NEW YORK, NY (Jan. 3, 2019) — The PRSA Foundation, an independent, 501(c)(3) charitable organization dedicated to advancing diversity and inclusion within the communications profession, announced today the addition of ten new Trustees to its Board of Directors. As Trustees, the new appointees will be responsible for helping guide the strategic direction of the PRSA Foundation and oversee its programming.

The PRSA Foundation seeks to advance diversity at various career levels including grants and scholarships that help jump-start the careers of promising students from diverse backgrounds, as well as by enabling mentoring and professional development for mid-level professionals.

The new Trustees join a Board of Directors that includes industry leaders crossing all aspects of the communications profession. The new appointments to the Foundation’s Board include:

• Errol Cockfield, SVP, Communications, MSNBC
• Ray Day, Chief Communications Officer, IBM
• Manuel Goncalves, Executive Director of Media Relations and Corporate Communications,KPMG
• Jon Harris, SVP and Chief Communications Officer, Conagra Foods, Inc.
• Emile Lee, SVP and Global Head of Communications, Dun & Bradstreet
• Tina McCorkindale, President and CEO, Institute for Public Relations
• Debra Peterson, APR, VP, Corporate Communications, CenturyLink; 2019 National Chair, PRSA
• Robert “Pritch” Pritchard, APR, Fellow PRSA, Instructor and Faculty Adviser, Univ. of Oklahoma
• Lisa Osborne Ross, President, Edelman’s Washington D.C. office
• Gina Sheibley, SVP of Corporate Communications, Salesforce

“The new additions to the PRSA Foundation’s Board includes someof the most respected and influential leaders within communications and, most importantly, individuals who share our passion for improving diversity and inclusion within our profession," said Joe Cohen, APR, President of the PRSA Foundation and Chief Communications Officer at AXIS Capital. "These leaders will play an instrumental role in guiding the future of the PRSA Foundation and in helping us to make a real impact in fostering greater diversity and inclusion within communications.”

About the PRSA Foundation

The PRSA Foundation is an independent 501 (c) (3) charitable organization that is committed to promoting diversity among public relations professionals and companies so that they can best serve the public good and address the needs of a diverse world. Headquartered in New York City, the PRSA Foundation was chartered under section 403 of the New York State Corporation Law as a not-for-profit organization.  The PRSA Foundation supports programs that attract, assist and prepare young adults to enter the public relations profession, and works with employers and industry organizations to create workplace-based inclusion efforts to welcome, support and retain a diverse workforce.   For more information about the PRSA Foundation’s programming efforts, visit www.prsafoundation.org.

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