Lorra M. Brown

Lorra Brown is an associate professor at William Paterson University in Wayne, NJ.  Brown develops and teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in public relations writing, public relations management, strategic marketing communication and corporate social responsibility.

As a professor, internship coordinator and former senior PR agency executive, Brown has spent nearly 30 years providing career and management guidance to students and PR professionals.   Her office, room 109 (and this site’s namesake), is constantly filled with students and alumni seeking advice.  This site features:

• Management, leadership, general career and professional advice
• Industry news links and commentary
• Public relations, corporate communication and integrated marketing insights
• Internship, job and career leads
• Resume, interview and cover letter tips
• Guidance for navigating public relations, marketing and corporate communication industries and the increasingly blurry lines across social media, digital media, news and marketing disciplines

As an educator, Brown strives to share her business experiences with William Paterson students to provide them with real-world scenarios which they can apply to future professional situations.  Her teaching philosophy encompasses professional practice-based learning.  She is committed to helping students build their skill sets and knowledge base to become outstanding members of the workforce and society.

Before joining William Paterson University, Brown was a senior vice president at Ogilvy Public Relations Worldwide running its New York consumer marketing practice.  She chose to step down from her position at Ogilvy following the birth of her first child.  During her tenure at Ogilvy she worked such industry leaders as LensCrafters, Sunglass Hut, Johnson & Johnson, Target Stores, SlimFast, Cendant (including CheapTickets, Orbitz, Lodging.com), General Mills, Jackson-Hewitt, Ortho-McNeil, Virgin Atlantic Airways and the American Red Cross Save a Life Tour, which was the largest blood donor initiative in Red Cross history.  Particularly skilled at managing cross-practice business, Brown led accounts spanning the consumer marketing, travel, entertainment, corporate, technology, public affairs and health & medical sectors.

Prior to Ogilvy, Brown was a Managing Director at Weber Shandwick where she helped launch their travel and lifestyle practice. She oversaw marketing communication activities for Royal Caribbean International, Lindblad Expeditions and The Bahamas Ministry of Tourism’s Grand Bahama Island business.  She began her public relations career at boutique New York City firms working on a variety of sports, travel, culinary and lifestyle accounts.  Many of Brown’s client programs were recognized with public relations industry awards including the PRSA Silver Anvil and Big Apple, CIPRAs, SABREs and HSMAI Awards.

At William Paterson University, Professor Brown has received the “Student’s First” President’s Award and Advisor of the Year Student Government Award for her work with the Student Public Relations Association (SPRA).  The club was recognized with the Pioneer Award as the best new organization on campus.  SPRA publishes the Pioneer PR Report newsletter, hosts industry experts, holds events to benefit the university community and provides public relations services to campus groups.  Professor Brown has previously served as an advisor for the student-run newspaper the Pioneer Times.  

She holds positions as M.A. in Professional Communication graduate program director and Communication Internship Coordinator and is active in several professional associations.  For the Public Relations Society of America she has served as a judge for the Silver Anvil, Bronze Anvil and Bateman industry competitions and is an editorial reviewer for Corporate Communication: An International Journal.   Brown’s articles about careers, internships, workplace gender issues and management have appeared in PR Strategist, PR Tactics, PR Daily and Employee Relations journal.

Brown earned a Master of Arts Degree in Corporate and Organizational Communication from Fairleigh Dickinson University and a Bachelor of Arts from Mansfield University of Pennsylvania where she was named Outstanding Communication Major.