History of PR: Alice L. Beeman

Alice L. Beeman is known for her leadership and resilience to public relations. Starting in the beginning, the Association of American College News Bureaus was organized in April 1917. When World War I began, the organization became dormant, until the 1920s. Fast forward five years, the Association of American College New Bureaus rebounded with a focus on growing in higher education. Because of this shift, the organization’s name was changed to the American College Publicity Association in 1930. It was yet again changed, in 1964, to American College Public Relations Association. When they merged with the American Alumni Council, the name changed one last time to Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) in 1974.

Here is where Alice Beeman comes into play. With the merger between both organizations, the focal point became development and fund-raising for college public relations. Alice L. Beeman was the first president of CASE. She served as president from 1974-1978. She was the first woman to be the leader of a national public relations association. Because of Alice’s leadership for young public relations professionals, CASE has an award called the Alice L. Beeman Research Award. According to the CASE website, “The Alice L. Beeman Award recognizes the work of researchers and scholars exploring advancement trends in communications and marketing in the areas of public relations, government relations, marketing, issues management, and institutional image enhancement.” Alice Beeman’s selfless efforts in leading a national non-profit association established a strong platform for today’s public relations professionals.