Brian Treece poses for a photo prior to being interviewed on a Dallas morning news show.

Brian Treece, assistant dean of students and director of housing and residence life, was one of two people chosen this summer to be a national spokesperson for Nestlé HealthCare Nutrition Inc.’s OPTIFAST program, a medically monitored weight loss program through which Treece lost more than 100 pounds in 2006.

Treece was approached by the company after participating in a national television commercial taping last spring in Los Angeles, Calif., where he and 15 others shared their weight loss testimonials.

Earlier this summer, a representative from the company’s public relations agency met Treece in Findlay to train him how to deal with the media – television hosts and cameras, newspaper and magazine reporters and radio interviewers.

“It was intensive training,” Treece said. “I learned how to redirect an interview and answer tough questions.” He commented that the media training he received also will help him deal with tough media situations that may arise on campus.

In June, Treece traveled to Dallas, which is a major media market, where he was given multiple ‘talking points,’ or key messages, to focus on during interviews.

In one exhausting day, Treece was interviewed on a local television news show; met with a reporter for a major women’s magazine in Dallas; and spoke with a reporter from the Fort Worth Star newspaper. He also will do interviews in Los Angeles and New York City this year.

The OPTIFAST media team even created tell-all trading cards with Treece’s photo, as well as his health statistics, including previous and current weight, weight lost, blood pressure, cholesterol and body mass index. The cards were given to media as part of the interviews.

“If just one person reads a newspaper article or sees me on TV, and it helps them achieve their own weight loss goals, then sharing my own story is worth it,” Treece said.