Shannon Heine Honored with Minnesota PRSA Young Professional Award

MINNEAPOLIS, April 8, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Shannon Heine was named the 2013 Young Professional of the Year by the Minnesota chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) at the 36th annual Minnesota PRSA Classics Awards. In its third year, the award recognizes a young professional from the chapter who has made an extraordinary contribution to the professional's organization, the public relations profession, and the local community.

"Shannon is a rising star who represents the future of our industry," said Anna Lewicki Long, APR, president of Minnesota PRSA. "Her enthusiasm for her clients and the profession is infectious, and we are fortunate to have her as part of the Minnesota PRSA community."

Heine recently accepted a position at General Mills. Prior to that she spent nearly four years in the public relations field, all of which have been spent at Carmichael Lynch Spong. Heine has been promoted twice to the position of Senior Associate and garnered praise from colleagues and clients alike. Through her work in social media, media relations, event coordination, and account management, she helped organizations including Calphalon, Jack Link's, and Trane exceed all set expectations. Highlights of her career at Carmichael Lynch Spong include arranging plans for Trane to ring the closing bell at the New York Stock Exchange and organizing milestone celebrations for Trane and MasterBrand Cabinets. In addition to praise from clients, campaigns Heine has worked on have been honored with awards from the PRSA and The Holmes Report.

"Shannon's efforts in and outside of work have been an incredible benefit to her peers, as well as other young professionals," said Julie Batliner, Managing Director at Carmichael Lynch Spong in Heine's nomination letter. "Her strategic mind-set, strong work ethic, motivation to succeed, dedication to her craft, professionalism, and helpful, friendly demeanor never cease to impress, demonstrating that she is among the most talented pros in our industry, not to mention the state of Minnesota."

At Carmichael Lynch Spong, Heine volunteers as the chair of the Interpublic Group Women's Leadership Network, planning events to inspire skills trainings, mentorship, and leadership among young women working in the public relations and communications field. This year, she also volunteered as lead PR counsel for Adopt-a-Classroom, a program which empowers teachers with the funds needed to purchase hands-learning resources. Through her national media relations campaign, she was helped the organization spread their message, even securing an interview for the head of Adopt-a-Classroom on the "Today Show."

A member of Minnesota PRSA for several years, Heine currently serves as the sponsorship chair for the 2013 Classics Committee, securing several multi-year sponsorships for the event. In fact her efforts led to a record number of sponsorships for this year's banquet.

About Minnesota PRSA

Chartered in 1949, Minnesota PRSA is the ninth largest chapter of the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA), the world's largest organization for public relations professionals with nearly 32,000 professional and student members. PRSA is organized into 112 chapters nationwide, including 14 Professional Interest Sections that focus on specific industries and practice areas. Minnesota PRSA is comprised of more than 350 professionals from agency, corporate, nonprofit, government and freelance sectors. (http://www.mnprsa.com/)

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SOURCE Minnesota PRSA