A public relations professional with more than 25 years of experience, Sally has extensive experience as a media relations specialist, editor, speechwriter, client counselor and project/events manager. She currently works with such clients as AT&T, Avaya, Lucent Technologies, Dale Carnegie, Medical Education for South African Blacks (MESAB) and Marschallin+Sachs, an image-consulting firm. Most recently, she ran a three-day global media and analyst conference for Avaya, at the Hudson Theatre in midtown Manhattan, where the company unveiled its strategy to full houses of financial and industry analysts and representatives from the media.

Sally spent much of her career at AT&T, where she developed and implemented media relations strategies, spearheaded successful employee communications campaigns, initiated programs to enhance the company’s local brand presence, and provided P.R. support to sales and marketing executives.

For 10 years she served as AT&T’s director of Broadcast Media Relations and spokesperson, creating successful strategies to showcase the corporation on national television and radio. As the company’s single point of contact with the broadcast media, she developed lasting relationships with a wide array of business, technology and stories, such as: AT&T’s acquisition of NCR and McCaw; introduction of the AT&T Universal Card; launch of AT&T WorldNet Service; unveiling of the videophone; and the breakup of AT&T.

Sally has appeared as a guest panelist/moderator at a host of industry gatherings, where she has offered media relations guidance to fellow professionals. She developed a one-hour seminar on how to interact with the broadcast media that she regularly presented to the AT&T public relations community. She also coached executives and key subject matter experts to develop their skills in dealing with all aspects of the news media.

As P.R. director for AT&T’s northeast region, Sally oversaw regional media relations, employee communications, event management, and philanthropic and marketing communications activities. Her staff of professionals leveraged relationships with targeted organizations to engage external support of AT&T’s public policy in the face of growing competition from local phone companies.

Sally also provided marketing communications support to AT&T’s highly competitive consumer services organization. Confronted with mounting ill will from consumers victimized by long-distance and international calling fraud, she developed and implemented an interdepartmental national toll-fraud-prevention program that generated more than 2,000 national media placements within the first three weeks of its inception.

Marilynne brings more than 30 years of experience in media relations, community relations and photojournalism to Agins Communications. She has been instrumental in creating, managing and carrying out diverse responsibilities for educational, corporate and community interests. An accomplished photojournalist, for many years, she was a regular photography stringer for The New York Times. .

Early in her career, she served in the public relations department of The Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City writing and producing the medical center newsletter and annual report. She wrote the text and designed a patient information “cube” which won the “MacEachern Award” of the American Hospital Association. Marilynne also worked closely with the media and film production companies using Mount Sinai facilities.

As Account Supervisor at Ruder Finn, she developed and implemented a public relations/community relations program for the City of New Rochelle (New York), produced award-winning publications and wrote the city’s award-winning application for the U.S. Conference of Mayor’s “City Livability Award.” Her clients were the city’s key municipal administrators, leaders of the local business community, and presidents of local colleges, medical center and other not-for-profit community organizations. In addition, she had vital responsibilities as a member of the city’s committee responsible for increasing public awareness and support for David’s Island, a major multi-million dollar residential and commercial development project planned for the central downtown business district and waterfront.

Other major responsibilities at Ruder Finn included developing for Citibank MasterCard and Visa, the prototype for the highly successful “Max Moore – Detective from Moneytown,” radio PSA program designed to educate college students on the responsible use of credit, and regional seminars on “Money Matters for Women.”

Marilynne served as public relations consultant to the City of New Rochelle in their effort to attract UNICEF to relocate to New Rochelle. To this end, she initiated and developed a successful public/private sector campaign throughout Westchester County to gain support for this project. Out of 76 competing cities from around the world, the City of New Rochelle came in second to Manhattan as UNICEF’s choice for its relocation.

She has also served as Community Relations Consultant to The Osborn, one of the nation’s premier not-for-profit continuing care retirement communities located in Rye, New York. In this capacity she was instrumental in placing articles on The Osborn in key media outlets and raising the visibility of this distinguished 100 year-old institution to assist marketing efforts.

She also serves as Executive Vice President for Halstead Communications, a public relations and marketing communications firm in New York City, serving education and non-profit clients. Marilynne has a solid track record of gaining major print and electronic media placements for her clients, which include some of the nation’s leading liberal arts colleges and not-for-profit foundations.

She has received the national Association of Women in Communications Clarion Award for her efforts on behalf of Centre College (Danville, KY) “Campaign to Save the Debate,” and for her work on behalf of Sarah Lawrence College (Bronxville, N.Y.).