Fall Conference 2008 (Friday, November 14, 2008)
Speaker Bios:
Lee Weinstein
Principal of LWA PR
Lee Weinstein is 25-year public relations and public affairs veteran, having directed communications at Nike, worked for an Oregon congressman and governor, and served on numerous community service projects.
From 1981-84 Lee was a legislative assistant to Congressman Ron Wyden. He was assistant dean of admissions and Lewis & Clark College from 1984-86. From 1986-88 Lee worked as executive assistant to Oregon Insurance Commissioner Ted Kulongoski, and from 1988-91 was deputy press secretary to Oregon Governor Neil Goldschmidt.
Lee worked for the first AIDS/HIV food program in the nation, Project Open Hand, in San Francisco, as marketing communications director, where he began the nation’s first newsletter AIDS/HIV nutrition newsletter. He returned to Oregon in 1992 to become internal communications manager for Nike, Inc.
From 1995-1997, he ran Nike’s New York City PR office, opening NikeTowns New York, Seattle, San Francisco and Los Angeles, and directing apparel PR and product placement. He returned to Oregon in 1997 to become director of US public relations, launching the Jordan Brand, Nike Shox, Nike Presto, supervising PR campaigns, working with top athletes and on the company’s PR efforts at the Sydney and Salt Lake City Olympic Games.
From 2002-2005, Lee directed Nike’s corporate responsibility communications. He developed a strategic communications plan to build Nike’s reputation as a responsible company by earning credibility through media story placement, third-party recognition and awards.
In April 2005, Lee directed communications for the release of Nike’s second corporate responsibility report, which helped to reposition the company’s citizenship reputation. He was one of the architects behind NikeGO, the company’s community affairs initiative to increase physical activity among young people.
In June 2003, global employee communications was added to Lee’s portfolio. Lee’s team produced an innovative employee e-newsletter, “The Sponge.” Lee oversaw the creation of Nike’s Global Maxim Awards, recognizing the best work by teams and individual employees around the world, and began new employee engagement programs, including a regular intranet radio show for the Nike president and the “Nike Exchange,” an up-close-and-personal dialogue between employees and senior executives.
Kelli Matthews
Managing Director, Verve Northwest Communications
Instructor of Public Relations, University of Oregon
Kelli has just under ten years of public relations experience, the last five as the director of Verve Northwest Communications, a full-service public relations, marketing and design agency based in Eugene, Oregon.
In addition, Kelli’s six years of work with undergraduate and graduate students at the University of Oregon has required her to stay on the cutting edge of research and practice in public relations. For her work with students, she was awarded the Adjunct Instructor of the Year in 2005.
Kelli’s passion is social media and finding ways to use these new tools to create and reinforce the connections that bind us as human beings. She understands the issues facing healthcare providers and is fully immersed in the social media sphere.
You can find Kelli via her blogs: Verve: In Bloom and Pros in Training, as well as on Facebook, Twitter, Friendfeed and more.
Mara Woloshin, M.A., APR, Fellow PRSA
Principal Woloshin Communications
In addition to leading the Woloshin Communications team, Mara Woloshin maintains a diverse client roster. Since 1991, her boutique agency specializes in providing strategic counsel and consulting services as well as training and workshops in new business development, workforce change, integrated market planning, research and nonprofit partnership programs
Mara is an in-demand speaker and seminar presenter (not surprising for someone who once majored in drama!). Her keynote presentation — “Growing Up Goldberg” — is an entertaining look at real-life applications of change in the work place based on the observations of her eccentric family members. Mara has also taught at Oregon universities since 1989; she holds a master’s degree in communications. She currently serves on the faculty at the University of Portland.
Mara is a professional member of the National Speakers Association and the Public Relations Society of America’s Counselors Academy. She is a past president of the Portland Metro Chapter of the Public Relations Society of America and received PRSA’s William Marsh Lifetime Achievement Award in 2003. She was admitted into PRSA’s College of Fellows in 2005. Her work in public relations research and planning has received numerous awards.
When Mara isn’t gardening with questionable results, she is busy helping others. She has assisted 25 refugees get their U.S. citizenship. She is also the Universal Accreditation Chair of the Portland chapter of PRSA. Her workbook, “Preparing for APR Success, A Step-by-Step Study Guide” is now available at Amazon.com.
Tom Eiland, Conkling,
Partner, Fiskum & McCormick, Portland, OR
Tom Eiland, Conkling, Fiskum & McCormick, Portland, OR, will demonstrate with case studies how to translate research results into marketing success. Examples will include how a regional healthcare leader used research to design a major new Cancer Center in the Portland area to best meet the needs of patients and families. Eiland is a partner at CFM, a Portland-based public affairs, public relations and research firm, and is responsible for consumer and business research. He has conducted research for healthcare organizations in Oregon, Washington and California.
Nancy Lyle
Principal, Healthcare Business Development Group
Content Pending
Sarah Mottram
Sr. Marketing Specialist
Southwest Washington Medical Center
Sarah Mottram has over a decade of experience in healthcare marketing. Her career began in shopping center marketing and management where she led the marketing efforts for several centers in the Seattle-metro area. Now, Sarah is the senior marketing coordinator for Southwest Washington Medical Center where she is responsible for developing and implementing marketing strategies for multiple Centers of Excellence including: women’s and children’s services, minimally invasive surgical services, weight management and diabetes programs. Also, she is the editor of Southwest’s award-winning consumer targeted publications. In addition, Sarah holds a master’s degree in business administration.
Learn more about her on her blog at www.YourBabyYourWay.com
