EXPLORE. EXPERIENCE. ENGAGE. - March 5-9, 2012

Keynote Speaker

Chris Gordon, a reporter and legal analyst at NBC4, specializes in politics and legal issues in Washington D.C. For over 25 years Gordon has been reporting, interviewing and a TV anchor. Gordon was a legal analyst for Court TV in New York, covering cases like OJ Simpson’s civil trial and Dr. Jack Kevorkian’s assisted suicide trials. He has appeared on CNBC, MSNBC, CNN, and radio stations throughout the country discussing court decisions and U.S. Supreme Court rulings. Gordon has won Emmy awards for his coverage of riots in the Mt Pleasant neighborhood of Washington, D.C., the dedication of the U.S. Holocaust Memorial Museum, and a report on a quadriplegic skydiver. Gordon is also heard as the legal analyst on WMAL, ABC Radio in Washington, D.C., and WBAL, ABC Radio in Baltimore. His legal awards include the American Bar Association’s Certificate of Merit received twice for his TV series “How To Sue In Small Claims Court.”

Featured Speakers

Deirdre Breakenridge is Chief Executive Officer at Pure Performance Communications. A veteran in PR and marketing, she has counseled senior level executives at companies including Empire Today, Hershey’s, JVC, Kraft, the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) and the World Bank. Breakenridge has published many books including: “Putting the Public Back in Public Relations,” “PR 2.0, New Media, New Tools, New Audience,” “The New PR Toolkit” and “Cyberbranding: Brand Building in the Digital Economy.” Top Rank named Breakenridge among the 25 Women that Rock Social Media and Traackr recognized Breakenridge as the #1 PR 2.0 Influencer in 2011. She blogs about PR 2.0 strategies and is the co-founder of prstudchat.com #PRStudChat, a dynamic Twitter discussion scheduled monthly for PR students, educators and PR pros.

Cynthia Nelson Weiss, a Flagler College graduate, is a marketing communications manager for Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville, Fla. Her responsibilities include media relations, marketing, advertising and community events. Her accomplishments include working on print and TV commercials for Mayo Clinic Florida’s “My Answer” campaign, that was later adopted at other Mayo locations. Previously, Weiss was a freelance writer for the Florida Times-Union, H for Health magazine and many other publications. She also worked for a strategic marketing and lead generation firm in the Philadelphia area which focused on marketing for technology, finance and healthcare fields.

Sonia Thomasino is executive director for Jacksonville Fashion Week, an annual four-day, seven-event fashion production featuring local and regional designers in partnership with area businesses. Previously she was Director of Public Relations for Bloomingdale’s. Sonia is a graduate of the Art Institute of Fort Lauderdale with a degree in fashion marketing and communication. She created her own PR consultancy, SoniaSavvy PR, to bring her vast knowledge and talents to local businesses. Thomasino’s expertise lies in special events, branding, media relations and community outreach.

Lou Dubois, a 2006 Flagler College graduate, is the Social Media Editor and Strategist at NBC10 in Philadelphia. Dubois leads NBC’s social media and mobile engagement efforts by training all staff in using new technologies and tools to monitor and report news, find sources and leads. He is a top advocate for social and emerging media in the newsroom, contributes feature stories, a daily blog and more to NBC’s media platforms. Dubois was previously executive editor and community manager at New York City-based start-up Social Media Today, a writer and editor for Sports Illustrated, SOBeFit, Maxim and more.

Kevin Punsky is the external communications manager for Mayo Clinic in Jacksonville. Punsky focuses on media relations activities and directs issue and crisis communication. Previously, Punsky was an account director at the Dalton Agency public relations and advertising firm in Jacksonville where he specialized in communications strategy, media relations, business-to-business marketing, and crisis communications. Clients included the Jacksonville Jaguars for which he helped create the “ALL TEAL STADIUM” campaign, recipient of the Florida Public Relations Association’s Dick Pope Award in 2006. Punsky currently sits on the Communication Advisory Board at Flagler College.

Sam Kouvaris is sports director/managing editor at WJXT,formerly the CBS affiliate in Jacksonville. He began his career as a sports director at the ABC affiliate, WCBD, in Charleston, S.C. At WJXT, Kouvaris is responsible for the presentation of the daily newscast and leads the sports department. He also helps determine the sports coverage policy throughout the year. Kouvaris is an Emmy Award winner and has won the Associated Press Broadcast Award, as well as other honors, including Sportscaster of the Year by numerous organizations. He also maintains a sports-themed Web site –SamSportsline.com– which has sports news and personal commentary.