Communication Associations in Philadelphia Area Join Forces.

Business Editors

FAIRLESS HILLS, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--June 30, 2000

Nine associations representing 1500 communication professionals in Southeastern Pennsylvania and Southern New Jersey have formed one of the largest consortiums of its kind in the United States - the Delaware Valley Communication Leadership Council (DVCLC). The group 's mission is to address common challenges and to promote the shared vision of its diverse membership.

DVCLC is already addressing issues such as joint programming, member recruitment and retention, ways of advancing the communication profession, and eliminating programming conflicts among the nine groups. Among the consortium's primary objectives are increasing the visibility of Philadelphia's communication associations and their members, and enhancing the value each association brings to its members.

The new alliance is comprised of the following associations:

-- Philadelphia Chapter of Public Relations Society of America (PRSA)

-- Women in Communications

-- Philadelphia Public Relations Association (PPRA) -- Philadelphia Chapter of International Association of

Business Communicators (IABC) -- Professional Communicators of South Jersey -- Philadelphia Chapter of National Investor Relations

Institute (NIRI) -- Business Marketing Association -- Philadelphia Advertising Club (PAC) -- National Alliance of Market Developers

Rick Alcantara, president of the Philadelphia Chapter of PRSA, said that the members of the council are working to help each other benchmark their respective associations' programs. "The council is just starting to look beyond the immediate, practical rationale for forming the consortium to a more ambitious, long-term vision," Alcantara said. "When the council evolves to the point where we're ready to move beyond issues such as member recruitment and retention, our goal is to become the voice for communication and public relations practitioners in the Delaware Valley."

PPRA joined DVCLC for much the same reasons. The association's president, Phyllis Polk, said PPRA wanted an opportunity to incorporate best practices and lessons learned from other communication associations in the area. "Our [PPRA] leadership believes that as a consortium we can have a greater joint impact on the community," Polk said. She added that with a joint membership of 1500, "The DVCLC is in a position to deliver larger audiences that will make a wider range of quality programming possible."

The council is sponsoring its first joint event in July at Philadelphia's Union League. The topic of the event, which precedes the Republican National Convention (RNC) in Philadelphia, is "Political Conventions in the New Millennium - Catch Them Gavel-to-Gavel on the Web." Top-level journalists from MSNBC and AOL, both of which will be covering the RNC, are scheduled to participate in the program. All proceeds from the event will be donated to the Center of Literacy in Philadelphia.

Among other joint ventures the council is developing are member and student mentoring programs, coordination of volunteer communication/media support for the RNC, a Freedom of Speech Award for an outstanding communicator in the region, and a joint calendar of events.