Ellen Feist

Director of Marketing and PR

Ellen is excited to return to the FHPR team, this time bringing a wealth of experience in marketing as well as public relations.

Returning to FHPR is a full-circle experience for Ellen, who began her career as an Account Executive at SFPR in the early 2000s after graduating from Temple University with a degree in Journalism, Public Relations, and Advertising. Learning everything about public relations from Sharla, they kept in touch, and Sharla has been both a friend and mentor to Ellen over the years. Ellen went on to earn an MBA in Marketing from The Fox School of Business at Temple University so that she could offer both marketing and public relations skills to future clients and employers.

After graduate school, Ellen was hired by the Theatre League of Philadelphia at the Merriam Theater, a former SFPR client, as the Director of Marketing and PR. A fan of all things Broadway, this was a perfect combination of Ellen’s passions and skills, handling the advertising, promotions, and communications for Clear Channel’s Broadway Across America Philadelphia series.

In 2008, Ellen began working at Eastern State Penitentiary (ESP), managing all aspects of advertising, promotions, media relations, sponsor relations, and digital media for historic site tours and the annual Terror Behind the Walls haunted house fundraiser.

Throughout her 12 years at ESP, Ellen’s leadership and expertise contributed to a 112% growth in visitor attendance and a revenue growth of 201% for the organization. She helped lead a rebranding of printed materials as well as two complete redesigns of the organization’s Webby-nominated website. Keeping with her PR roots, Ellen coordinated media for the historic site, landing placements in national outlets like The New York Times, USA Today, People Magazine, TODAY Show, ABC News, and The Travel Channel, among others. Always passionate about education, Ellen spent four years teaching a Marketing Public Relations, and Publications course in the Museum Studies graduate program at The University of the Arts.

Ellen is also an active volunteer at her synagogue, Temple Emanuel in Cherry Hill, serving as the Vice President of Education and Youth Program Chair. She revitalized a youth group program for kids and teens in grades K-12, served as PTA Chair for both the Preschool and Religious School, and was instrumental in planning for the upcoming unification with Congregation M’kor Shalom. Ellen lives in Cherry Hill, NJ with her husband, Michael, two children, Samara and Ethan, and rescue dog, Sandy.