April President’s Letter

Like many of you, I think about AI often. I intended to have this newsletter out the first week of the month. I could have easily made that happen with AI; however, I still believe in my voice, my experience, and what I bring to the table. I traveled to Fiji for my spring break! I arrived at the airport, went through TSA without a wait (despite media coverage of how bad it was, DCA was not bad at all), went straight to the lounge, ordered my bubbles, opened my bag, and that was when I realized that I had left my laptop at home.

I travel frequently, and I’ve never left my laptop, ever! I didn’t have time to Uber back to get it. I messaged people in my condo offering to pay for them to Uber to bring my laptop, but no one was available. I was stressed! Even though it was spring break, I had admin work to do, grading, PRSA, and whatever else I do on my laptop. I thought about buying an iPad on my layover at DFW, but turns out they don’t sell keyboards, so I thought, well, I can answer emails on my phone. I’ll let my students know that grading won’t happen until I return.

The first two days were hard, and then I realized, this is so insignificant. Yes, it set me back, productivity-wise, but you know what? Nobody died! PR is not the ER. Nor is my job. Yes, timeliness is important, and there are times that you must respond immediately; this was not that time. Let this be a reminder that you are going to be OK!

On that note, this month is National Volunteer Awareness Month! As you all know, our chapter is as strong as it is because of our amazing volunteers! Our Board of Directors, our committee chairs, and committee members are all volunteers. I want to give a special shout-out to our Past President, Crystal Borde, who filled in for me while I was away for the incredible panda event, and when I experienced a medical issue this past week. She didn’t just put her time in while President, she continues to show up. I also want to acknowledge all our volunteers of the PRSA NCC Chapter! You are what makes us great!

Our Association and Nonprofit Committee had a great Issues of the Day Event at the World Wildlife Fund. The professional development committee is incredibly active, ensuring we have timely and relevant events for both members and nonmembers. I’m especially looking forward to the day at Nats Park in June.

April is APR Month! There is still time to register for the Spring 2026 Jump Start To Accreditation Online Series. Even if you aren’t going for APR accreditation, this is an incredible and invaluable series that I teach my grad students. You can do it in just a short amount of time, and a lot less money :) If you have any questions about APR, you can reach out to our wonderful APR committee chair, Leonard.

Lastly, on Friday at 12:00 PM ET, I’m hosting Past President Leah Dergachev for my Johns Hopkins COMMnections webinar series, for her inspiring talk “From Solo Founder to AI – Powered Agency.” It’s free and open to the public; you can register here.

Finally, thank you all for being a part of this incredible community. Please see all our amazing upcoming events, and as always, please reach out to me for any questions, comments, or concerns.

Best,

Patricia (Trisha) Hernandez

President, PRSA National Capital Chapter