It’s so cool because we are creating a PR plan for a client who is actually in the PR industry,” said Wei. “It’s really helping me and my members understand the industry a lot better.”

The team also highlighted the support they have received from faculty. “I came up to our advisor, Professor Monique Kelley, with this idea in the fall,” said Wei. “Since then, she has been such a motivating force in pushing us forward and helping us out when we run into bumps along the way.” 

The Bateman Case Study Competition implementation period is currently underway, running from Feb. 2 through March 2, and the team looks forward to representing BU on a national stage.

2. Hosting a District Conference

BU PRSSA is also hosting the 2026 PRSSA Northeast District Conference for the 19th time. “PR Advanced: PResenting the Future” will take place on Saturday, Feb. 21, from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the BU Photonics Center. Led by conference directors Justin Curran and Simone Kramer, the goal of the conference is “encouraging students,” emphasizing that “the future doesn’t have to be scary, and that it can be a super-exciting place with tons of opportunity,” said Kramer. 

The event will feature a career fair with 15 organizations, professional development workshops, networking opportunities, professional headshots, and two full meals (breakfast and lunch). The keynote speaker will be Eder Reynoso, Emmy-award-winning social media professional, who has worked for Sesame Street, Duolingo, and more.

“I think anyone can gain something from this conference,” said Curran. “You can really just kind of get a sense of what the communications field is, even if you’re not necessarily a public relations major.” 

Behind the scenes, Kramer and Curran are planning with a team of more than 20 students, a process that began in mid-September. “We could not do it without our committee,” said Kramer. “Everyone is so amazing and the directors are just so incredible and so dedicated. It’s definitely a group effort.”

PRSSA’s conference committee has already sold out all early-bird tickets, and estimates attendance of more than 150 students from universities all over the Northeast.

3. Running a Real PR Agency

While PR Advanced highlights networking and leveling-up professional skills, many BU PRSSA students are applying those skills through the chapter’s student-run PR agency, Unleashed PR. As a PRSSA-affiliated student-run public relations firm, Unleashed consists of five client-facing teams and two internal teams, a total of nearly 50 students. 

The agency provides media outreach, social strategy, crisis communications, and other communications services free of charge to local businesses and nonprofits. Its current client roster includes The Scoop N Scootery, Pixlcat Coffee, Keep Massachusetts Beautiful, and more.

In addition to client-facing teams, Unleashed is supported by an outreach team, an events team, a new business manager, a website director, and two co-agency directors, creating an environment that mimics a professional agency. 

“It’s really cool seeing the benefits we can give the companies and businesses we work with,” said co-agency director Audrey Lee. “Unleashed is such a good experience because it’s a two-way relationship. We help clients for free, and they give our students real-world experiences to translate classroom skills.”

4. Telling Stories

BU PRSSA’s Instagram and blog page produced by the chapter’s digital media and blog team. Content featured showcases the chapter’s events and opportunities.

BU PRSSA has a dedicated team of more than 20 students to tell its stories.  Led by Avery Ducar, PR coordinator for BU PRSSA, the digital media and blog team creates written work, graphics, and videos for the organization’s social media and website to highlight the club’s opportunities. 

 “Our whole idea is to get our name and club out there and for people to see what we do” said Ducar. “There are so many valuable things that PRSSA is doing, from resume workshops to connecting with industry professionals, and our whole mission is to shed light on that.”

Between the Bateman team, the Northeast District Conference, Unleashed PR, and the digital media and blog team, BU’s PRSSA chapter offers many ways to get involved. 

“PRSSA opened up my professional network by connecting me with real professionals and real-world advice,” said Grace Chiappetta-Uberti, co-president of the chapter. “It’s definitely a lot of moving parts, but leading the organization is really fulfilling because now, I get to pass on what I’ve learned to underclassmen.”

“I’ve been a BU PRSSA/PRSA Boston and National member for about 25 years, and I’m so honored to have served as a faculty adviser since I became a full-time professor at BU in the fall of 2022,” said Monique Kelley, associate professor of the practice. “When I think back about my time as a BU student, it was this PRSSA chapter that helped me understand what comms practitioners did on the job and land my first position in NYC post-graduation.”