A HARD COPY OF THE FOLLOWING MEMO ALONG WITH A MEMBER INFORMATION UPDATE
FORM WILL SOON FOLLOW TO ALL VOLUNTEER CHAPTER MEMBERS:

January 3, 2000

TO:     The Volunteer Chapter

FR:     Mary Beth West, APR

RE:     Plans For 2000


Happy New Year!  Hope everyone made it through Y2K without incident.
Coming from the banking industry, I don't know when I've been more
excited to have New Year's over with!
As incoming president of the Volunteer Chapter in 2000, I wanted to kick
off the year with a note to each of you, first to thank you for your
membership in PRSA, and secondly, to update you on the plans we've made
so far for the months ahead.

On the first point, your affiliation and involvement in PRSA means much
more than the benefits you receive as a member.  As we all know, our
profession continues to face many challenges - from the level of
understanding and respect held by others to the adaptation of our work
in an environment of constant change.

Your individual membership in PRSA adds strength to the largest, most
established organization that supports the public relations profession
internally and externally.  Your involvement plays a critical role in
advancing not only your own career but also the profession as a whole.

While PRSA is not a perfect organization nationally or locally, the
benefits it offers are many, and the value you receive will always be in
direct proportion to your level of participation.

I'd like to extend a special thanks to those of you who've volunteered
your time in the past and plan to volunteer in 2000 to make some great
things happen for our chapter.

2000 Overview

I'm delighted with the programs and initiatives that this year holds in
store for the Volunteer Chapter.  In a nutshell, here's what you have to
look forward to:

· Ten monthly lunch programs, kicking off in January with Dwayne Summar,
APR, Fellow PRSA (former national president of PRSA and UT alumni), who
will share his expertise on conducting communications audits (Tuesday,
January 25, 11:30 a.m., Club LeConte)

· Four quarterly roundtables, beginning in February, to network and to
discuss with your colleagues various issues relevant to our profession

· Annual Awards of Excellence program on March 31 - which will
incorporate many of the suggestions you made in last year's awards
program survey.  There will also be an awards workshop session in
February to help participants put together competitive entries before
they're due for judging.

· The Southeast District Conference in Chattanooga, Tenn., which we're
co-hosting with the Lookout Chapter in the spring

· A "PR Day" professional development event in the fall, to take place
at UT, similar to PR Day in the fall of 1998.

In addition to these valuable networking and educational opportunities,
we are working hard to ensure better communication within the chapter in
several ways:

· Regular bi-monthly issues of "PRSay!," the chapter's newsletter
· Monthly meeting and event notices
· Continuation of the listserv, as well as the launch of a chapter web
site, updated regularly
· Publication of a new member directory, to be issued by February
(please see attached member information update form, to be returned no
later than Friday, January 14)
· Another chapter survey, which will be conducted at the end of 2000 to
evaluate members' opinions of chapter programs, etc. (This survey will
replicate the member survey conducted in February 1999.)

I invite you to join me in attending all the events that you can this
year and using these resources to maximize the value of your membership
in PRSA.

Other Business

I'd also like to use this letter to briefly address a few issues that
are important for you to know as we start the New Year.

Meeting Times/Locations

One of the challenges that my predecessor, Susan Barnes, addressed last
year was the issue of when and where our regular meetings were held.
The board received many concerns from members - especially those located
in outlying areas from Knoxville - that downtown Knoxville meetings in
the middle of the day were very inconvenient - if not impossible - to
attend.

In response, we held several meetings (both lunch and dinner) at Bearden
Banquet Hall on Kingston Pike.  The idea was to provide a location
closer to West Knoxville and to alternate mid-day and evening times.
Unfortunately, this approach basically bombed.  Several of these
meetings were attended by fewer than 15 people - which, out of a chapter
of about 115, sent a clear message that this solution wasn't viable.

With regard to meetings, our attendance levels will always be challenged
by the fact that our membership covers a large area - from the
Tri-Cities to Oak Ridge.  As in years past, we will hold one meeting in
the Tri-Cities area this year (probably in May), and I'd like to do the
same in Oak Ridge.  However, as a general rule, our best bet will
probably be to continue lunch meetings at Club LeConte at least half the
time.

Your ideas for meeting programs, speakers and locations are always
welcome, and I'll follow through with your suggestions whenever
possible.  I hope that by offering additional events like the quarterly
roundtables and spring/fall workshops, every member will have more
opportunities to take advantage of what the chapter has to offer.

Awards of Excellence

This year's chapter awards program will take place March 31, 2000, at
the newly renovated UT Faculty Club.  Please mark your calendars.
Although we haven't quite nailed down the deadline when entries will be
due, please bear in mind that it will probably be in late February.  The
time to start planning your entries is now.

Melissa Flynn, chair of this year's event, is working with a very
talented committee to make the awards program a great success.  More
awards categories will be offered that are reflective of the diversity
of our members' work.  The Nashville Chapter is set to serve as our
awards judging partner, and I feel confident that we'll have far better
luck with the quality of judging than we've had in years past.  In
addition, you're probably going to see some changes in how the awards
categories are structured and how the awards are presented that will
make the entire event more meaningful.

I encourage everyone to consider participating and to enter their best
work from 1999.

PRSSA Mentor Program

A mentor program for students from UT's Sammie Lynn Puett Chapter of
PRSSA is set to begin in January.  A brief kick-off gathering will take
place immediately before the January 25th monthly meeting at Club
LeConte.  We'll contact members within the next few weeks to pair PRSA
pros with some 25 PRSSA students.  Please participate if you can.  It's
a valuable, rewarding way to contribute to the future of the profession.


As you can see, we have an action-packed year ahead.  It's an honor for
me to serve you, and I hope that you'll feel free to call me if there's
any way the chapter can make your PRSA membership more worthwhile.
Remember that there are always volunteer opportunities available, so
please contact me if you would like to pitch in (865/549-2243).

Again, best wishes for the New Year, and thank you.