From classroom to boardroom.

the public relations explosion of the last 10 years has left agencies and private employers scrambling like bumper cars to find qualified talent to fill professional public relations needs.

Over this time journalists and public relations professionals have lamented the dearth of talent produced by college communication departments.

Nevertheless, one breeding ground for highly skilled public relations professionals does exist. And the students who complete this rigorous program are trained to thrive in any situation.

for 11 years, Tehama Group, an on-campus, student-managed public relations firm, has given future public relations professionals the opportunity to gain practical, hands-on public relations experience in a laboratory classroom setting.

With its success, Tehama Group Communications at California State University, Chico, provides educators and universities a model of how to appropriately train and prepare students for a successful public relations career.

Agency Structure

Tehama Group operates as a part of an advanced public relations practicum. It was developed in 1990 to further the experiential education and hands-on opportunities in the degree's curriculum. Now in its eleventh year, it is much more.

The structure of the agency is parallel to that of traditional public relations agencies. Each semester, a student management team, consisting of a general manager, business unit director, design and production director, editorial services director and director of new business, oversees eight to twelve account executives and senior account executives. The account executives are assigned to account teams of two or three students, with each team managing at least two accounts.

The management team is responsible for advising the account executives, billing, budget maintenance and promotion of the agency, along with other client-specific responsibilities.

The agency specializes in strategic communication development, coordinating publicity events, conducting media relations and research, and producing strategic plan books, newsletters, brochures and annual reports. This semester also marks the first time Tehama Group has extended into the Silicon Valley by working with Walt & Company Communications in Santa Clara, Calif. on a specific dot.com account.

This semester, the client list is diverse: Walt & Company, Chico Natural Foods, Golden State Capital Network, Bill Main & Associates, Tehama Local Development Corp. The Chico State schools of communication, journalism and physical education and the exercise science department are also reaping the benefits of Tehama Group's work.

An example of Tehama Group's work is a situation analysis the agency completed for a technology client of Walt & Company. The account team assigned to the project provided an analysis of the digital music scene in the California State University system. The account executives conducted focus groups of digital music listeners and those who do not use digital music, along with other research, to present an in-depth analysis of Chico State students. After conducting the research, the students formulated strategies for the client to better target college-aged students.

"The Tehama Group students certainly have a leg up over other entry-level people who haven't had that kind of experience," said Bob Walt, president. "They have an understanding of public relations from a pragmatic, programming point of view. They don't just give recommendations and think through strategies, but they've actually had to implement those strategies, which is very different from merely an academic point alone.

"The students who run the agency are in an ideal position where they are responsible for their own work, as well as being responsible for agency work as a whole in a unified program that meets an objective that has be n set," Walt said. "They really have learned a lot and the Tehama Group folks whom we have worked with are a testament to that."

Clients of Tehama Group have included NASA Lewis Research Center, Golden State Capital Network, American Red Cross, California Public Radio, Sunset Net, Northern California Organ Transplant Support Group, Sacramento River Discovery Center, Chico Unified School District, Lassen National Forest, Oroville Community Hospital and many departments and schools throughout the Chico State campus.

History of Tehama Group

In the spring of 1990, Sharon Yoder's (Ph.D.) public relations management class, on behalf of Katherine Milo, Ph.D., chair of the journalism department, researched and proposed a student-managed public relations agency as part of the public relations practicum. The strategic plan and its recommended policies and procedures were implemented, and the agency was put into operation in fall 1990.

"At the time, there were not any public relations agencies north of Sacramento, especially in Butte County," Milo said. "What we love about Chico is really what kind of limits us in a sense. It was a tremendous amount of energy on the students' part to begin this agency.

From the beginning, Tehama Group was managed as a professional agency. By the end of its first semester in business, the student-run business had its code of ethics, time sheets, operations manuals and - most important - a solid client base.

Milo and Yoder (who is also a professor in the journalism department) have been with the agency from the beginning. Milo was the agency's adviser through 1993, and Yoder advised the group from the fall semester 1993 through spring semester 2000.

"I've seen the agency become well established throughout Butte County and beyond," Milo said. "It's neat to be considered a source of expertise. I'm delighted the agency is as well established as it is. I thought it was a good idea at its inception and time has shown that it indeed was a great idea."

The public relations program exists within the journalism department at Chico State. Students with a journalism major or minor can choose to take a news-editorial option or public relations option. The public relations curriculum is an intensive, hands-on program that offers students the chance to further their experiential education and become competent in a variety of skills.

IABC Student Chapter is vital

Because students in the public relations program are not eligible for Tehama Group until they complete other public relations courses, IABC often acts as a launching pad and educational resource for first- and second-year public relations students, as well as a way of making professional contacts.

Although the two organizations are separate entities, the goals of each are complementary because they both help produce strong professionals in the business community. And some academic program projects require the combined resources of IABC and Tehama Group.

One such example was the first IABC-sponsored Job Fair held April 7, 2000. IABC is organizing this year's event, which will take place at the beginning of March 2001, to allow students more time to research and apply for jobs in the public relations field. IABC officers are working closely with Tehama Group members, contacting professionals within the field, and publicizing the event to ensure a larger employer turnout than last year.

Looking into the future

The dot.com explosion in the Silicon Valley also has produced an explosion of public relations employment opportunities. Many jobs are going to professionals without a public relations background, partially because of a shortage in qualified talent. Clearly, Tehama Group is doing its part to reverse this trend.

"I think it is critically important for more schools and programs to adopt the format that Tehama Group has used," Walt said. "The future of the public relations industry rests to a large degree upon future graduates coming our of good schools who understand what they are doing."

Sonny Kerstiens is the general manager of Tehama G cup Communications, David Joiner is the president of the ABC student chapter at Chico State University, Calif.