Message from NSPRA NW Regional Vice President

NSPRA NW Regional Vice President and WSPRA member Curtis Campbell recently returned from an NSPRA Board Meeting. Read his update message below and learn about all the things happening on the national level that impact WSPRA members.

Curtis Campbell

Greetings WSPRA friends!

It was great to see many of you at the WSPRA Winter Workshop in Olympia a few weeks ago. I particularly enjoyed the session on developing and promoting a growth mindset. Having and promoting a growth mindset culture is a critical part of our work as school communicators in supporting the success of every student who enters our schools. It also helps me personally continue to be a Mariners fan.

For those of you who were not able to attend the workshop, I hope to see you in Leavenworth in May for the WSPRA Annual Conference or at the NSPRA Annual Seminar in Washington D.C. this July.

I recently returned from attending my second NSPRA Executive Board Meeting. Below are some notes from our meeting that I wanted to share with you.

If you have any questions about NSPRA, becoming a member or need someone to commiserate your Mariner fandom with, feel free to reach out.

Strategic Planning

Board members and NSPRA staff spent a day and a half before the Board meeting in a strategic planning session focused on finding opportunities to grow and build value for NSPRA membership. We reviewed the latest membership survey report, membership data and additional information to better understand the impact of new marketing efforts. A new membership marketing plan will be reviewed at the July 2019 Board meeting. 

New Programs

NSPRA is offering new professional learning opportunities for members and chapter leaders:

  • Chapter Challenges Solved: Free, virtual PD for NSPRA Chapter officers. The first session will be March 22 and will discuss best practices for transitioning to a new treasurer and sponsorship marketing. Registration is open until March 20. All NSPRA chapter officers are invited to participate and are encouraged to email NSPRA Associate Director Melissa Braham at mbraham@nspra.org if they have an idea for or would like to lead a future session.
  • NSPRA Insight: This new, free, virtual PD for NSPRA members in the form of a roundtable discussion featuring NSPRA members and others. The initial NSPRA Insight web conference is scheduled for May 15. The first show’s topic deals with the prepping and onboarding process for welcoming a new superintendent. It will be facilitated by Elise Shelton, Annette Eyman, APR, and Bob Noyed, APR. The recording will be archived and available to members. Look for registration information from NSPRA soon.
  • Communication Review: NSPRA did a soft launch of this new service, designed for small districts (3,500 students or less) that don’t have a school communication professional on staff. The service includes two SCoPE surveys (one each for staff and parents), three virtual focus groups and two interviews for the superintendent and another school leader. The final report gives the results of the surveys, gaps found and 6-8 recommendations to begin implementing a data-driven program. If you know of any small districts that could benefit from this service, please feel free to share and direct them to the NSPRA website.

New Staff

NSPRA welcomed new NSPRA staff members Jennifer Alexander, Manager of Seminar, Partnerships and Programs, and Rebecca Shaw, Communication Manager. NSPRA now has a six-member staff. 

2019 NSPRA Seminar

The Board and staff discussed the progress of Seminar planning, and had a healthy discussion about future Seminars, noting that the Board reviews member feedback when making decisions.

  • Staff is working on finalizing the schedule of sessions. The seminar program is online, and will be updated as more information is finalized. The pre-seminar schedule is finalized, as are the keynote speakers (Kindra Hall and Michele Norris)
  • Members are encouraged to arrive in time to take advantage of all of the networking and learning opportunities. The Chapter Leader meeting begins at 8 am on Sunday and the annual meeting is at 1 pm.
  • The inaugural #K12PR5K run/jog/walk will be held at 6:30 am Sunday. Participants in this informal run will receive a t-shirt for their $25 donation to the NSPRA Foundation. More information will be shared later this spring.
  • The Second Annual Equity Diversity Mixer will be held right before the opening reception. After the success of last year’s mixer, the event is moving to a larger space. All members are invited and encouraged to attend.
  • The #K12PRChat Tweetup will be held Monday.
  • A new venture made possible by a sponsor is the 35 Under 35 Luncheon for this year’s class and will be held Tuesday.
  • NSPRA is working with a new provider in developing the Seminar App to help members plan, organize and maximize their Seminar experience. More information about the app will be shared later this spring.

Barry Gaskins Award Winner

The Board approved the recipient of the award. The winner will be announced in an upcoming NSPRA publication and honored at the 2019 NSPRA Seminar.

Executive Director Contract

The Board approved an extension of Rich Bagin’s contract to run through March 31, 2022.

Board Member Updates

The Board approved Dr. David Sovine of the Frederick County (Va.) Schools as the new Vice President at Large - Superintendent of Schools. The Executive Board Search committee is working to secure eligible candidates to fill the following positions:

  • President-elect (2019 - 2020)
  • Regional Vice President - Southwest (2019 - 2023)
  • Regional Vice President - Mideast (2019 - 2023)
  • Regional Vice President - Northeast (2019 - 2023)

The deadline for all interested members who meet the eligibility requirements to submit nomination materials is April 1, 2019.

Brand Guide 

NSPRA staff worked on developing the NSPRA Brand Guide.

Rubrics of Best Practice

The Board discussed the status of the current rubric in development, Bond/Finance Election Plans and Campaigns. A special shout out to past NSPRA Northwest Region VP Athena Vadnais and WSPRA Past President David Beil for serving on this project team! Board members also reviewed possible topics for the next critical function area.

Scholarships

The Board discussed updating scholarship applications, creating rubrics and putting applications online for next year.

That is all from me for this meeting, but I will look forward to updating you after our July board meeting and seminar. I hope to see many of you there as well! 

Curtis Campbell

Northwest Regional Vice President
National School Public Relations Association
@CurtisfromWA
curtis.campbell@shorelineschools.org
206.393.4412