Member Profile: Carol Bodensteiner
Tell us a little about yourself. I’m an advocate of lifelong learning. Consequently, I consider any day a good day when I learn something new. An agency career was a good fit for me because I continually worked for new clients with new products. In addition, the agency allowed me to develop new products such as media training and crisis management workshops for our clients. I love to travel because new locations knock me out of the ‘normal' and encourage me to think in new ways.
I believe in giving back and paying it forward. I’m involved in organizations that promote diversity, support those with low incomes, and help with mental health. One example – for the past dozen years, I’ve served on the board of Oakridge Neighborhood. I also am a United Way Book Buddy reading to 4-year-olds at Oak Academy, and this year I began volunteering as an ELL teacher working with adult refugees. I have two granddaughters and two step grandsons who are precious to me, and fortunately they live in the Des Moines area. My husband and I just adopted two kittens who are a delight and underfoot all the time! Maya is a 10-week-old Siamese with boundless energy, and Leo is a 4-month-old gray domestic shorthair who is shy but gradually coming out of his shell.
What has your career path looked like? In retrospect, my career looks very well planned. It wasn’t. I grew up on a family dairy farm in the 1950/1960s. I earned a BA in Teaching from UNI, however, teaching jobs weren’t easy to come by and I wound up as an editorial assistant for Soybean Digest magazine at the American Soybean Association. When I told my dad about my new job, he asked, “Have you ever seen a soybean?” I had to admit I hadn’t, so we got in the car and went to the nearest soybean field. As an editorial assistant and then editor of Soybean Digest magazine, I learned the publishing business and discovered I had some skill in writing. I hadn’t known that when I took the job.
From there, I went to a small, Cedar Falls-based ag public relations firm where I put my newfound soybean expertise to work for Asgrow Seed. I also did considerable writing for The Upjohn Company, maker of ethical and OTC products for the dairy and cattle industry. When my husband took a job in Cedar Rapids, I joined CMF&Z, one of the premier, regional ag communications agencies. CMF&Z had a wide range of ag clients and my experience - particularly in soybeans and dairy - fit well. After 10 years in CMF&Z’s Cedar Rapids office, I transferred to the Des Moines office where I expanded my portfolio to include government affairs, crisis management and media training. Following a 20-year career at CMF&Z during which I advanced from account manager to president of the Public Relations Division, I left agency work to pursue my own creative writing ventures. I subsequently threw myself into learning about creative writing; wrote and published a memoir and two novels; worked as a freelance writer for The Iowan magazine; taught for two years as a visiting professor at Drake University; and simultaneously continued to consult, mostly for university clients. During COVID, I took up watercolor painting.
How did you first get involved with PRSA Iowa? My first connections with PRSA Iowa (in eastern Iowa) were attending PRSA seminars held in Cedar Falls and then studying for accreditation in Cedar Rapids. An icon of public relations in Iowa and nationally, Ferne Bonomi, served on my accreditation review panel. We subsequently became friends and continue as friends and advisors to each other.
What has been your favorite PRSA Iowa memory or experience? My favorite memories surround coaching APR candidates and seeing them grow through the experience. I did that for many years, stepping aside as my day-to-day experience practicing public relations lessened and talented current practitioners like Emily Abbas and Aaron Putze stepped up.
How has PRSA Iowa helped shape your career? PRSA Iowa shaped my career through professional relationships and accreditation. When I stepped down from full-time work at CMF&Z and entered consulting, I knew the kind of work I wanted to do - and what I didn’t. I learned to say “no” when clients asked but referred them to other talented practitioners I knew could serve them well.
What has been the best change in the public relations field since you first entered the industry? I am pleased to see the Society pay more attention to diversity and inclusion. One thing I noticed about the public relations field early on was how white it was. How could we adequately and fairly represent the public if we didn’t have practitioners who looked like the public and had that lived experience? It takes all of us working together to expand our ranks, to reach out and form partnerships to achieve understanding, and to address what is a long-standing issue. No one of us can do everything, but each of us can do something. My husband and I have endowed a scholarship at UNI to support students of color who study in the communications field.
What do you like to do in your free time? I travel. I paint. I’m currently re-designing my flower gardens from shade to sun plants. I read and am a member of two book clubs, one of which includes equal numbers of Black and White women. We read books that cause us to explore our racial identity. I spend as much time with my family as possible.
