Frede, Ralph E.

Ralph E. Frede, APR, Fellow PRSA, was instrumental in raising professional standards of public relations through education, accreditation, and integrity.

Born in Floydada, Texas, on September 28, 1921, Frede moved with his family to Amarillo when he was a year old, and then to Austin when he was a teenager. Frede earned a Bachelor of Journalism degree (1943) and a Master of Arts in Government degree (1947) from the University of Texas in Austin, where he was editor of the student newspaper, the Daily Texan, and president of Alpha Phi Omega. Between degrees, Frede was a U.S. Navy lieutenant and executive officer of an LST during World War II. He was in the first wave of small boats that went into the beaches at Normandy on D-Day.

Frede's leadership in the Public Relations Society of America (PRSA) for more than three decades was directed toward establishing higher professional standards. He was a founder of the Accredited in Public Relations (APR) program, the PRSA College of Fellows, and the Foundation for Public Relations Research and Education, which today does business as the Institute of Public Relations. He was the first president of the foundation, which also launched the Public Relations Review in 1975.

Equally known for his achievements in institutional development, Frede advanced the level of professionalism in both public relations and fundraising through his exacting standards and belief in education as a lifelong process. He brought the public relations and development disciplines together to create maximum value for the institutions he served.

A Houston, Texas, resident most of his career, Frede is recognized for his professional leadership at the local, state, and national level. He received the Gold Anvil award from PRSA, the Golden Spur award from the Texas Public Relations Association (TPRA), and the Excalibur Legacy Award from the PRSA Houston Chapter. All are the organizations' highest honors for professional achievement and contributions to the profession. He was a board member of PRSA and president of the Public Relations Foundation in 1973. He also served as Southwest District chairman of PRSA and as past president and national assembly delegate of the Houston Chapter, and he held many other top positions in professional organizations.

Frede was most widely recognized as a public relations practitioner. His awards include the Silver Anvil of PRSA (1965) and the Outstanding Texas Public Relations Practitioner from TPRA (1988).

Frede wrote the initial examination taken by individuals for the APR designation in the 1960s and worked with the testing firm to evaluate and score examinations. His basic test, with minor adjustments, was used by PRSA for 30 years. He mentored decades of practitioners who studied in workshops to prepare to pass this examination.

An unswerving advocate of public relations as a vital part of management, Frede insisted that public interest is paramount. His quotation from an article in the September 18, 1989, PR Reporter article titled “PR Opportunities of the Future Will Involve Ability to Help Management” summarized his view: “We must retain our integrity, a sense of what's good for the public. We want to be, not seem to be. So we must counsel with management to put the house in order. Performance must be part of the public relations process” (p. 2).

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