On the Mark: How PRSA Leadership Has Ohio Connection

DAYTON, OHIO – When the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) East Central District begins its 20th year on January 1, 2024, its board of directors will have a distinct connection with the Buckeye State.

Mark Pompilio , marketing communications public relations director for Solvita, and Mark D. Weinstein , executive director of public relations at Cedarville University , will serve on the board of directors. Pompilio will continue as the treasurer, while Weinstein assumes the role of chair-elect of the board of directors.

Pompilio and Weinstein came to their current positions at Solvita and Cedarville University nearly the same time. Pompilio has carried the communications responsibilities for Solvita —formerly known as the Community Blood Center—since 2011 after a stellar career in broadcast journalism. Weinstein came to Cedarville in 2010.

“It’s a pleasure to represent the greater Dayton region on the PRSA East Central District Board of Directors,” said Weinstein. “It’s atypical to have more than one representative from a chapter serving on the district board, so with Mark and I on the executive team, I view our roles with great responsibility. We are not only representing the 15-member chapters in our six-state region,? but we are reflecting the work and character of our members in the Dayton, Ohio region.”

Pompilio is no stranger to the district’s leadership team. He has served as a director since 2017 and was elected secretary in 2020 and treasurer in 2023 and 2024. Prior to joining Solvita, Pompilio was the primary news anchor for nearly 10 years with Dayton 24/7 Now TV (WKEF and WRGT) in Dayton. He was also a news reporter and anchor at WLOS TV in Asheville, North Carolina and was sports editor for The Mountaineer newspaper. Since 2011, he has managed public relations, marketing, and communications for Solvita.

As a respected contributor to PRSA at the chapter and district levels, Pompilio has received numerous honors and awards for his work with Solvita. Pompilio has received 13 Gem City PR Awards from the Dayton PRSA chapter, including the Judges Choice Award in 2018 for the hemophiliac family profile “Blood Bond at Eldora Ballroom.” He is also the recipient of seven Awards of Merit from the Dayton PRSA chapter, and an ECD Diamond Merit. Pomilio served as president of the Dayton chapter in 2016.

Weinstein, a past Dayton PRSA chapter president during the COVID 2020 year, joined the PRSA East Central District board in 2023 as the co-communications chair, managing the district’s newsletter and serving on the Diamond Awards committee.? In 2024, Weinstein will serve as the chair-elect and guide the district’s annual QuickStart leadership program in the summer. The following year he will serve as the chair of the board of directors for the East Central District.

During Weinstein’s decade at Cedarville, he and his PR team have won several awards at the chapter and district levels. In 2023, he was named the Communication Professional of the Year by the Dayton Area PRSA chapter and he is the recipient of five PRSA Gem City PR Awards and a Diamond Award. In 2019, Cedarville’s entry for the development and implementation of its campus newsroom received a Gem City PR honor and the "Best of Show" award from the Dayton Areas PRSA chapter. This honor led directly to Weinstein receiving a PRSA East Central District?Diamond award in the same year.

Weinstein has worked in public relations in higher education since 1988, the past 14 years at Cedarville University.

“The future of the public relations profession is bright and filled with so many great leaders,” added Weinstein. “Like Mark, we are thankful for the opportunity to serve PRSA and lead our district forward, while also investing in the futures of upcoming leaders.”

The PRSA East Central District comprises 15 chapters in six states, including Michigan, Indiana, Kentucky, Ohio, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. The chair in 2024 is Jennifer Kramer, APR, of Akron, Ohio. Kaylin Staten, APR, served as the chair in 2023.