Yesterday, the Ad/PR club traveled to Dallas and attended a Public Relations Society of America luncheon and toured two agencies, Ketchum and Richards Partners.

According the ACU website, the Ad/PR club is used for professional development, networking for students and affiliation with national organizations.

The Ad/PR club tries to plan a trip to DFW every year. Allye Foster, senior communications major from Lubbock, is the president of the club.

Johanna Fleming, sophomore Ad/PR major from Toronto, Canada, is a member of the Ad/Pr club.

“I look forward to this trip every year,” Fleming said. “It’s such a great opportunity.”

First they attended a PRSA luncheon that the Dallas Chapter hosted. According to the PRSA website, the speaker was Kevin Strawbridge and his speech was about developing key messages and core content in a digital era.

The website said he is a successful strategist, marketer and multi-channel entrepreneur with more than 18 years of experience. He shared his insight on the surge of online commerce and its effect on retail with “showrooming” and marketing initiatives.

“It’s a really good opportunity for students to go and hear a professional speak,” Foster said. “Also, it’s a great opportunity for students to network and meet professionals in that area.”

After they attended the luncheon, the club went to tour the Ketchum headquarters.

The Ketchum website said the agency has more than 100 offices and affiliates in 70 countries, and more than 2,400 colleagues make them proud. They are storytellers, singers, dancers, authors, advisors and counselors. Above all, they’re PR professionals, driven to go beyond the obvious solution.

After, the club toured Richards Partners, the PR side of Richards Group, a large advertising firm in Dallas.

According to their website, the Richards Group is the largest independent branding agency in America.

Foster said the main reason she really liked planning this trip for the club is because students can think they know what they want to do, until they actually see it. It’s a great chance to be in that environment, meet people and see what it’s like.

“We’re at a disadvantage being in Abilene because for those of us not looking to stay in Abilene, we don’t have as great of an option to network with professionals outside of this,” Foster said. “So this trip helps give students that small in and helps broaden their connections.”