TSPRA History Celebrating 60 years of TSPRA

Historical Highlights

TSPRA originated in 1962 at the annual convention of the National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA) in Denver, Colorado. A group of 11 Texas delegates led by Don E. Matthews, outgoing NSPRA president and an assistant superintendent in Dallas ISD, met to begin the process of forming a chapter. The Lone Star Chapter was officially launched at the TASA/TASB Convention in Austin with Matthews as the first president. And the rest, they say, is history.

Membership Growth

In1962

membership dues were $5.

1962 11 1963 57 1972 105 1982 215 1992 307 2002 365 2012 899 2022 1178 In 1969, the Lone Star Chapter changed its name to Texas Chapter, National

School Public Relations

Association. In 1975, the bylaws stated that the organization would also be known as TSPRA, standing for Texas School Public Relations Association.

In 1963, the first chapter meeting held with 57 duespaying members, most of whom were superintendents.

NSPRA Presidents from TSPRA

In Aug. 1988, TSPRA contracted with Annell Todd to serve as executive director parttime and established a state office in Austin. In 1996, Todd moved to a full-time position, where she stayed until she retired in 2004 when Judy Farmer took over until June 2010. Janet Crock, who was also part-time, became fulltime in July 1997. In Sept. 2009, TSPRA added a communications specialist position. In 1972, TSPRA was rated as the best NSPRA chapter in the nation and the association continued to be a perennial NSPRA Blue Ribbon Chapter, as well as receiving honors for Distinguished Chapter and Outstanding Year-Round Project. NSPRA awarded TSPRA its Mark of Distinction,

Exemplary Chapter Award in July 2014.

Don Matthews (1961-1962) Lloyd Bell (1971-1972) Larry Ascough (1975-76) Bonnie Ellison (1984-85) Steve Knagg (1991-92) Dorian Martin (1997-98) Julie Thannum (2016-17)

501(c)(3)

In 1977, TSPRA received an individual charter status as its own 501(c)(3), enabling us to operate independtly from the national chapter.

TSPRA launched its first website in Jan. 1998. The most recent revision was made in 2020. In the early days of Star Awards, submissions were entered via mail, and video entries were judged on the first day of conference. As the program grew, the state office would receive hundreds of entries that had to be opened, entered into a database, grouped by divisions and categories and then taken to the judges, who had to return the entries to the office once completed. In 2016, the entries and judging were moved to an online platform. In the early 90s, there were around 500 entries. By 2021, TSPRA received a record-breaking number of 1662 entries!

Executive Director Linsae Snider was hired in 2010 after serving on TSPRA’s board as vice president.

Now in its second decade, the bi-weekly EduLege serves as a valuable resource for TSPRA members. Longtime member Andy Welch, retired communication director for the Austin ISD, compiles and writes the publication.

TSPRA updated its logo in 2017, relying

on the talents of Blue Jarvis Media. The new logo was adopted on Dec. 18 of the same year.

In 2021, TSPRA’s Executive Committee voted to host an in-person conference in support of teachers. Extensive measures were taken to ensure the safety of its attendees during the COVID-19 outbreak. It was a successful event; there weren’t any reported illnesses.

In 2010, TSPRA began sending a weekly newsletter.

In 2020, TSPRA’s Online Learning platform was created in answer to needs of virtual development due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In the summer of 2020, TSPRA launched its quarterly digital publication "Communication Matters” magazine. A member Magazine Committee was established, and Communications and Marketing Manager Tracie Seed worked with them to develop this magazine, which publishes in July, October, January and April on or around the 15th of the month. Over the past 10 years, conference attendance has grown from around 400 to more than 800!

TSPRA Rewind