December Message from ECD Board Chair, Kaylin Staten

Dear PRSA ECD community,

Happy December, and Happy Holidays! I’m writing to you in the middle of a bittersweet epiphany – that this is my final message to you as East Central District Chair. It feels like I am watching the final episode of a beloved TV show or reading the last page of a book I have immensely enjoyed. It doesn’t seem possible! If you’ll indulge me in a bit of honesty, I have been putting this one off. (I hope our Communications Co-Chair Mark Weinstein will forgive me.) It feels too bittersweet to sum my experience into words, but I will try. 

I have loved every minute of serving as ECD’s Chair – yes, even the challenging times. The times I have spent hosting board meetings, talking with several of you one on one, and strategizing on how we can help our Chapter leaders and members in every step of the PRSA journey… All of it. PRSA, and specifically this role, have allowed me to continue my professional and personal leadership journey in ways I never thought possible. I’ve grown so much during my time on ECD’s board, from my first days as a newly minted Director-at-Large in 2019 to present day as your almost Past Chair.

In 2023, we celebrated our Chapters during roundtable discussions, Leadership Forums, PRominent Awards, the Platinum Award, Diamond Awards, QuickStart presentations, and various forms of communications. We hosted our first in-person QuickStart since 2019, increased our Diamond Award entries, reinvigorated our Chapter liaisons, completed our 2020-2023 strategic plan, provided value to our members through events and initiatives, and made significant strides that will lay the foundation for an illustrious 2024 and future ahead.

And I’m also happy to report that our balance sheet is now in the black, icing on the proverbial cake.

This newsletter is full of other good news as well, from the 2023 Diamond Awards winners and our 2024 board slate to happenings across our District. I am hosting the final ECD Chair Coffee Chat of 2023 on Friday, Dec. 15 at 9 a.m. I hope you will join me as we end the year on this note! Register here.

I want to thank each of our ECD board members for everything you have accomplished this year. I have learned so much from each of you, and it truly has been a pleasure to work with you to advance our District’s mission. Thank you for volunteering your precious time and expertise to serve PRSA ECD and our industry. And thank you for placing your trust in me to lead our District. Thank you to our Chapter leaders who have taken the helm this year in your own areas. It has been wonderful working with you and watching the impacts you are making as leaders and professionals. I cannot tell you how many times you have made me exceedingly proud to be in the best District in PRSA!

As we head into our 70th Anniversary year in 2024, ECD is poised for even more success. As I hand over the gavel to Jennifer Kramer, APR, I know our District will continue to thrive and will be in exceptional hands under her leadership. I’m excited to see what will unfold in 2024! I have been saying that I will take a bit of a PRSA break, as I have held some type of leadership position for close to a decade. If you truly know me, though, you know that respite won’t last for long. I’ll still be involved as Past Chair and will be available as a colleague and friend. I want to continue mental health advocacy efforts for PR practitioners as well. This role may be ending, as many of them do, but my dedication and passion for PRSA and our industry will continue to grow.

In my final message to you, I want to leave you with this: “When I think about everything we’ve been through together, maybe it’s not the destination that matters, maybe it’s the journey, and if that journey takes a little longer, so we can do something we all believe in, I can’t think of any place I’d rather be or any people I’d rather be with.” – Harry Kim, “Star Trek: Voyager.”

Serving as your 2023 ECD Chair has been one of the most cherished honors of my career. Thank you from the bottom of my heart. And I hope you have a blessed holiday season. I will see you around!

PRSA ECD forever,

Kaylin

Kaylin R. Staten, APR

2023 ECD Board Chair