User:Kirk.hallahan/sandbox

Kirk Hallahan

Personal
Kirk Hallahan was born in Cleveland, Ohio on February 16, 1950 and grew up in Long Beach, California. He earned his B.A. in mass communications at UCLA in 1971 and was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. He received his M.A. in journalism in 1974 from the University of Wisconsin-Madison, where he also received his Ph.D. in mass communications in 1995. He retired as an emeritus professor of journalism and media communication from Colorado State University in 2017.

Professional and Academic Career
Hallahan worked as a professional public relations practitioner for 19 years in California. He served as account supervisor, Harshe-Rotman & Druck, Inc., a major national public relations agency, 1973-1979; vice president-public relations, California Federal Savings and Loan Association , 1979-1984; senior vice president-public affairs, California League of Savings Institutions, 1984-1989, and vice president-public affairs, Coast Federal Bank , 1989-1991.

In 1991, he launched his second career in public relations teaching and education by teaching part-time at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, 1991-1993, while in graduate school. He began his full-time academic career at the School of Communications at the University of North Dakota, 1993-1996, before joining the Colorado State faculty in 1996.

Contributions to Public Relations Theory
Hallahan is notable for his contributions to public relations theory in five areas: strategic communication, message strategy, the importance of inactive/passive publics, the role of publicity, and historical studies dealing with the work of public relations pioneers Ivy Ledbetter Lee and Edward L. Bernays.

Strategic Communication
Hallahan was a founding co-editor (with Derina R. Holtzhausen) of the International Journal of Strategic Communication [Taylor & Francis). In so doing, he helped define strategic communication as a specialty of professional communication that incorporates public relations and other communication subdisciplines. He also served as an associate editor of the International Communication Association"s International Encyclopedia of Strategic Communication

Awards

 * 2010 - Outstanding Educator of the Year, Public Relations Society of America
 * 2009 - suPRstar, Public Relations Division, Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication
 * 2007 - Pathfinder Award, Institute for Public Relations
 * 2001 - Jackson, Jackson & Wagner Behavioral Science Prize, PRSA Foundation
 * 1974 - Silver Anvil, Public Relations Society of America, for promotional publicity program for Shindana Toys