SEPTEMBER 2019
A Message from Larry Ceisler

Welcome to September's Ceisler Media Newsletter. With schools back, we asked three of our bright minds to tackle education issues. Associate Director Brian Dries explains how to take steps to improve your financial literacy. Associate Drew Murren talks of big challenges facing small colleges - and how Ceisler Media can help.

And definitely make sure to read Senior Associate Michael Rodriguez's compelling first-person account of working through a school shooting when he served as a school communications pro in Las Vegas. 

Also, please scroll down toward the bottom of this newsletter to read my praise for the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, which donated its Pulitzer Prize money to the Tree of Life Synagogue. It's a great example of a newspaper demonstrating commitment to the community it serves.

Blog Posts

Small colleges face big challenges -- Ceisler Media's Drew Murren offers guidance on how to help.

Crisis Communications training from Senior Associate Michael Rodriguez helped in the most heartbreaking scenario.

Financial Literacy starts with a solid communications strategy , Associate Director Brian Dries has the game plan.
Client News

We at Ceisler Media are proud to help Cheyney University tell the story of its remarkable academic and economic revival. This op-ed in the Pennsylvania Capital-Star lauds Cheyney's turnaround as "quick and stunning," and suggests the school could be a "blueprint for other struggling universities." 

"Young people teaching senior citizens how to use digital technology and social media? What a great idea," says Ceisler Media Senior Director Kirk Dorn. Read this story of how the Philadelphia Housing Authority has helped make computers less confusing for its older residents.

To help ensure a complete headcount in Pennsylvania in the 2020 Census, the William Penn Foundation awarded a $1 million grant to our client, the Keystone Counts coalition.
Client Highlights
Remnants of an 18th Century wharf were uncovered during an archeological dig along the Delaware River, sponsored by our client, The Durst Organization. The developer wants to study the historic findings and incorporate them into its planned building design on the site.


Ruth Bennett Community Farm , managed by the Chester Housing Authority, is a place where residents can purchase fresh produce and embrace the outdoors. 


Philadelphia Housing Authority residents in North Philadelphia underserved by supermarkets now have access to cut-rate transportation to fresh grocery stores, through a partnership between the PHA and Lyft.


PA Family Support Alliance works with thousands across Pennsylvania on how to recognize and report suspected cases of child abuse.
Ceisler News
Meet Brandon Boyer , a recent Villanova graduate who joins Ceisler Media as our inaugural Penny Gerber Fellow , named to honor our late Senior Analyst who was such an important part of our lives. Says Larry Ceisler: "I have long wanted to start a fellowship program, an opportunity for someone just out of school looking to break into a field that is somewhere in that nexus of business, politics, communications and media."
Ceisler Media team members from around the state gathered in September for our annual working retreat. Here's a team picture at our office in Center City, Philadelphia. Our thanks to Jim Friedlich, ChatterBlast Media and AG Josh Shapiro for coming to address the Ceisler staff.
As part of this year's Ceisler Media working retreat , our team members purchased essential home goods to donate to Women Against Abuse , an organization dedicated to helping abused women transition to new, safe homes. Here are Max Weisman, Abby Snopek, David Huppert, Elise Corbett and Brandon Boyer bringing some of those items to the charity's Philadelphia headquarters.
Our Viewpoints
Our Principal, Larry Ceisler , applauded the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, its editors and reporters for generously donating the money received for its Pulitzer Prize to help repair the Tree of Life Synagogue.

Ceisler Media Director Meredith Montalto praises viral social media coming from the unlikeliest of sources -- the Pennsylvania Treasury Department.

The recent mania over Popeye's Chicken sandwiches created an example of how to grab attention by working smarter -- not harder, writes Ceisler Media Associate Abby Snopek.

Match-making between worthy charities and generous foundations is part of what we do at Ceisler Media, writes associate Julia Shreiber .    
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