NSPRA History: 2003-2020

The Leader in School Communication A short history of the National School Public Relations Association

Part 2 2003-2020

Compiled by

Rich Bagin, APR

NSPRA Executive Director Emeritus

Introduction This second addition to the short history of the National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA) attempts to briefly capture some meaningful trends, programming, and directions from 2003 to 2020. It is a companion piece to the short history (1935-2002) compiled by Dr. Ken Muir, a former NSPRA President and volunteer consultant to NSPRA. This latest snapshot showcases the journey taken by NSPRA Board, staff, and members in dealing with the changing nature of the school communication profession and how these leaders dealt with a fluctuating financial economy, the need to view communication as a management function, the work to secure a mortgage-free headquarters, and the effort to provide enhanced professional development opportunities for its members. The growth of annual Seminar each July became a “must participate” function for those who were serious about becoming a stronger professional for their schools.

The narrative for each year ends with a dashboard noting each Seminar’s theme, attendance, and keynoters as well as overall membership counts and the critical financial fund balance.

It was a pleasure to compile this history and difficult not to include more mentions of the meaningful work that so many completed during this 17-year period. Our profession and NSPRA is better off today because of the foundation set by continuing to make NSPRA, The Leader in School Communication.

Rich Bagin, APR

NSPRA Executive Director Emeritus

For a Quick Look 2003 ......................................................................................................................... 2 2004 ......................................................................................................................... 4 2005 ......................................................................................................................... 6 2006 ......................................................................................................................... 8 2007 ....................................................................................................................... 11 2008 .......................................................................................................................13 2009 ...................................................................................................................... 16 2010 ....................................................................................................................... 19 2011 ........................................................................................................................ 22 2012........................................................................................................................ 25 2013 .......................................................................................................................28 2014 ...................................................................................................................... 30 2015 ....................................................................................................................... 32 2016 .......................................................................................................................35 2017 ....................................................................................................................... 37 2018 ...................................................................................................................... 40 2019 ....................................................................................................................... 42 2020 ......................................................................................................................45

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2003 At its March 2003 meeting, the Board appointed Carole Kennedy to her VP at large position, representing the principalship. Carole, a long-time Missouri principal, served as president of the National association of Elementary School Principals and as a principal representative for the U.S. Department of Education. The Board also discussed the content for a new enewsletter aimed at superintendents and noted it should be a little “edgy“ and contain strategic information on big issues.

The Board learned that the National Association of Partners in Education (NAPE) went out of business and Board member Louise Henry recommended contacting past leaders of NAPE to see how NSPRA may serve their future needs. The Board received a rationale for raising dues from $195 to $200, effective in September 2003.

Plans were discussed for the 50th Anniversary Seminar Celebration at the July Seminar in Denver, Colorado. A Saturday evening event from 8 PM to midnight was planned. A 50th anniversary poster was proposed to be distributed and an evening of celebratory videos, presentations and program activities was added to the evening’s festivities.

At its July meeting, the Board approved the criteria for the new Barry Gaskins Mentor Legacy Award created by the Board on a conference-call meeting in June. The Board approved the 2004 budget which included a $90,000 contribution to pay off the NSPRA’s headquarters mortgage.

Based on Board input, the new NSPRA Frontrunners program and selection criteria were approved, with its main purpose to identify and recognize potential national leaders for NSPRA.

At its November 2003 meeting, the Board discussed items dealing with chapters’ hosting of the annual Seminar and the role of business partners in supporting the Seminar.

A draft of Chapter Guidelines for Hosting an NSPRA Seminar was shared, and the Board also reviewed a paper entitled a 2004 Business Sponsorship Program Host Chapter Role and Responsibilities. Both documents were created to clarify NSPRA/Chapter relationships for the national Seminar.

Operationally, the 2003 Annual Report highlighted: 

NSPRA added a second associate director position.

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We offered NSPRA leaders and chapters incentives of $34,000 for scholarships and discounts.

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We launched the new weekly e-newsletter NSPRA This Week.

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We reported that the Seminar 50th Anniversary poster, All I Really Need to Know About School PR, I Learned at the NSPRA Seminar will be distributed at the Denver Seminar.

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NSPRA continued its visibility by exhibiting and offering sessions at the national conventions of AASA, NSBA and NAESP.

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Executive Director Rich Bagin, APR, served as chair of the Education Leaders Consortium (ELC) and served as host and moderator of the AASA Superintendent of Year program at the National Press Club in Washington, D.C.

2003 Membership

1921

Fund Balance

$439,008

Denver Seminar General Sessions

A Leaders Vision: Creating a Compelling Future in Chaotic Times

Steve Farber

Education Demographics: What Every Leader Should Know Today . . .The Writing Is Really on the Wall

Harold Hodgkinson

The Communication and Community Relations Realities of the No Child Left Behind Act

Panel:

Donald Martin, Timothy Waters, Patricia Chlauber, Larry Wiget

Seminar Theme

50 Years of Learning, Leading and Lasting Friendship Scaling New Heights to Conquer New Challenge

Seminar Registration

524

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2004 At its March 2004 meeting, the Board appointed Dr. Ken Bird, superintendent of the Westside Community Schools in Omaha, Nebraska, as its next VP at large representing superintendents.

The Board also approved investing no more than $50,000 from NSPRA reserves for the new advocacy campaign, the Communication Accountability Project (CAP).

The Board discussed the preferred action to take with NSPRA chapters who did not meet their responsibilities of cash flow reports and did not maintain at least 10 members. Letters were to be sent to those chapters that did not meet the requirements. It was also announced that NSPRA dues starting in September 2005 would be $205 per annum.

At its July 2004 meeting, the Board further discussed the parameters of the new CAP initiative and announced completed products: 

Unlocking Sensational Service: Tools for Tapping the People Power in Your Schools and Tips, and

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Tactics for Fundraising for Your Schools.

We also announced that we received a $1,000,000 learning contract from the Kettering Foundation focusing on public engagement, a $10,000 grant from McGraw Hill for developing Communication Matters for Leading Superintendents, and a $2,000 grant from Sodexho to offer breakfasts to superintendents attending the Nashville Seminar.

Operationally, the 2004 Annual Report highlighted: 

NSPRA launched the e-newsletter Communication Matters for Leading Superintendents, an idea drawn from strategic planning sessions to reach and engage more school superintendents to realize the communication is management function in their schools.

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NSPRA also paid down its office mortgage by $50,000 and refinanced its office condo loan, cutting monthly payments by 50%.

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In November 2004, the Board and staff further planned elements of its advocacy campaign for the Communication Accountability Project (CAP.) A task force was assembled to pinpoint the research needed before deciding on the activities for the program.

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Policy revisions were also made on the topics of “Campaigning for Office,” the “Accreditation Committee” based on changes prompted by joining the Universal Accreditation Board (UAB), and the “Finance Committee” among others.

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2004 Membership

1954

Fund Balance

$480,069

Nashville Seminar General Sessions

Conquer Every School PR Mountain

Bertice Berry

New Approaches to Those Tough Political and Stressful Situations

Tim Guard

Seminar Theme

Creating Advocates … One Clear Voice for Our Schools

Seminar Registration

617

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2005 At the March 2005 meeting, discussion ensued on the role of the minority vice-president, which called for further discussion and research at future meetings. Additional discussion focused on the ways to reach more superintendents and the current and future data base management needs of NSPRA. The Board discussed proposed activities for the CAP project and continued its support to work with the executive director and possible funders to complete the work of the project.

At the same time, for a project called Leadership NSPRA, we also focused on identifying NSPRA leaders and providing professional development activities for them in the years ahead.

In July 2005, the Board reviewed the recommendations for the bylaws’ changes including related changes to the Minority Vice President’s functions and the allowance for electronic ballots.

The Board requested a new incentive program for staff based on a process that enhanced NSPRA’s ability to attract and maintain top-notch staff when fiscal years allow the enhancements to be implemented.

The Board also appointed Thomas Gentzel as an incoming vice president at large representing school Boards. Gentzel was the current executive director of the Pennsylvania School Boards Association and later became the executive of the National School Boards Association.

Operationally, the 2005 Annual Report noted: 



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NSPRA published 2 new products:  Mastering E-Newsletters: Helping you and your school get the most out of e-communication by author Ed Moore, APR, and  Making Parent Communication Effective and Easy by Rich Bagin, APR. Minority Vice President Elizabeth Ackerman and Executive Director Rich Bagin, APR, attended a national PR Coalition Summit in New York on the topic of increasing diversity in the public relations profession.

In November 2005, the Board approved revised policies on the role of the vicepresidents, and specifically focused on a new role for the Vice-President for Diversity Engagement (formerly the Minority Vice-President). Other policies revised included the criteria for the President’s Award.

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It was also reported that the NTI agree to a yearly sponsorship of Communication Matters and that NTI, AASA and NSPRA are collaborating on a new awards program for superintendents and communication professionals

2005 Membership

1,990

Fund Balance

$574,766

Boston Seminar General Sessions

Peak Performance… From Ordinary to Extraordinary

Robert Stevenson

Stop Me Before I Strangle Someone: Managing Stress in Today’s Crazy, Changing World

Meagan Johnson

Proving Why Strong School Communications Is a Must

Jim Dunn

Seminar Theme

Strong Schools, Strong Communities: Advancing Reliable, Credible and Accountable Communication

Seminar Registration

693

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2006 At its March 2006, the Board was hosted at Sodexho Headquarters in Gaithersburg, Maryland, for long-range planning and further development of its Communication Accountability Project planning. After 2 days of planning ended, the regular March Board meeting began on Friday afternoon and continued through Saturday.

Items at the Board meeting included approving revised policies on the nomination process for the vice president-at-large positions on the executive board as well as new expense reimbursement for meals being raised to $50 per day.

The Board also approved revisions to professional development activities dealing with regional meetings. The new approved policy noted that regional seminars must receive the approval of the Executive Director and must not be held in the same region as the NSPRA Seminar during the same calendar or fiscal year.

The Board approved outcomes of long-range planning, stating NSPRA Goals and Objectives in addition to refining NSPRA Beliefs.

Every 10 years, NSPRA bylaws call for the need to assess the realignment of NSPRA regions.

Based on a board-member task force recommendation, the Board moved the Illinois Chapter from the Mideast region to the North Central region.

Executive Director Rich Bagin, APR, announced that NSPRA has been invited to become a member of the Learning First Alliance (LFA), an umbrella organization representing 11 national education leadership organizations. Bagin recommended participating in the group because it would become a pivotal access point to meet regularly with the perceived leaders of public education. The annual cost of participation was $10,270, the lowest membership tier available as it is based on the membership size of the participating organization. The Board approved participation in the LFA. Discussion of a possible dues increase was also considered. Staff indicated that a $5 increase was sought according to NSPRA policy. Discussion by Board members ensued concerning CAP activities, LFA participation and other items, Further discussion culminated with the Board approving a new rate of $225 from the current of $205. The effective date was September 1, 2006.

The Board also discussed the eligibility for Board members’ participation in NSPRA awards and contests. There was consensus that during their terms, current Board members should not be eligible to be nominated nor should they nominate individuals for the Gaskins or Grossman Awards. No consensus was reached about board members’ participation in other NSPRA contests like the Gold Medallion, Golden Achievement, and Publication Awards programs.

At is July 2006 Board meeting, the Board revised policies on awards and recognitions for accomplishments and also created a new policy for a memorial scholarship fund.

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The Board discussed and approved chapter development program changes including: 

Increasing the VP expense allowance to $1,200 per year along with a summary/response on the results of the work with the chapter.

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A Chapter Cookbook project to be contracted out for completion in next fiscal year.

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Three audio conferences for chapter leaders.

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Eliminating the 50% Seminar discount for chapter leaders.

At the November 2006 meeting, the Board approved 2 amended policies on employee compensation and end-of-year financial stipends for staff to enable NSPRA to attract, motivate, and keep highly qualified staff. The goal was to make NSPRA’s compensation package externally competitive, internally equitable, and fiscally responsible.

In a discussion of the additional funds being added to the reserve funds from the profit made during the recent years, the Board authorized paying off the balance of the office condo mortgage (approximately $19,000).

Operationally, the 2006 Annual Report offered these items: 

Published a second Communication Accountability Program (CAP) document entitled, How Strong Communication Contributes to Student and School Success: Parent and Family Involvement.

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Continued to give back to NSPRA leaders and chapters as we offered more than $19,000 of incentives, scholarships, and discounts in 2005-06.

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Increased memberships to a new high of 1,990 members.

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Set a record for the largest Seminar ever in NSPRA history with 800 attendees in Chicago.

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Launched a new awards program highlighting leadership communication and technology programs with NTI’s Connect-ED and AASA. Three school districts received $10,000 awards in the first year of this competition.

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Launched a new award with AASA and Connect-ED for a comprehensive Communication program with the winning school district to be honored at the AASA Convention and the NSPRA Seminar.

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Established a superintendents’ Advisory Council with the help of Dr. Ken Bird, NSPRA’s vice-president at large representing superintendents.

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2006 Membership

1,945

Fund Balance

$755,068

Chicago Seminar General Sessions

The Art of Vision

Erik Wahl

Juggling Elephants? Be the Ringmaster of Your Work and Life

Jones Loflin

Out of Touch… Out of Business

Gary Marx

Seminar Theme

Delivering the Promise: Communicating for Student, School and Community Success

Seminar Registration

800

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2007 In March of 2007, the Board revised policy 305.2 noting that NSPRA executive director must be accredited in public relations or will successfully complete the accreditation process within 18 months of being hired by the Association. The Board also revised policy 570.1 dealing with the compensation plan noting that the executive director will include an average percentage salary increase for staff in the annual budged proposal to the Board. The Board is to establish the salary increment for the executive director. The executive director will establish the salary increments for all other employees.

The Board’s report noted a $5 increase of membership to $230 effective September 1, 2007.

Attending the first Learning First Alliance (LFA) national education summit in Washington, D.C., with 400 other national leaders was: 

President Bob Noyed, APR;

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President-elect Marsha Chappelow, APR;

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Board Member VP Tom Gentzel;

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Executive Director Rich Bagin, APR; and

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Associate Director Karen Kleinz, APR.

It was projected that future projects will be forthcoming from LFA based on the results of the summit.

The Board discussed the role of chapters hosting a Tuesday night event as CHESPRA seeded the discussion with a request for compensation beyond the perks, discounts and hotel accommodations for a team from the local chapter. The chapter also requested clarification on expectation of proposed events held on Tuesday evenings of the Seminar.

At its full Board meeting, the Board approved a revision to Policy 410.7 dealing with the reserve funds noting that the reserve funds should be equal to at least 6 months of operation costs and that the funds can be used for special projects recommended by the executive director and approved by the Board. It was noted that in emergency situations, the executive committee of the Board could approve those projects.

It was noted that the Board should come up with 5 “talking points” from every Board meeting and that it should be submitted to chapter leaders and the full board for its distribution. Board member J. Marie Riche recommended the practice and implemented it after their July meeting.

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Operationally, the 2007 annual report noted: 

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Published 2 Communication Accountability Project (CAP) documents:  Voice on the Frontline: Superintendents Talk About the Value of School Communication and  Supporting Students, Supporting Communication: Helping Others See the Communication-Achievement Link.

Developed a new Chapter Leadership Guidebook outlining the best practices of chapters and offered 3 audio conferences for chapter leaders.

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Granted more than 800 awards as part of NSPRA ‘s awards programs.

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Implemented new database membership relationship software and staff training on its implementation.

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Launched 2 new products:

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 School Public Relations: Building Confidence in Education and  Election Success: Proven Strategies for Public Finance Campaigns.

Developed a new Owner’s Manual for members to get the most out of their NSPRA membership.

2007 Membership

1937

Fund Balance

$812,348

Phoenix Seminar General Sessions

Helping Students Achieve: Transforming Our Schools in a Time of Unprecedented Change and Division

Constance Rice

A Futurist’s Outlook: What We Need to Know About the Forces Re-Shaping Our Schools

Lowell Catlett

30 Years in the Saddle: Lessons Learned on the PR Trail

Steve Knagg

Seminar Theme

Communication: Access, Accountability, Achievement

Seminar Registration

718

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2008 In March 2008, a strategic planning session was held before the March 2008 Board meeting.

Vice-president at Large Ken Bird, superintendent of the Westside Community Schools in Omaha, hosted both meetings in Omaha, Nebraska.

At the Board meeting, the Board revised bylaws dealing with the addition of using electronic ballots. The change provided for a membership vote later in the fiscal year. The change also included a process to deal with a tied vote on an election because the last presidential election was decided by 1 vote. The Board also approved a revision to it goals and objectives.

The Board increased dues to be effective in September 2008. The new rate of $240 per year was to help support new website features as well as a partnership with the Education Research Service and other association for use of it e-Knowledge portal.

After some discussion, the Board decided not to implement a career/ladder coaching program because it was not feasible with staff capacity or the use of volunteers. The Board also decided to focus on Seminar cities where the locations consistently pull strong numbers and had a high drivability and easy transportation factors. The Board noted that moving the Seminar into distinct areas over 3 years would create new opportunities for sponsors to help chapters and NSPRA with hosting priorities.

Some outcomes of the strategic planning session included: 

Increasing the use of NSPRA’s website to deliver more content and services for members.

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With CAP entering its 5th year, it was felt that CAP is no longer just a product, but also a program, a division of NSPRA.

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The planning sessions also asked the question, “What projects or activities should be stopped or phased out?’’ The answer was to eliminate the 30-year practice of offering the Chapter Blue Ribbon & Distinguished Chapter Awards.

Staff was instructed to work with chapter leaders to build another recognition program that is not as labor-intensive for chapters.

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As part of its CAP effort, NSPRA published:  Eleven Tips for Savvy Superintendents and  Six Tips for Smart School Boards. (AASA requested the tips for savvy superintendent publication to be included in its back-to-school feature offered to all its members.)

The November 2008 meeting reflected on the negative national economy beginning a downturn and what it means for members and NSPRA. Executive Director Rich Bagin, APR,

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noted that the impact on associations is normally about a year later than the immediate hit felt by the citizens in the impacted area.

NSPRA is reducing hours of the back-office service position and recommended that staff increases be cut to 50% with the remaining distributed if NSPRA’s finances remain healthy throughout the fiscal year.

The Board requested that the executive director plan for a remote meeting in March 2009 and to plan to assist for some Board members to attend the July Board meeting in San Francisco if their local school districts cannot afford this year’s Seminar.

Because a 3rd keynote speaker was yet to be selected for San Francisco, it was recommended to cut that position to save funds and come up with a restructured Wednesday format.

Reports were given on 2 chapter-related items: The first on the focus group of Seminar host chapter responsibilities. The consensus was that the Board should not set limitations, but to leave it up the chapter on how much they may want to do. The second dealt with the new approach to chapter recognition programs. It was still being developed but planned to be rolled out at the San Francisco Seminar’s Leaders Meeting.

Operationally, the 2008 Annual Report noted: 

Published 2 CAP publications, Eleven Tips for Savvy Superintendents and Six Tips for Smart School Boards,

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Two additional reports, Leading Superintendents Place Highest Value on Communication and What Leading Superintendents Say about Communication were published as Network articles.

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Continued a series of 3 chapter audio conferences:

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 The ABCs of Chapter Leadership,  Punch Up Your Chapter Programs, and  Chapter Strategic Planning: Setting Goals for Results.

Posted more than 70 job opportunities on the NSPRA website.

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Launched 3 new products:

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 School PR Research Primer: Practical Ideas for Getting Data, Driving Decisions and Empowering Programs  The School Communication Workshop Kit and  Scenario Collection III: Communicating with a Diverse Audience.

Hired replacement and new staff members because the number of staff has grown to 9.5 members.

NSPRA Executive Director Rich Bagin, APR, served as the Chair of the Board of the Educational Research Service.

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2008 Membership

1,814

Fund Balance

$836,635

Washington, DC / Arlington, VA Seminar General Sessions

Your Schools: Your Responsibility, Your Future: Quality Education Takes All of Us

Wendy Puriefoy

Navigation Our Future with A Whole New Mind

Dan Pink

I’m Here for H.E.L.P.

Riney Jordan

Seminar Theme

The Power of Transparency and Integrity in Communication

Seminar Registration

794

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2009 To cut expenses, the March 2009 board meeting was held by audio conference with only the President and executive committee at NSPRA headquarters while the remainder of the Board connected through a conference call.

The Board appointed Matt Leighninger, executive director of the Deliberative Democracy Consortium, to the position of VP at Large for Civic Engagement & Deliberative Democracy for a 2-year term beginning in October 2009.

The Board also approved a revised policy 201.15 on Conflict of Interest and created 2 new policies on Record Retention (#460) and Anti-Fraud and Whistleblower (#590). All policies now comply with Federal regulations recently adopted by Congress.

The faltering U.S. economy is taking its toll on local districts and NSPRA. It was projected that the finances may get worse before getting better. The executive director again reviewed the impact of its retirement program with NEA as it is projected the fees for the program would approach 26% of NSPRA’s payroll. The executive director warned that this could lead to bankruptcy of NSPRA and others in the pension programs who are not members of the National Education Association (NEA) such as the National Association of Elementary School Principals and the Education Research Service.

Staffing cuts included rolling back the customer service/operations position to 18 hours with no benefits and changing the senior associate position to a 3-day communication consultant.

NSPRA began a Budget Communication Clearinghouse on its website to share helpful resources from around the country to help members through this rough financial period. The Board also announced a new audio blog, NSPRA’s Take Ten, on timely topics, and a new web feature, Back Story highlighting controversial incidents and how a district handled them.

After reviewing the Learning and Liberty and Carothers’ Awards in the past 3-5 years, the Board decided to offer the Learning and Liberty Award for use on a limited basis and permanently retired the Carothers’ Award.

The Board also approved a new Chapter Recognition program, the Mark of Distinction program, for all chapters to be rolled out for the Charlotte 2010 Seminar.

NSPRA will also be celebrating its 75th Anniversary at the Charlotte Seminar and a special committee of the Board would collect ideas for the celebration. The Board decided to move the Gold Medallion awards to the Annual Meeting from the closing banquet and moved the host chapter welcome to the opening reception on Sunday evening.

The July 2009 Board meeting was held at the Westin St. Francis Hotel in San Francisco, and the Board continued to wrestle with the pension program’s increased demand for more funding.

Consequently, the NSPRA Board officially withdrew from the NEA pension program and authorized a new program to be adopted as soon as possible.

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The Board also requested staff to do as much as possible to protect the 4 staff employees who were vested in the NEA program and to do all that is feasible to assist them in the new program.

Based on the member survey, the Board decided to offer an electronic survey other than the print document used in previous years. Plans were also discussed for the 75th Anniversary items including the anniversary publication, Wit and Wisdom.

On staffing, the executive director provided an update that staffing has been reduced from 9 to 7.5 during the year. A graduate school intern and consultants will be used to fill the gap as needed in the months ahead.

The CAP Committee is preparing to implement a survey on finance elections that shows the correlations between passage and the existence of a year-round communication program.

Executive Board elections will be conducted electronically this year. Technology changed operations as the membership directory will become an online publication, the Network newsletter is scheduled to become an e-newsletter next January, and NSPRA Counselor will also be published as an online newsletter.

At its November 2009 meeting, the continued impact of the recession and the weak economy really tightened NSPRA’s operations in the last few months of 2009. Clarification was reached on the cost of pulling from the NEA pension fund and it was recommended that NSPRA remain in the program until December 31st, 2009.

NSPRA worked with the National Association of Elementary School Principals, the Educational Research Service, and a lawyer to jointly settle with NEA. Negotiations began on agreeing to a required liability payment for removal from the program.

In addition, NSPRA was now down to 6.5 staff members, no raises were given, furlough days were implemented, and the executive director reduced his salary to assist with the bottom line. Audits were still active, but the associate director and executive director attempted to complete the audits with little outside assistance to keep audit funds with NSPRA. The annual audit of the association praised leadership with managing its first deficit year since the late 1980s and early 1990. The Board indicated it would do all it could to help staff financials to rebound when the association again rebounds from this era. The audit report showed a deficit for the year of $195,894, which included major liabilities to the NEA pension fund.

The Board also approved new policies on Sponsorship/Partnerships and Resource Development (410.)

The elimination of the Seminar’s Wednesday keynoter will be replaced with a roundtable coffee session promoting more interaction among members and 2-hour action labs were introduced for the first time at the Seminar.

The PR Power Hours were revamped: 5 would be webinars while 4 remained as audio conferences. NSPRA Executive Director announced a new blog, Always Something, to soon begin a leadership staple for NSPRA.

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Operationally the 2009 annual reported noted: 

Created the Budget Communication Clearinghouse to help member districts pull through the weak budget years. Published Communicating Your Way Through a Budget Crisis to launch the new feature.

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Launched a new feature, NSPRA Counselor online, offering expert advice from NSPRA veterans on topics of interest.

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Sent an H1N1 (Swine Flu) Alert the weekend of the initial media coverage to help fortify members’ responses to the media.

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Introduced Take Ten, a new audio blog for members on nitty-gritty topics.

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Offered Back Stories, an approach for a member district to give background on how it handled controversial situations.

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Offered 9 Power Hours with 5 webinars for the first time. Provided 2 new books for members:

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 Leaders as Communicators, and Diplomats (Executive Rich Bagin was a coauthor) and  The ABCs of Strategic Communication.

Launched the new completely revised Complete Crisis Communication Management Manuel for Schools.

2009 Membership

1,632

Fund Balance

$518,634

San Francisco Seminar General Sessions

Follow a Compass, Not a Map — Leadership in a World of Shifting Values

Steve Donohue

Salsa, Soul, and Spirit; The Power of Diversity

Juan Bordas

No Challenge Left Behind

Paul Houston

Seminar Theme

Communication: The Bridge to Education Success

Seminar Registration

490

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2010 The March 2010 Board meeting used the conference-call format to save on expenses. School districts are still facing difficult economic times as is NSPRA, even with eliminating the NEA pension fund which previously cost NSPRA $13,000 a month. The search for a new 403 (b) program was underway, but the small size of the NSPRA staff made it difficult to find a provider interested in our account.

The July 2010 Board meeting was held at the Westin, Charlotte, North Carolina, the location of the NSPRA Seminar.

NSPRA Executive Director Rich Bagin, APR, noted that a new 401K plan has been secured by NSPRA for its employees. The American Funds plan started on July 1, 2010, and it included a “safe harbor” contribution of 3% for all employees and a matching plan of up to 4% which becomes fully vested after 6 years.

During discussion of NSPRA’s fiscal situation and adoption of the 2010-2011 budget, it was noted that NSPRA’s fund balance of $527,536 combined with recently paying off the office condo mortgage, that projections indicate we are still headed for a difficult financial year.

Expenses had been cut by $111,000 and staffing is now down to 5.5 staff members.

The Board also recommended bylaws amendments that would allow the Board to affirm by acclamation uncontested candidates for Executive Board and eliminating the provision for running from the floor at the Seminar. These and other membership items would be voted by NSPRA members in August.

Board member John Merrill informed the Board that as of December 31st, he would leave his Tuscaloosa County system and pursue political office. His resignation was effective September 30, 2010.

The CAP update noted 2 research projects were underway: 

The first was a correlation study between successful finance elections and the presence of a comprehensive communication effort.



The second dealt with a new partnership survey with K12 Insight and participating member school districts on communication flow in local school districts.

It was noted that the last dues increase was in 2008, and that fiscal realities indicate that it was time to consider another increase to stabilize the NSPRA finances. A $10 increase to $250 was to be implemented in September 2010.

The November 2010 Board meeting held in Rockville, Maryland, included making the VP atLarge position for Superintendents a standing office of the Board.

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Staffing remained lean as 3 positions had been cut in the past year and the plan was to only replace 1 of them once budget numbers indicate its feasibility. The executive director acknowledged the work of Vice President Nicole Kirby, APR, for her assistance in managing NSPRA’s Twitter and Facebook accounts.

For the first time in recent history, the Charlotte Seminar did not meet its hotel sleeping room pickup and penalties were assessed on NSPRA. Through negotiations, we were able to reduce the $38,000 attrition penalty to $13,000, but we also negotiated holding the November 2011 Board meeting in Charlotte to offset the fiscal penalty.

NSPRA also announced that through negotiations with the lawyer representing NSPRA, NAESP and ERS, we reached a settlement on the NEA retirement plan. NSPRA opted for a monthly payment over the next 8 years which could also be paid off early with no penalties. The amount of the settlement was required to not be disclosed to anyone except the Board and its financial advisors.

A survey developed by the Superintendent Services Task Force on services to small school district was sent to 300 superintendents. Its purpose was to see which services would be of interest to them and the value they placed on those services. Less than 10% of the superintendents replied.

It was also noted that NSPRA Executive Director, Rich Bagin, APR is now chair of the Learning First Alliance, which then consisted of 18 leading education associations.

Operationally, the 2010 annual report highlighted: 

Converted Network to an e-newsletter and also brought the membership directory online to the NSPRA website.



Initiated Always Something, a blog by Executive Director Rich Bagin, APR.



Published 2 NSPRA Counselors with a special 75th anniversary edition featuring past President Bill Banach, APR, on the key leadership steps to take during an economic downturn.



Published the 75th Anniversary edition of the Wit and Wisdom of PR Success.



Published a 75th Anniversary Series in e-Network.



With Rowman and Littlefield Education jointly published, How to Market Your School.

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2010 Membership

1,610

Fund Balance

497,935

Charlotte Seminar General Sessions

The Ring in the Rubble: Dig Your Way Through Change and Find Your Next Golden Opportunity

Gary Bradt

Schools Cannot Do It Alone: The Unprecedented Importance of School PR Professionals in the Effort to Increase Student Success

Jamie Vollmer

Seminar Theme

Embracing Change with Strategic, Powerful Communication

Seminar Registration

478

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2011 At its March 2011 meeting in Rockville, the Board discussed and approved a change in its committee structure. Traditional committees and task forces would be replaced with a limited number of project teams. The ongoing standing committees (EBSC, Accreditation, Audit and Teller) would continue to perform as structured.

Each project team was to be co-led by an Executive Board member and an NSPRA member who will be responsible for keeping their team on task and on deadline. Projects will be designed to support NSPRA’s strategic goals. The Board and executive director may determine specific projects and members may also suggest projects for consideration subject to Board approval. The first Project Team would attempt to “benchmark” effective communication programs in various size school districts.

The executive director noted that most education associations are running about 25-30% fiscally behind previous years because of the weak economy. Outside funders (partners) helped to make up the difference for NSPRA. It was also noted that future monthly fiscal presentations will include the unfunded liability of more than $135,000 to the NEA Pension Fund. NSPRA will be making monthly payments for the next 8 years to pay off that debt.

The executive director reported that 102 districts committed to participate in the K12Insight/CAP Survey dealing with the communication flow in local school districts. Plans call for the compiled results to be completed in May and then released at the San Antonio Seminar and to the general members in August.

At its July meeting in San Antonio, Texas, the Board received the preliminary report of the survey findings completed by K12Insight with the 50 participating districts who worked with NSPRA and K12Insight on this project. Each district received its individual results and NSPRA received a compiled account of all 50 districts. K12Insight estimated its in-kind contribution with a market value of $500,000.

It was also noted that the Seminar’s Wednesday morning session would again offer a caffeinated connection dialogue because of its popularity in its initial offering at the last Seminar.

Thanks to the leadership of immediate past South Central VP Nicole Kirby, APR, a member blog on using technology in school PR will begin during the next school year. Nicole Kirby has recruited 6 additional members to develop the ambitious weekly blog.

It was also announced that a new 35/35 feature will become a reality in the next school year so younger members can see more members like themselves as part of NSPRA. The Board also discussed a recommendation from the executive director to begin looking at alternative communication audit possibilities for use by smaller school districts.

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Stan Alleyne, nominated for NSPRA VP of diversity engagement discussed a possible name change of the position and set its function as a resource in cultural communication to help members deal with cultural diversity. Stan proposed working with executive director Rich Bagin, APR, to develop a new role description and to bring it to the Board for discussion at its March meeting.

The executive director noted that Board members would receive a 50% discount on Seminar registration beginning with the Chicago 2012 Seminar and he also noted that ERS has announced that it is going out of business and that NSPRA will pick up the contract for producing the Resources for Planning the School Calendar in the next year.

Operationally, the Annual Report noted: 



Launched 2 project teams:  The Future Focus Project Team was charged with looking at new strategies for the Board to consider and  The Benchmarking Project Team was to develop a benchmarking tool for members.

Published the Grassroots Organizing Toolkit authored by immediate Past President Ron Koehler, APR. It was NSPRA’s first downloadable kit, free to NSPRA members.



Launched a new weekly blog, NSPRA: Social School Public Relations.



Developed a partnership with NAESP to provide 6 issues of PRincipal Communicator to 23,000 principals.



Launched a 35/35 initiative highlighting the work of NSPRA’s younger members.



For the first time, participated in 4 Education Talk Radio Shows, an internetbased education audio blog on varied education topics.

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2011 Membership

1,502

Fund Balance

$362,680

San Antonio Seminar General Sessions

Gutsy PR! Timeless Choices for Building a Brand of Leadership and Accountability

Jackie Freiberg

Crucial Conversations About America’s Schools

John Draper

Seminar Theme

Creating Confidence in Our Schools

Seminar Registration

502

1.

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2012 At the March 2012 Board meeting in Rockville, Maryland, the Board approved a third Project Team to focus on Diversity Engagement. The Board team leader is Stan Alleyne, current Vice President for Diversity Engagement.

The Board also approved a Commitment to Service Agreement for all current Board members and those running for office to sign as it outlines the duties and commitments of Executive Board members.

Progress on NSPRA’s Benchmarking Project Team noted that the first task would include the areas of: 

a comprehensive communication program,



internal communication, and



parent communication.

NSPRA also contracted with Past President Sandy Cokeley, APR, to help develop the framework and next steps. SchoolMessenger sponsored the work of the project team.

The July 2012 Board meetings held before the Chicago Seminar began with extending the executive director’s contract and restored the voluntary salary and benefit cuts made by the executive director during the past 2 weak budget years.

The Board also approved 2 policies based on discussion at its March meeting: 

The first approved the Commitment to Service Agreement for Board members and Board candidates, and



The second was the revised job description for the VP of Diversity Engagement.

The executive director also noted that a dues increase of $10 was needed based on business needs beginning in the 2012-2013 school year. The new rate was now $260. The last increase was in the 2009-2010 fiscal year.

The Future Focus Project Team update covered chapter involvement and relations calling for more frequent email communication with chapters and transforming the Chapter Leadership Guidebook into an online document.

Team members focusing on NSPRA capacity discussed succession planning and adding another associate director position. It was noted that the addition of another senior position was too costly as this time and that NSPRA should continue contracting with senior consultants when needed.

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The Diversity Engagement Project team noted it was working on a toolkit on diversity as well as areas such as strategies for engaging/welcoming families, improving cultural competency and more.

At its November 2012 meeting in Rockville, the Board agreed to President Joe Krumm’s Board Meeting Ground Rules to be used at all future meetings: 1. Reflect from a local and national perspective for NSPRA (with an understanding of NSPRA as a business).

2. Check your assumptions (Ask questions to build understanding).

3. What’s said in Rockville, stays in Rockville (No back-door conversations or disseminating confidential/critical Board conversations).

4. Acknowledge that this is a working Board.

5. Aspire to using Interest-Based Strategies (IBS) in discussions to focus on the “why” rather than the “how.”

6. Honor the BS flag (when released by Elise!) to wrap up a comment or discussion when it has gone off track or become repetitious.

7. Have fun.

8. Respect time.

The Board discussed the area of focus for the next VP at-large appointment. Discussion considered 35/35 candidates or a candidate from Canada. It was decided that the candidates should have expertise in all areas of e-communication.

Updates and future action assignments were made on the topics of succession planning, the diversity engagement toolkit and the benchmarking project.

An update was noted on the Presidents Council fundraising project for foundation scholarships with $2,295 being raised by past presidents. The Board also discussed and approved moving the Gold Medallion Award presentation back to the banquet as it had been moved to the annual meeting.

The executive director announced that this year we will work with a national network for community education and the foundation for community education to review ways that community educators can be involved at the NSPRA Seminar. The community education association went out of business in the immediate past because of budget problems created by the weak economy.

NSPRA’s Annual Report noted: 

Launched NSPRA’s Common Core Communication Network on the NSPRA website with over 90 items to better build understanding for the Common Core Standards.



Participated in the NBC Network’s Education Nation Summit in New York City with other leading education groups.

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

Developed a new Diversity Communication Toolkit.



Developed a partnership with ParentLink to produce NSPRA’s first official app for the San Diego Seminar and for potential year-round use.

2012 Membership

1505

Fund Balance

$454,160

Chicago Seminar General Sessions

Why Satire Is Often the Only Reasonable Response to the Times in Which We Live

Peter Sagal

Communication Leadership at Its Best

C.J. Huff

Seminar Theme

Sharing the Best, Latest, and Most Effective Practices in School Communication

Seminar Registration

628

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2013 At the November 2013 Board meeting, the Board approved that the next VP at large position should deal with communication and technology. A preliminary job description was discussed with some “future focus” report items added to the position. In addition, it was recommended that the position be called the VP of Communication Technology and Innovation. The Board approved those additions.

The Board approved a new adjusted budget to include making the March Board meeting an in-person meeting in Rockville at the cost of $7,500 to be covered by increased revenue from completing communication audits.

A Common Core communication project was discussed. Originally, the Pearson Foundation had indicated a grant of $130,000 over 2 years, but then reduced the funding to a total of $30,000. The Board was asked to provide their thoughts on what the project should include.

The area of retention marketing was discussed, and regional vice presidents were asked to individually connect with expired member to see if they could be persuaded to renew. A system was developed to provide the regional VPs with the info they need to complete this task.

The Board approved developing a 60th Seminar Anniversary featuring the theme NSPRA Members Know. Past President Jim Dunn, APR, is spearheading the project and the poster will be given to all Seminar participants. The Board also approved participation with Dr. John Draper in a new nonprofit entitled Public Schools That Work and approved a resolution to support this new group.

Board members were asked to read the new book, The End of Membership as We Know It, and to come to the meeting with 3 insights from the book. Groups were formed to further focus on segments of the book and the ramifications for NSPRA to recruit new members.

At its July meeting, the Board appointed Evelyn McCormack as the new VP at-Large for Communication Technology and Innovation for a term of 2013-2015. The Board also approved restoring 2 years of lost annuity payments to the executive director during the past 2 lean financial years. The Board also accepted a bid from Parent Link to develop a Seminar app for no cost to the association.

The executive director reported on the Common Core Communication Network launched in May2013 and provided more than 80 resources for members dealing with Common Core communication.

As a follow up to the discussion on the book study dealing with members, the Board recommended that NSPRA grow superintendent involvement and resources for them, show

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relevance with a benefits matrix, develop faster response to crises in the filed among other items for consideration.

The Board also received the new copy of the Diversity Communication Tool Kit final draft as well as the first edition of the Rubrics of Practice and Suggested Measures for 3 areas: 

Comprehensive planned communications,



Internal communications, and



Parent family communications.

The new Communication e-kit for Superintendents was shared and it will be released in August.

From the 2013 Annual Report: 

NSPRA implemented a partnership with the National Association of Elementary Principals for 6 issues of NSPRA’s Principal Communicator being sent to 23,000 principals 6 times a year.



NSPRA launched its Common Core Communication Network with more than 90 resources for members, produced Rubrics of Practice and Suggested Measures as part of NSPRA’s Benchmarking project.



Participated in the NBC Network Education Nation in New York and launched a new Diversity Communication Toolkit.

2013 Membership

1,535

Fund Balance

$514,330

San Diego Seminar General Sessions

Now and Next: Trends Among Parents, Teachers, Students and Communities

Rebecca Ryan

We Really Can’t Do It Alone

Jean Johnson

Seminar Theme

60 Years of Learning the Best, Latest and Most Effective Practices in School Communication

Seminar Registration

678

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2014 A special conference call Board meeting was held in January 2014, to act on 2 recommendations from the Board’s budget sub-committee. After reviewing the previous year’s budget results, the committee recommended adding $1,500 to the 401K accounts of Tom Jones, Elaine Willis and Karen Kleinz, APR. NSPRA withdrew from its NEA defined-benefit pension program when continuation in the program was far too expensive for NSPRA budget.

The Board also approved a second recommendation to allocate $10,000 to “buy-down” the balance owed by NSPRA on the NEA Pension Liability loan of $85,599.

The Board at its March 2014 meeting discussed 2 books as their book study project: 

The first was Contagious: Why Things Catch On by Jonah Berger. The Board talked about the importance of word-of-mouth, social currency and triggers leading to action.



The second book was Strength Finder 2.0 and Board member Julie Zwahr recorded board member and executive director findings into a spreadsheet to share with full Board.

To help with marketing with superintendents, the Board offered 12 memberships for superintendent, if the superintendents were willing to provide statements on the advocacy of public education, complete interviews for publication videos for social media and more.

On the topic of courageous conversations, the Board discussed NSPRA’s relationship with charter schools, charters as members as well as the concept of dual membership where you need to be both an NSPRA and chapter member to be a member of NSPRA. Further discussion was postponed until the July meeting.

NSPRA launched its All In for Public Education Web Feature in July and continued to seek items by members work on this important topic.

The Board continued its discussion on Charter Schools with mixed positions on whether charter schools should be accepted as members or what NSPRA policies should say about charters. It was noted that that the road ahead may be a “Big Tent” philosophy. The Executive Director noted more research was needed to learn how other associations are handling charter schools as members in their associations. On the topic of dual membership where you have to be a member of NSPRA and a chapter to join, the Board noted dual membership is not feasible at this time. NSPRA needs to continue to design marketing to capture more NSPRA members from it chapters.

The Board also discussed its book study project on David and Goliath by Malcom Gladwell. The discussion noted that public education thinks it is David but is Goliath. Educators need to keep their eye on the customer, not the competition along with the implications on charter school membership.

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At its November meeting the Board finalized its discussion with charter school staff becoming members or running for the executive board. It was decided to leave the eligibility requirements as they are and expressed confidence that members will make the right decision if the time comes for candidacy for the Board.

The Board also agreed to authorize the executive director to market membership to charter schools and for-profits. They also noted that Seminar scholarships applicants who work for charter school will be allowed.

Operationally, the Annual Report noted: 

NSPRA published Making Communication Work for You and Your Schools, a new book with savvy advice for superintendents from school communication experts.



NSPRA also initiated conference call and presentations with top communication officials of the U.S. Department of Education and NSPRA members and state leaders.



Charter school communicators are welcomed for NSPRA membership.



Dual memberships are not required to become an NSPRA member.

2014 Membership

1641

Fund Balance

$543,946

Baltimore Seminar General Sessions

Contagious: Why Things Catch On

Jonah Berger

Paddling Up Stream in a Public School Canoe

John Draper

Seminar Theme

Winning the Battle for Public Education

Seminar Registration

696

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2015 At its March 2015 Board meeting, the executive director announced that NSPRA was selected to receive a $9,000 grant from the Learning First Alliance to develop and publish an NSPRA Counselor on strategies and tactics for releasing Common Core assessment scores as well as developing a PowerPoint for NSPRA members and all major education groups comprising the LFA organization. A session will also be developed for the Nashville Seminar.

Board member Elise Shelton distributed copies of 107 Ways to Stick to It to all Board members and staff and recommended that a book study be implemented for all 35/35 recipients in the president’s suite in Nashville. The Board approved this opportunity for Nashville.

The Board discussed it own book study for the year and chatted about the book, Influencer, by Joseph Grenny. Grenny is the leading keynoter for the Nashville Seminar.

The Board also discussed the recent technology study completed by an outside firm to look at NSPRA’s use of technology in the years ahead. Discussions revolved around hybrid Seminar sessions, use of more videos, making the Power Hours into real webinars with more interactivity, and more. President Jim Cummings, APR, appointed a Board Task Force to develop priorities for NSPRA’s future.

At its July 2015 meeting in Nashville, the Board approved 2 new special programs to bring more visibility and engagement of superintendents into NSPRA: 

The first was launching A Superintendents to Watch program, sponsored by School Messenger, and



The second was a Superintendent Technology Communication award sponsored

by Blackboard.

The Board also approved the 2015-16 budget and the Board opted for a $15 increase to be used for marketing and technology purposes. The last increase was in 2012-13. Dues in September would be $275. As part of the budget, the Board also allocated $20,725 to the buydown of the NEA Pension Fund.

The Board also agreed that a monthly, multi-paged financial report was no longer needed as it was started years ago after NSPRA’S poor performance and nearly bankrupt performance. The Board agreed that only a summary sheet of the month financials will be needed. Any Board member still wanting the full report will still receive it each month.

It was noted that the net new membership increased by 106 members as of May 31, 2015.

More mailings to superintendents in selected states and more effort to convert chapter members into national members also increased due to the $100 discount given to chapter members. Some 40 chapter members converted, but the program will not be offered in the next year to see how many of the discounted members renewed to measure the results from the discount program.

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The Board also discussed regional alignments with a special focus on the dwindling numbers in the Northwest region. After further discussion, it was decided to complete more research and analysis to discuss this situation at the Board’s November meeting.

At the November 2015 meeting, the Board accepted the audit report from Ben Kendall, CPA, and the audit committee composed of Gary Marx, APR, and Mychal Dickerson. The auditor noted that NSPRA maintains a liquid ratio of 2.0 and a ration of assets to liabilities of 2.4 , both above the recommended 1.5. ratio.

The Board also acknowledged the third highest revenue over costs, a balance of $100,846. The executive director recommended, and the Board approved, depositing $50,846 into reserves, implementing Policy 570.6 – Compensation Plan — End-of-Year Stipends for Staff with a $10,000 allocation, allocating $10,000 for the refurbishing of the NSPRA office, and allocating the remaining $5,000 to use as Seminar scholarships over a 3-year period for chapter officers whose chapters are struggling to meet eligibility requirements to run for the Executive Board.

The Board also reviewed the consideration of regional realignments and noted after chatting with regional leaders it was decided to leave the current alignment unchanged. The Board and staff noted that they will continue to work with leaders to help them attend a Seminar to meet the eligibility requirements to run for NSPRA office.

Discussion ensued on Seminar marketplace becoming more competitive and companies using NSPRA members in promotion videos for their companies. The Board decided that current Board members should not participate and directed staff to develop guidelines and policies for the Board to review at its March meeting.

NSPRA’s annual report noted: 

Published a new Social Media e-Kit for members, published 27 advocacy articles in All In for Public Education.



Co-published a new book, the Politics of Authentic Engagement. Former NSPRA President Kathy Leslie, APR, is co-author.



Provided insight and editorial direction to the Horace Mann League and the Superintendents Roundtable in developing the breakthrough report, The Iceberg Effect — An International Look at often-Overlooked Education Indicators.



Launched NSPRA year-round app, thanks to a partnership with ParentLink/Blackboard.



Continued to refine, refresh, and improve NSPRA’s Common Core Communication Network.

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2015 Membership

1,641

Fund Balance

$647,096

Nashville Seminar General Sessions

How to Become an Influencer

Joseph Grenny

You’ve Got to Know When to Hold ‘Em: School PR Lessons Learned from Country Lyrics

Brian Woodland

Seminar Theme

Raising Our Voices for Educational Excellence

Seminar Registration

805

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2016 At its March 2016 meeting, the Board approved a policy on Board member endorsements related to Seminar partners and sponsors. The policy allows Board members to express appreciation of sponsors but prohibits officially endorsing sponsors and partners including presenting at Seminar Corporate Showcase sessions.

Executive Director Rich Bagin, APR, raised the issue of considering revisions to the current chapter structure to create resources to expand services to chapters. He noted that before expanding services to chapters, NSPRA needs to find ways to make that happen financially.

As of June 30th, NSPRA netted a total of 91 new members over last year’s membership count.

Since NSPRA’s retention rate is nearly 90%, that translates to losing approximately 170 members a year. So, the net gain of 91 members translates to adding 261 new members during the past year.

The first call of the Superintendents to Watch program recognized 24 superintendents who used communication technology in innovative and effective ways.

Staff reviewed the history of evening social events at the Seminar as background for discussion of possible policy changes about evening social events. Suggestions to be considered included allowing any chapter to sponsor an event during the Seminar’s evening hours, social events must not be branded with NSPRA’s name and logo, events may be in competition with one another, and more.

The Board also continued its March meeting discussion of chapters’ fiscal relationship with NSPRA. A few fiscal concepts were discussed. No resolution was reached.

The Board discussed the feasibility to create a New England Chapter of NSPRA. It would include chartering Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maine, Rhode Island, Vermont and New Hampshire. It could follow the model set by the Chesapeake Chapter of NSPRA. The next step would be to contact ConnSPRA to gauge their willingness to move forward as its vitality as a chapter had been waning for numerous years.

A special meeting of the Board via teleconference was held in September to approve a new policy on sponsorships and resource development including new items concerning social events at the Seminar because of the July’s Board discussion. The Board also approved a revised national Seminar responsibility policy for chapters during the Seminar. The policy gave more flexibility to chapters and reduced the burden of being a host chapter.

The Board noted that Executive Director Rich Bagin, APR, and Board members Vicki Presser and Evelyn McCormack will attend the opening of a Pat Jackson exhibit at the Museum of Public Relations in New York city this month. At its November meeting the Board, annual fiscal audit noted that NSPRA’s past year closed with a $137,000 positive balance, the second highest revenue over costs since 1994. The Board also noted that NSPRA made the last

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payment, 2 years early, for the $136,500 pension liability to the National Education Association (NEA). NSPRA’s fund balance was $782,125 for 2016, up from $647,096 in 2015.

The Board received an update on the possible reconfiguration of the Northeast chapters with the possibility of creating a New England Chapter. ConnSPRA decided against the change as they still thought they could do more to remain as the Connecticut chapter.

In its Annual Report, NSPRA noted: 

Completed 2 partnerships with added new capabilities for members and other leaders. The first was SCoPE, a new evaluation tool, a survey and detailed analysis to inform and improve school communication, and Media Talk for Educators an online professional development course for school leaders.



Published the updated 4th edition of the Complete Crisis Communication Management Manual.



Earned a grant of 15K from the Learning First Alliance to publish a report on strategies and tactics of high-stakes testing.



Developed and implemented 2 new recognition programs for superintendents committed to communication leadership in their districts. The Superintendents to Watch program honored 24 superintendents for their work and the Communication Technology Award for Superintendents honored a superintendent for making an impact with communication technology.

2016 Membership

1,708

Fund Balance

$782,125

Chicago Seminar General Sessions

Prepare for the Unpredictable

Jack Uldrich

Learn to turn Outward to Make Change Real

Rich Harwood

Seminar Theme

Leading Through Communication: Solutions for Challenging Times

Seminar Registration

979

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2017 At its March 2017 meeting, the Board discussed future policies for allowing for-profit business presenting in Seminar skill sessions. The Board noted that on some occasions, the sessions became a promotion for the business. The Board requested staff to draft policies related to this issue and possibly limit the slot associated with business presentations.

The Board also announced that all members received the e-publication Communication Planning and Strategic Tactics for Release High-Stake Test Scores. It was also noted that all members also received a slide presentation to be adapted and used with this publication for their local audiences.

At its July meeting the Board’s proposed budget included $5 dues increase which the Board increased to $10 for the coming fiscal year. Staffing is now at 6 full-time members with recent hiring of Jennifer Landes, APR, as senior communication manager.

To help convert chapter members to NSPRA members, President-elect Tom DeLapp, APR, offered to keynote a chapter meeting along with a $100 membership discount for chapter members becoming a national member. The Board also approved a cash-back program to chapters participating in the cash back program.

As a follow-up to its March discussion on business-provided sessions at the Seminar, the Board discussed several alternatives but decided not to implement any policies or procedures to officially limit opportunities. The Board asked staff to consider requiring NSPRA membership or being part of a presentation with an NSPRA member for a Seminar session. It also noted that skill session should not be part of a sponsorship benefit as it should be reserved for the corporate showcase sessions.

The Board acknowledged the newly refurbished NSPRA office and gave special thanks to business official Tommy Jones for his extra weekend and evening work during the renovation.

President Julie Thannum, APR, announced that she will send a letter to all members detailing the results of the Core Value Survey completed by members earlier in the year. President Thannum listed the top 10 words identified as pertaining to NSPRA and the Board discussion narrowed the listing to 5: 

Networking,



Strategic,



Collaborative,



Resources, and



Relevant.

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At its November 2017 meeting, the Board accepted its annual audit report noting that NSPRA’s fund balance was set at $849.788. Because of a healthy programmatic and fiscal year, the Board also allocated $25,000 for staff bonuses to be distributed by the executive director.

The executive director led a discussion on several ideas presented by Blackboard, Inc. NSPRA will now coordinate the #k12PRChat as an NSPRA entity and Senior Communication Manager Jennifer Landes, APR, will be responsible.

Blackboard also proposed that NSPRA offer a program at the Seminar like ERDI where teams of individual sponsors meet with veteran NSPRA members before the Seminar to discuss new potential products or directions for the participating companies. Further research will be implemented to determine the feasibility for NSPRA. Blackboard also proposed adding a seat to the NSPRA Board that would rotate among NSPRA partner businesses. The Board did not support this idea.

The Communication Equity and Diversity Task Force update generated a brainstorming and discussion session where more than 20 issues or program for consideration. VP of Diversity Engagement Heidi Vega will now take the discussion items and formulate a plan for her term on the Board.

A new section of the agenda was added to develop higher level discussions for new ideas for association and member growth.

The topics discussed included: 

Outreach to superintendents,



Membership development,



Developing leadership, and



Chapter outreach.

The 2017 Annual Report highlighted: 

Earned a grant of 15K from the Learning First Alliance (LFA) to produce an implement a member e-publication Communication Planning and Strategic Tactics for Releasing High-Stakes Test Scores.



Developing a new Communication Review Service with 2 school districts as a beta project to be refined in the coming year.



Completed refurbishing the NSPRA website, making it mobile-friendly and simplifying its navigation process.



Completed refurbishing the NSPRA office with a new look with new flooring, paint and remodeled kitchen and bathroom areas.



Completed a communication assessment of the Department of Defense Agency Activity Schools (DoDEA) worldwide.

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

NSPRA Executive Director Rich Bagin, APR, received the prestigious Outstanding Friend of Public Education Award presented by the Horace Mann League at the AASA convention in New Orleans.

2017 Membership

1759

Fund Balance

$849,788

San Antonio Seminar General Sessions

Inspiring Action for Stronger School Communities

Derreck Kayongo

Connecting with Multi-Generational Audiences

Kim Lear

Seminar Theme

Communicate, Collaborate, Connect!

Seminar Registration

956

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2018 At its March 2018 meeting in Rockville, the Board discussed the possibility of offering techrelated online conferences in the years ahead. The effort was led by Board member Shane Haggerty, APR, VP for Technology and Innovation. More research on platforms and cost issues needs to be completed.

It was reported that Associate Director Karen Kleinz, APR, was retiring as of May 31, 2018. She will continue working as an NSPRA Consultant through the Anaheim Seminar. Karen was a valuable member of the NSPRA staff since February 1998.

VP Shane Hagerty also reported on the feature: A Day in School PR chats that generated much interest to demonstrate just what a day in school PR entails.

At its July 2018 meeting in Anaheim, California, we reported the launching of NSPRA Connect, the cloud-based collaborative community platform as a new membership benefit, giving all members an opportunity to seek insight on their local issues from communication professionals around the country. Early participation was high with more than 100 discussions in the first few months of the new benefit.

The Board also discussed “member wellness” issues as the ever-increasing pressures on leaders dealing with employee and community relations experiences in their own districts.

The Board also thanked members Shawn McKillop, APR, and Kristin Magette, APR, for their efforts on this topic.

At its November 2018 meeting in Rockville, the Board approved the auditor’s official accounting of the 2017-2018 audit report. NSPRA’s fund balance is now at $877,608 up from $820,003 in 2017.

The Board also discussed the following issues at the local level: 

Changing school district start times. The next issue of the NSPRA Counselor will focus on this topic.

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The role and responsibility of the school PR pro in promoting diversity, equity and tolerance.

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How districts are dealing with student and staff activism including student and teacher walkouts.

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Charter movement ramifications for our professions including adding funds for more local marketing efforts.

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New Associate Director Mellissa Braham joined staff in August. Formerly she was from the communication services division of the Capital Region BOCES in Albany, New York.

It was also reported that a new NSPRA Member blog will be launched in December 2018 coordinated by member Nicole Kirby, APR. The NSPRA 2017-2018 Annual Report noted: 

Launched NSPRA Connect, the members-only forum to share insight with all NSPRA participating members.

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Published Making/Marketing Your School the School of Choice, giving background and steps for research, customer service and social media and the marketing of your school as a school of choice.

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Co-published with Rowman and Littlefield 2 books by NSPRA members:

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 The Social Media Imperative by Kristin Magette, APR, and  Engaging Data: Smart Strategies of School Communication by Trinette Marquis, APR. Exhibited and offered professional development activities at national conventions for AASA and NSBA.

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Offered 15 Twitter Takeover sessions # ADayinSchoolPR.

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Participated in a new Learning First Alliance resource, The Elements of Success: 10 Million Speak on Schools That Work.

2018 Membership

1,802

Fund Balance

$916,464

Anaheim Seminar General Sessions

The Age of Disruption: Everything Has Changed, and Nothing Is Different

Seminar Theme

Proving the Value of Public Education

Seminar Registration

941

Making an Impact for Greatness

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2019 At its March 2019 meeting in Rockville, the Board learned of the progress being made on the new Communication Review process as well as with NSPRA Connect.

The Communication Review service now available offers 2 SCoPE surveys (1 for parents and 1 for staff), 3 virtual focus groups, and 3 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. The review service is targeted for districts with smaller enrollments of 3,500 students or less.

NSPRA Connect now averages 40 discussions per month and has become a valuable membership benefit .

NSPRA Executive Director Rich Bagin, APR, also announced another free membership feature, NSPRA Insight. It will be a professional and yet informal WebEx offering allowing members to share their insight and experiences on various relevant topics. The first show is scheduled for May about the preparing and onboarding process for welcoming a new superintendent.

NSPRA Associate Director Mellissa Braham also announced a new service for chapters entitled Chapter Challenges Solved. The first online session will be hosted by Kelly Avants, APR, NSPRA’s President-elect. Mellissa also shared the new NSPRA Brand Guide which gives guidance on using NSPRA’s brand assets including logos, name, tagline colors and typography.

One discussion item included the Diversity and Equity Reception at the D.C. Seminar. The discussion focused primarily on its funding as no sponsorship was yet available. In future years, the Board decided that the reception should be listed in the packages offered to all sponsors, and the Board decided to offer up to $5,000 for the D.C. reception if no sponsors fill that financial void.

A new Seminar mobile app will be offered the D.C. Seminar. The cost is $5,000, and it will provide a wider range of convenience services for Seminar participants.

The Board also discussed unique methods to engage Latino populations in their districts and regions. A wide range of engagement activities and practices were offered and discussed. VP for Diversity Engagement Heidi Otero coordinated the discussion and will use the items in her work during the coming year.

At its July meeting in Washington, D.C., the Board approved the revised goals and beliefs that have been reviewed and modified over the past few Board meetings.

The Board discussed the value of candidates for the NSPRA President-elect position to have prior experience on the NSPRA Executive Board. After some discussion, it was decided that more research was needed, and that the role of the Executive Board Search Committee (EBSC)

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may change to help give the selected candidate more visibility with membership. The Board decided to renew this discussion at a future Board meeting.

One change in the upcoming year was to transition PRincipal Communicator into a digital newsletter. The one worry of the transition was to maintain or recover lost revenue from the ads sent with each month’s publication. Digital ads will be used as a possible replacement.

The Board also discussed the possibility of selecting Seattle for a Seminar site. A review of a projected number of participants attending a Seattle Seminar fell behind the averages of past Seminars. Board members discussed how Seminar locations decisions are made along with the equity of access to the Seminar among members in various regions. The executive director shared that the location rotates between the West Coast, East Coast and the middle of the country. Prior Boards decided the location choice should be largely a “business decision” because the of the significant impact of the Seminar on the association’s ability to operate.

It was decided to that more research was needed along with the refining of numbers and possible additional support from WSPRA. It was hoped that a decision could be made by the next Board meeting.

At its November 2019 meeting, the Board accepted the auditor’s report for the 2018-2019 fiscal year, and it was reported that it was the best in the organization’s history. NSPRA’s fund balance ended at $1,119,411 up from $877,608 in 2018.

In discussing the upcoming 2020 Seminar in St. Louis, the Board indicated that it may be time to consider adding a Code of Conduct or NSPRA Values as signage and in the Seminar program book and app. It was also noted that hotel contracts for the Seminar include a closing banquet until the Chicago Seminar in 2022.

The Board continued its previous meeting’s discussion on the policy of elected officer qualifications. 

The first discussion was whether regional vice presidents could run from the same state sequentially. In larger states, this has been a past request.

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The second focus was whether presidents and presidents-elects should previously serve as a vice-president before taking the position.

The Board decided not to make a change at this time in either case and no changes were made to relevant policies.

Also reported that Executive Director Rich Bagin, APR, wrote a module for communication for the AASA cohort of 70 superintendents to be used in their program in the next year. In addition, the cohort received a year of complimentary memberships to NSPRA. It was announced that the Open Water software program will be used for submissions and applications to the School Communication Awards programs. Continued diligence of projected revenue items and research with Seattle area hotels were still being completed.

Elements of a new membership campaign were announced and Shane Haggerty, APR, was hired as a marketing consultant for NSPRA.

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Because of its healthy financial year, the Board approved its policy of offering financial enhancements to staff with a set aside of $18,000 to be awarded to staff members.

The 2018-19 annual report highlighted: 

Earned record-breaking attendance with more than 1,030 participants at the D.C. Seminar

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Launched NSPRA Insight a free, panel online discussion by NSPRA members on highly relevant topics for NSPRA members

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Published 4 issues of the e-newsletter Communication Matters for Leading Superintendents.

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Introduced a new free virtual opportunity for chapter leaders entitled Chapter Challenges Solved.

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Participated in the Learning First Alliance’s Public Schools Week activities promoting the power of public education.

2019 Membership

1,851

Fund Balance

$1,157,013

Washington, DC Seminar General Sessions

Storytelling Sparks Messaging Success

Kindra Hall

Change Agent: Building Bridges for Connectivity and Inclusion

Michele Norris

Seminar Theme

Advancing Education One Story at a Time

Seminar Registration

1,119

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2020 At its March 2020 meeting (Virtual Due to Pandemic), the Board allocated $20,000 from the reserves to fund the search for a new executive director. In December 2020, Executive Director Rich Bagin, APR, announced his retirement to be effective in March 2021. The Board officially accepted his resignation at this meeting.

The Board reviewed the plan for the membership marketing campaign. The Board requested staff to accelerate the 30-day free trial period where chapter members would have access to NSPRA Connect for that month. The Board made the request due to COVID-19 resources and the value of a membership during this difficult time. (The following week, NSPRA sent a message to the 2,400 identified chapter members and to superintendents subscribed to Communication Matters offering this 30-day trial.)

Executive Director Rich Bagin, APR, updated the Board on the research about selecting Seattle as a Seminar site. For a 900-person registration projection, there was a projected loss of $16, 270 (even with the help of the $25,000 donation from the Washington Chapter.) Further research found that recent education associations holding conferences in Seattle did not see a huge drop in participation.

The Executive Director then recommended Seattle for the 2024 NSPRA Seminar. Hotel arrangements and negotiations were to begin shortly after this Board meeting. Curtis Campbell, Northeast Region VP, stated that he appreciated the work the executive director had done to research these numbers. He noted that the Washington chapter will donate $25k to defray the costs. He also noted that the Oregon and Idaho chapters would forego the regional discount.

The COVID-19 pandemic created much uncertainty about the St. Louis Seminar in July. The hotel’s contract had deadlines for cancelling that required full payment to the hotel. The executive director worked with the hotel on dealing timelines and talking with NSPRA’s insurance broker as it was noted that NSPRA has a pandemic rider on its hotel cancellation insurance. NSPRA’s broker noted that we should not do anything with the hotel until we work with the insurance carrier underwritten by Lloyd’s of London. The Board received updates on this issue as they progressed, but we could not cancel the Seminar until the insurance guidelines were communicated.

At the August 2020 virtual meeting, the Board was made aware of the following developments since the last meeting in March 2020: 

After permission from the NSPRA cancellation insurance carrier, NSPRA worked on a cancellation process for the St. Louis Seminar.

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No penalties or fees were paid as Executive Director Rich Bagin, APR, negotiated that the 2023 Seminar will be held in St. Louis.

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

The Board and staff approved and then implemented a virtual Seminar conference, entitled NSPRA Live 2020, where 402 participants eventually registered for the event.

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The pandemic cancellation insurance claim amounted to a $452, 872 payment to NSPRA. Special thanks for this effort were given to Rich Bagin, APPR, and Tom Jones, Senior Manager – Business/Office Services.

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The federal government’s pandemic-related Payroll Protection Program also awarded NSPRA $111,000 during the fiscal year.

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The Board had contracted with a recruiter to search for NSPRA’s new executive director with the Board’s executive committee serving as the full Board’s liaison.

At the meeting, the Board also approved its 2020-2021 budget including up to a 3% increase for staff.

The Board approved a recommendation from the executive director to remove Columbus Day as a paid staff holiday and replace it with Juneteenth beginning in the 2020-2021 fiscal year.

With the recent discussions on civil injustice, race relations and equity, the change was approved.

The Board considered changing the policy that allows current sitting Board members to not participate in NSPRA contests during their tenure on the Board. The majority of the Board did not feel there was an optics issue with this process and consensus was to not continue the conversation on this item.

The Board received an update on the membership recruitment effort implemented after the March Board meeting offering free 30-day memberships. Some 3,996 prospects were contacted, 270 responded, and 21 became NSPRA members.

Staffing during the pandemic was a hybrid approach: 

Administrative Assistant Maria Ceribo and Senior Manager – Business/Office Services Tommy Jones working in the office every day.

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Executive Director Rich Bagin, APR, worked from home in the morning and then from noon to 6 PM in the NSPRA office.

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Rebecca Shaw, communication manger worked remotely since March 2020.

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Associate Director Melissa Braham, APR, primarily worked from home and periodically came into the office as needed.

The Board approved a lifetime NSPRA membership for Executive Director Rich Bagin, APR, beginning in the 2021-2022 fiscal year as he already paid for membership in the 2020-2021 fiscal year.

The Board also approved the title of Executive Director Emeritus for Rich Bagin, APR, once he retired from NSPRA.

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At the meeting, the Board approved a new foundation Seminar scholarship, the Rich and Carolyn Bagin Emerging Leader Scholarship, to be added to those in NSPRA’s Foundation for the Advancement of Education.

Before its November 2020 meeting, the Board had completed interviews and search for the new executive director. The Board approved Barbra Hunter, APR, to serve as NSPRA Executive Director with a start date of November 16, 2020 start date. Before joining NSPRA, Hunter spent 5 years as the president/CEO of Hunter Communications LLC, based in Alexandria, Virginia. She also spent 14 years as the chief communications officer in 2 school districts in Northern Virginia, including Fairfax County Public Schools, the 10th largest in the nation. She started her career in school communications at AASA, the School Superintendents Association, as editor of The School Administrator magazine. Hunter also served as the director of communications for the National School Boards Association.

At its November 2020 meeting, the Board received the official audit report of NSPRA finances.

The fund balance ended $1,376,993, compared to last year’s fund balance of $916,464.

The Board approved budget transfers from reserves for several items related to the transition to the new executive director. A total of $195,000 was transferred to cover costs of an earlier start-date of the new executive director, expenses for the final interviews held in Denver, Colorado, and vacation-related payments for the current executive director.

After many years and attempts to bolster the ConnSPRA, the Connecticut chapter of NSPRA, the Board approved suspending the charter of ConnSPRA for 1 year from November 13, 2020, thorough November 13, 2021.

The vitality of offering an in-person Seminar in New Orleans in July was discussed along with the alternatives of a hybrid or virtual Seminar. No decision was made except to postpone the decision until more research was completed.

President Lesley Bruinton, APR, outlined Accreditation Committee projects for the 2020-2021 fiscal year. She described a new APR NSPRA cohort as a professional development opportunity. It is an exciting new venture for those who want to increase their knowledge in all facets of public relations.

The executive director announced that the Bellevue Hyatt was selected for the 2024 Seminar in Seattle.

Incoming Executive Director Barbra Hunter, APR, announced that she has offered the position of Manger of Seminar, Partnerships and Programs to Kristina Ottomanelli, CMP. At the meeting, Hunter mentioned that they were still finalizing the compensation package for the position.

The Annual Report for 2019-2020 noted: 

NSPRA set a new 12-year membership record of 1,901 members — the largest number since the recession of 2008.

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Because of the pandemic, the St. Louis Seminar was cancelled, but a new virtual offering NSPRA Live 2020 was implemented over a 2-day period.

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

We converted the print PRincipal Communicator newsletter to an e-newsletter.

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We offered 4 panel discussions via NSPRA Insight on senior-level situations dealing with ethics in school PR, PR guidance for new and mid-career professionals, crisis communication advice, and proving the value of communication in the next era of budget reductions.

2020 Membership

1,901

Fund Balance

$1,376,993

Online Registration and Participation Seminar General Sessions

Virtual Offerings (Pandemic Alternative Programming)

Seminar Theme

NSPRA Live: Grow as a School PR Leader and Plan for Success

Seminar Registration

450

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