Crystal Sutherland has been a member of the FPRA Gainesville Chapter since September 2012. “I chose to get involved because I wanted to sharpen my PR skills,” she says. Last year she served on the Professional Development Symposium (PDS) Committee and this year she decided to go a step further and oversee the committee.
Crystal has recently accepted a new position, public relations associate for University of Florida Performing Arts, which will start in June. Prior to that she worked at the University of Florida College of Medicine in research compliance, assisting the Conflict of Interest office with informative sessions and bringing awareness of responsible relationships between UF faculty and their industries.
The thing she loves most about working in public relations and being in FPRA is meeting others with the same background and learning how they thrive in their field, she says. “There are so many opportunities to learn from your peers.”
A native of Middletown, Md., Crystal graduated from UF’s College of Journalism and Communications in 2009 with a specialization in photojournalism. Of living in Gainesville she says she loves that the city can be different for each stage of your life. As for something you may not know about her… “I love reality crime shows,” she says. “I watch every Dateline and Forensic Files. I think it is fascinating that they can solve 20-year-old crimes with one speck of blood using new technology.”