College & University Public Relations and Associated Professionals

CUPRAP is an exceptional organization and my involvement has been incredibly rewarding. Attending CUPRAP conferences has connected me with creative, engaged colleagues at other schools and universities and contributed to my own professional development. The Villanova School of Business was honored to host a successful CUPRAP workshop last fall.

“I attended my first CUPRAP spring conference just 10 days after starting my first position in higher education. I hadn’t even left my job in publishing yet, and I received an email from my future boss that said: “You have to go to this.” I haven’t missed one since and I have encouraged all of my staff to attend. The power of this organization isn’t just the programming; it’s the people. It’s the commiseration over shared pain points, the validation that you’re on the right track, and the sometimes enlightening realization of what the right track even looks like. In a field where university communicators are so outnumbered by our faculty colleagues, the CUPPIE awards also serve a noble purpose in recognizing work that sometimes goes unnoticed (or under-appreciated) by those on the other side of the academic isle. I am so grateful that I was forced to go to that first conference. I assure you, the rest have been by choice.”

CUPRAP is a fantastic professional development organization. In addition to providing a network of approachable, professional colleagues who I’ve come to count on, CUPRAP brings resources and trainings from experts at the same time that said presenters emerge into the national higher education marketing conversation. Because these trainings are so timely and cover so many topics, CUPRAP provides a learning space for designers, writers, social media managers, and other professionals to learn alongside one another. I am so grateful for CUPRAP; it has provided more than I thought a professional organization—a term that has a cold, corporate connotation to me—could.

Networking with other like-minded professionals in our field has been the biggest benefit of my membership in CUPRAP.  The chance to connect with colleagues in and out of sessions at the annual conference opens up a network of advice and support I use throughout the year.  I’ve found the members to be professional, experienced and always willing to share their expertise.