Public Relations Students!
The Inez Y. Kaiser GKC-PRSA Memorial Scholarship portal is open
The Greater Kansas City Chapter of PRSA (GKC-PRSA) celebrates Inez Y. Kaiser’s national legacy of leadership, public relations excellence, diversity within the communications field and community volunteerism by offering its 10th scholarship in 2024.
The application portal is now open with the Greater Kansas City Community Foundation. The 2024 scholarship, increased to $5,000, will be awarded to a Black college student of junior or senior level who demonstrates the same character and skills as Inez Kaiser. Applications are due April 15, 2024. To date, the scholarship fund has awarded $22,500 to nine scholars.
The GKC-PRSA chapter, in memory of Inez Y. Kaiser, established the Inez Y. Kaiser Memorial Scholarship Fund. Kaiser was a Kansas City public relations pioneer who was the first Black woman in the nation to own a public relations firm with national clients.
Students interested in applying for the scholarship can visit the general scholarship information page to get more information. Contributions to the scholarship fund can also be made, which helps future public relations professionals.
Additional Background on Inez Kaiser
Inez Y. Kaiser was a Kansas City pioneer, entrepreneur and public relations business owner but she had a national reputation. She was the first Black woman in the nation to own a public relations firm with national clients. Her cookbook, “Soul Food Cookery,” which she promoted nationwide, is in the Smithsonian Institute’s National Museum of African American Art & Culture. In 1966, she was the first Black woman to join the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA).
Inez Kaiser was born in Kansas City, Kansas, in 1918. She graduated from Pittsburg State University, was an educator first but became a businesswoman and public relations professional of many other firsts. In 1957, she founded Inez Kaiser & Associates. In 1963, she was the first Black woman to establish a national public relations firm with national clients in a Commerce bank building in downtown Kansas City – unheard for a Black woman at the time. She soon had an impressive roster of local (e.g., Commerce Bank, J.E Dunn Construction, Hallmark) and national (e.g., Lever Brothers, Burger King, Sears) clients.
It was her passionate commitment to volunteerism that defined her. She established the Jackson County Chapter of the LINKS of which Vice President Kamala Harris is a prominent national member. She was an advisor to Presidents Nixon and Ford to help Black businesswomen but crossed the political aisle when, as her son says, “she voted for Obama.”
Additional Background on GKC-PRSA
The Greater Kansas City PRSA chapter is a community of public relations and communications professionals across the Kansas City area, from recent college graduates to leaders of some of the largest firms, agencies and non-profits. Members represent nearly every practice area and professional and academic setting within the public relations field. In addition, GKC-PRSA supports students from across the Midwest who are members of their campus Public Relations Student Society of America (PRSSA) chapters. The chapter has virtual and in-person events to enhance professional growth. Also, it boasts signature events, such as the annual PRISM Awards gala honoring the year’s best in communications excellence. The GKC-PRSA mission is to be the professional resource and advocate for Kansas City’s communications professionals.
