About

A Dedicated Team of Experts

Who are we?

We are a PR agency founded on the idea that public relations are about more than just looking good—it’s about achieving results that matter to your company.

We are an agency dedicated to enterprise, B2B PR. We develop campaigns tied to business goals and deliver results that contribute to the bottom line.

1903 PR partners with companies that are driving innovation within industries and, through creative strategic communications, propels them to the next level.

What Does Our Name Mean?

As California natives, we identify with our state flower, the poppy. 1903 was the year California made the poppy its state flower, and with its deep roots and unmistakable style, the poppy is just as tenacious and as it is distinctive. The California poppy needs a challenge to reach its full potential, and we think 1903 Public Relations is at its best when tackling difficult problems through communications.

The more we investigated the year, the more we felt a pull to the time period. The year 1903 was a time for new technology (the Wright brothers executed the first successful manned flight), increased diversity and inclusion (the first women’s suffrage union was formed and the stirrings of what would become the civil rights movement took hold), and the recognition that strategic publicity can elevate exciting events to history-making status (the first public relations agency opens its doors). This was a time when anything could happen thanks to innovation, grit, and communications.

We apply these themes as we partner with clients to transform innovative ideas into messages that influence markets. We find new ways to break through and rise above the noise. For this work, 1903 Public Relations was named the winner of a bronze Stevie Award for the Startup of the Year, Business Services Industries category of the 18th Annual American Business Awards.

MEET OUR TEAM

Katherine Verducci

CEO and Co-Founder

Katherine Verducci, CEO and co-founder of 1903 Public Relations, started her PR career in the Silicon Valley. After working with everything from early stage startups, to one of the largest healthcare companies in the world, she returned to her roots to create a truly unique PR agency that delivers world class results.

Her PR campaigns have launched companies, penetrated new markets, and pushed organizations to new levels. At Abbott she was part of communications team that helped the company be recognized as the #1 pharmaceutical company on Fortune’s list of the World’s Most Admired Companies for 2010. She's supported companies through M&As on both sides of the table, through funding announcements, rebrands, IPOs and crisis situations.

With 1903 Public Relations, she combines her passion for creating tailored strategic messages aligned with business objectives, crafting innovative stories that stand out in the press, and her appreciation for Central California into one labor of love. In 2021, she was named Executive Hero of the Year by the Globee Awards and she was one of the Top 50 OUTstanding LGBT+ Role Models in a list compiled by INvolve and Yahoo Finance. She was also listed as one of the top Female Social Change Makers in the Stevie International Business Awards for 2021. Katherine is an innovator disrupting the public relations industry by delivering impressive outcomes for clients that span numerous industries.

Santiago Villegas

CEO and Co-Founder

Santiago Villegas, CEO and co-founder of 1903 Public Relations, a native to Central California has years of experience in the public relations industry that he has leveraged to lead nationally recognized, award winning campaigns on behalf of clients. He has worked with startups, publicly traded companies, and government entities to create strategies that have penetrated markets, motivated multi-million-dollar deals and investments.

With 1903 Public Relations he is developing an agency that, contrary to established institutions, is composed of a diverse staff dedicated to the execution of top-tier creative strategies that deliver real-business benefits for clients globally.Before founding 1903 Public Relations, Santiago Villegas worked in numerous industries both in-house and agencies where he worked with some of the largest known tech brands.

Within his previous roles he has deep rooted experience within machine learning, cybersecurity, augmented reality, sustainable/renewable energy, ag tech, environmental tech, Salesforce, DEI, EdTech, and countless others. He has spearheaded campaigns that have landed clients national coverage notably securing the cover of Forbes and a global TED Talk for clients.

Santiago has also been invited to be Forbes and Entrepreneur contributor. He has won gold in the 2019 Bulldog Award for PR Up and Comer, three Stevie Awards in the Communications Professional of the Year category, and made the Forbes Next 1000 list in 2021 as an entrepreneur on the rise.

Jackie Flaten

Senior Account Supervisor

Jackie Flaten is a seasoned writer and public relations professional who’s managed media relations for a diverse clientele throughout her career, securing meaningful coverage nationally in consumer and trade press.

She has decades of experience providing expert media counsel, delivering strategic communications, and leading brand awareness campaigns for education, consumer products and tech start-ups. Her Bay Area career includes stints at high-tech PR agencies where she worked with clients in security software, new materials, nanotech and mobile tech, handling client management, writing, and media and analyst relations.

Jackie also served as a public affairs specialist for a 17-clinic midwestern health system, and as chief editor/public information officer for North Dakota’s flagship university. A University of North Dakota communications graduate, she started out in journalism and has continued to write for media outlets throughout her career. These experiences of communicating with vision and purpose to multiple stakeholders continues to inform her work today.

She takes a special pride in her creative and pragmatic outlook, diligence in understanding a client’s business, and a tenacious approach to media relations. Jackie particularly likes the challenge of distilling complex technology into compelling media-friendly narratives. Collaborating with innovative people and helping them tell their stories fuels her drive and imagination every day.

Cara Sutherlan

Account Executive

Cara Sutherlan is a rising star in the public relations industry with vast experience in journalism, copy editing and writing consultancy. To date, she has worked with a range of clients including publicly traded companies, startups and everything in between. Her insight has provided guidance for organizations within the tech, edtech, SaaS, Salesforce, PropTech, RealTech, FoodTech, Sustainability, insurance, financial and DEIB industries.

She has expertly led client accounts, creating strategic campaigns that have secured media opportunities in target publications in national, vertical and local outlets. She positions clients as experts within their industry and beyond, creating opportunities for increased exposure to potential clients and reaffirming industry dominance amongst existing clients. She is the utmost professional who stays on top of trends and keeps clients she serves top-of-mind to target audiences.Cara is committed to spotlighting stories that showcase talent, innovation and diversity in technology, especially in her native California.

She has guided clients and delivered strategic communications that have impacted their bottomline. Cara approaches her work with careful attention to detail and a good intuition for a compelling story. Her campaign work has resulted in client coverage in national outlets including NPR, Business Insider and Cheddar (to name a few).

Grace Decicco

Account Associate

Grace is new to the public relations industry and joined 1903 PR with a background in marketing and events having worked with a consumer facing multi-million-dollar organization. She brings the unique insights of consumer influencing strategies she acquired in her previous role to the agency. A Central California native she received a degree in Mass Communications and Journalism with an emphasis in Public Relations and a minor in Communication from California State University, Fresno.

She has an adaptable skill set that makes her an asset to any client allowing her to absorb and apply information in short order. Leveraging her unmatched ability to search and consume information to support account surfacing vital information to client accounts. Grace has the capacity to quickly understand clients mission, product, goals and capture their voice in any materials needed whether that be: blogs, contributed articles, speaking submission, or award nominations.

Her skills make her an asset to any account and the positive energy she brings is refreshingly invigorating to anyone that has the privilege of collaborating with her. Grace enjoys taking on new challenges whenever she can and approaches each project with new eyes as she continues to learn through each task given.