About NSPRA
Become a Member
NSPRA Front-Runners are members identified by the NSPRA Executive Board as emerging leaders who are doing outstanding work for their schools, their chapters and for NSPRA. The annual distinction recognizes four members, each from a different NSPRA region.
I believe school PR/communications is critical for a school district to share the human stories inside the school walls, establish trust with the community through transparency and engage families in their children's education.
My greatest school PR success was working with my team to increase pre-K and kindergarten enrollment. Using the four-step strategic communications planning process RPIE (research, plan, implement, evaluate), my communication and marketing team and other departments worked together to create a plan to engage parents of young children sooner in the registration process and fill classrooms prior to the start of the school year. Our initial goal was to register 500 pre-K students in the first month (success!) and increase enrollment in both pre-K and kindergarten for the 2023-24 school year (success!).
My greatest school PR challenge was closing a high school. My district has been through other tough times: staff reductions, transportation cuts, bus driver shortages, boundary tweaks, retirement of a long-time superintendent, eliminating a racist mascot, not to mention COVID. But, the most tumultuous was the closing of one of the district's high schools nearly 14 years ago. The emotions tied to high schools are always heightened, but in Fort Wayne, high schools are sacred. An individual's high school identity supersedes just about any other identifier. While we gave families, staff, students and others ample opportunity to provide input and be part of the closing process, it was a volatile time. There were many threats and lawsuits. Even 14 years later, some in the community are still bitter, though we have come a long way in repairing relationships.
My favorite part of my job is visiting schools! There is nothing better than going to a school and seeing the joy of children, the spark of curiosity in young learners and the honesty of teens providing feedback on a complex issue. Our students are the reason I do this job, and visiting schools keeps me grounded.
The communication tool I use the most is the RPIE process. I learned how to use this tool when working to earn my accreditation in public relations (APR) five years ago. It has changed how I practice communication. By following each step of RPIE, I can develop a plan that is strategic and targeted. Instead of being sidetracked with an array of ideas, my team can stay focused on our goals and objective. When we follow our plans, we are typically successful in our outcomes.
B.A. - Mississippi State University; MPA - University of Georgia
I believe school PR/communications is what I was born to do! One of the biggest decisions a parent can make is where to send their child to school, and it’s an honor to share with our parents the engaging work that their children are doing under the guidance of world-class teachers and leaders. On any given day, in any given school, there are many stories to be told and I take that charge seriously. As school communicators played a key role in COVID-19 communications, storytelling was more important than ever – not only did I share information with parents about our protocols, but I also made over 80 visits to schools last year and told a variety of stories about how students were thriving with both in-person and distance learning options. I also worked with principals to determine best mitigation practices and helped make those pervasive, because positive action must be the foundation of what we are ultimately communicating. School public relations is incredibly complex and I love that each day brings a new challenge.
My greatest school PR success was completing 11 nationally-innovative school communication audits using a process of research, planning, implementation, and evaluation. I am now in phase two of this project and am attending school council meetings to garner feedback from parents about school-level communication and how I can better support the work of their schools. One of the most significant findings is that as students take more ownership of their learning, they also take more ownership in parent communication. Therefore, next steps are to better prepare parents for this transition and to also determine best practices from exemplar teachers and coaches at the secondary level so we can strike the right balance with parents feeling informed and fostering student independence.
My greatest school PR challenge is overcoming rigidity. Like many PR professionals, I am detail-oriented and a self-described perfectionist. It’s a blessing and a curse to see when something is one pixel off, but the greatest challenge I have faced in my 13 years in this field is to learn to be more flexible. I might have an aversion to Comic Sans or Curlz, but it’s not the end of the world if those are a font favorite elsewhere. What’s more important is the bigger picture – staff and parents feeling well-informed and students growing and learning in positive school cultures. Instead of telling someone their website isn’t formatted properly, I now make a 2-3 minute screencast if I think there’s a quick tutorial I can offer to provide ongoing professional learning. By being much more flexible, I have deepened relationships and become better at supporting the most important job that occurs in our school system: teaching.
My favorite part of my job is the relationships. I often say that there is no substitute for showing up, and that’s why I make so many school visits each year. From getting to hold a gorgeous monarch butterfly to watching a vibrant student musical to seeing 3-D printing in action from engineering students, I have witnessed countless unique opportunities, and these experiences are just a small piece of what our students get to take part in each and every day. If I didn’t take the time to form relationships, I wouldn’t know that what students value is knowing that the photos I take may show up in their yearbooks. I wouldn’t know the myriad of annual activities that teachers do across our schools because I wouldn’t have witnessed them firsthand. I wouldn’t know about the families of our principals or what they believe makes their school unique. All of that is invaluable because at the end of the day and at the end of this career, relationships are what will remain – both professionally and personally.
The communication tool I use the most is Canva! I would be a brand ambassador if they asked! I am not very mathematically-minded and it can be challenging for someone with an eye for good design – but not an eye for rulers and gridlines – to be a graphic designer. However, Canva has made it possible and I am able to create aesthetically-pleasing graphics with short turn-around times. I have trained communication ambassadors at our schools how to use it as well. Right after Canva, the tool I most use is iMovie. I am completely self-taught in videography and using iMovie and Canva together has made me someone who can add “videographer” to their list of expertise.