About NSPRA
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The most challenging part about working in school PR is working with people who lack understanding of our role, and therefore don't see our value. Organizations nationwide use "Public Information Officer" or "Communication Specialist" to cover various duties and task school PR professionals with being experts in many different areas. I'm thankful to be a member of my chapter and of NSPRA, which provides me with a connection to other people who get it. When working with people who don't understand or value communications, I go back to strategic planning basics. I figure out what issues they face that communications can help address. I begin the RPIE method to provide a strategic, well-planned solution with measurable outcomes. I engage them and make them part of the process. In doing so, I show them the value of the communications role. It's especially gratifying when the result of a collaboration surpasses the objectives set at the beginning of the process and they get excited about collaborating on future projects.
When I started my current role, one of the first large projects I worked on was creating an Emergency Communications Guidebook for our small, rural schools that don't have dedicated communication personnel. I was asked to present the guidebook as part of our team's work to prepare for an emergency in the northern region of California. My superintendent was later invited to speak on disaster preparedness at a state virtual meeting, and I shared the guidebook with my SPRA chapter. We received multiple requests to share the guidebook. I'm now presenting "How to Build an Emergency Communications Guidebook" at the CalSPRA conference in March. It has been fulfilling to see how my work has helped so many people prepare for emergencies, which can potentially protect the lives of students and educational employees. At the end of the day, we all want to go home safely to our loved ones, and I get to be part of making that happen.