The CPRS Foundation is a recognized not-for-profit charitable organization that is committed to supporting community through scholarships for the communications and public relations community. We seek to give back to the community working with the new and current professionals through scholarship, connection and support.

The Canadian Public Relations (CPRS) Foundation offers the following scholarships/bursaries/awards:

Denis Racine Bursary – Established by the CPRS (Vancouver Island Chapter) to honour past CPRS National President Denis Racine who passed away in 2009. The bursary is awarded annually to a public relations student who lives on Vancouver Island or the Gulf Islands and is registered in a post-secondary public relations education program and has completed three or more courses.

Calgary Legacy Scholarship – This scholarship is awarded annually by the Canadian Public Relations Society (Calgary) to a second year student in a public relations program at Mount Royal University, SAIT Polytechnic or the University of Calgary, who has demonstrated understanding of public relations, its theory and practice, values and principles.

Canadian Public Relations Society (Vancouver Island) Professional Development Award – An annual grant made to a member of CPRS (Vancouver Island Chapter) to attend the CPRS national conference. The funds are generated through legacy funds held by the Victoria Foundation for CPRS (Vancouver Island) and are transferred to the CPRS Foundation annually for distribution to the award recipient.

Susan Francis Prize in Public Relations – Honours the late Susan Francis, APR, established by her father, John Francis, APR, FCPRS(H), Calgary, and is awarded to a final year undergraduate PR/communications student at one of the three post-secondary institutes in Calgary, Alberta. Applicants are required to develop a project proposal to address specific objectives of interest to Susan including equality, the environment, international development, political action, charity or crisis communications.

Torchia Scholarship in Public Relations/Communications – Inspired by the career of Armand Torchia, Montreal, and established by his family, this scholarship is awarded to a student entering second year of a public relations/communications program, who best exemplifies the spirit and practice of bilingualism and is studying in one of Canada’s two official languages that is not his/her mother tongue.

The CPRS Foundation also supports the following work:

Diana and Charles Tisdall Lecture in Public Relations and Communications –Established in 2005, this lecture is presented at the annual conference of the Canadian Public Relations Society to demonstrate the societal power and value of public relations/communications and provide a platform for cutting edge thinking. Charles Tisdall, who passed away in 2007, was a pioneer in public relations practice in Canada and was dedicated to challenging old ideas, generating new thinking and causing his fellow practitioners to reflect on world issues.