About NSPRA
The Superintendents to Watch award recognizes school district leaders who have fewer than five years of experience as a superintendent and who demonstrate dynamic, fast-paced leadership with strong communication at its core.
Dr. Ashanti Holley leads Burlington County Institute of Technology and Burlington County Special Services School District with a communication-centered approach that connects culture, strategy and results. Through consistent visibility, two-way engagement and a clear shared mission, she has built a system where communication strengthens morale, guides decision-making, and elevates student and staff voices.
“Dr. Holley communicates with precision, empathy, and purpose. Her ability to connect people, strengthen trust, and inspire excellence has elevated two districts and created a unified culture focused on students, staff, and families.” — Odise A. Carr, President, Board of Education, BCIT/BCSSSD
Building Culture Through Communication
Dr. Holley uses consistent, personal communication to reinforce values and strengthen relationships across both districts. Her leadership is visible in daily interactions as well as structured communication efforts designed to keep everyone connected and informed.
Key elements of her approach include:
Using Communication to Drive Engagement and Trust
Since her tenure as superintendent began in 2024, Dr. Holley has created new structures to ensure students and staff have direct access to district leadership and meaningful ways to share ideas, concerns and solutions. Some of these include:
Every message, meeting and initiative led by Dr. Holley reinforces her values: communicate clearly, connect deeply and lead boldly. Her leadership is characterized not just by vision but by presence. Whether she is greeting staff at morning duty, visiting classrooms or addressing the community, Dr. Holley models what visible, people-centered leadership looks like. Her excellence lies in her ability to unite communication, culture, and action, transforming two districts into communities that believe every student, every staff member, and every family has a voice that matters.
Communication Embedded in District Strategy
Dr. Holley embedded communication directly into district planning and operations through a Communication Channel Framework that defines how students, families, and staff seek information, resolve concerns, and receive support. This system ensures communication is clear, consistent and aligned across departments.
Her communication priorities are also reinforced through the Mission Possible: Every Student, Every Day campaign, which unifies the tone, language and purpose of district messaging across all platforms.
Every newsletter, memo, social media post, and internal update carries the same tone, language, and message: every student and every voice matters. The unified branding has strengthened recognition, reinforced a sense of shared mission and created continuity across all levels of communication.
Her communication goals are also measurable. The district has seen record enrollment, increased community participation in surveys and public forums, and significant growth in social media engagement. These outcomes are not incidental; they are direct results of a system that values proactive, transparent and human-centered communication. Under Dr. Holley’s leadership, a District Blueprint and Professional Development Alignment Plan was created to connect communication strategies with instructional leadership and staff development. This blueprint outlines how district goals, objectives, policies and communication practices interconnect. It is reviewed and discussed regularly with administrators, shared during staff meetings, and made accessible across multiple platforms, including the district’s website and internal communication systems.
A Visible, Relationship-Driven Leader
When the district needed to revisit its Student Personal Device Policy, Dr. Holley approached the challenge as both a communicator and a listener. Recognizing that technology use is one of the most sensitive topics for students, staff and families, she designed a thoughtful, inclusive communication program centered on dialogue, transparency and education. Rather than announcing a policy change from the top down, Dr. Holley launched a multi-phase engagement campaign built on authentic conversation. The process began with her Voices at the Table student forum, where students shared how personal devices affected their learning, focus and well-being. These sessions were open, candid and solution-oriented, allowing leadership to understand student perspectives before drafting new guidelines.
Next, she expanded the dialogue to include parents and staff members, hosting listening sessions where concerns and ideas were documented in real time. Parents expressed both the benefits and the challenges of technology in education, while staff discussed classroom management and instructional balance. Dr. Holley facilitated these meetings herself, ensuring that every voice was heard and that trust was built before decisions were made.
To deepen understanding of the issue, Dr. Holley co-led a districtwide book blub featuring The Anxious Generation by Jonathan Haidt. Every staff member, family and student was invited to participate, and discussions focused on the social, emotional and developmental effects of digital technology on students. These rich, districtwide conversations not only informed the policy but also strengthened community awareness of how technology intersects with mental health and learning. Once the engagement phase concluded, Dr. Holley partnered with the Strategic Marketing and Communications Department to develop a clear, staged rollout plan for the updated policy.
Dr. Holley leads by presence. She visits schools weekly, attends student performances and community events, presents the Superintendent’s Snapshot at board meetings, and remains active on social media to showcase student success and staff excellence.
“Dr. Holley leads with integrity, purpose, and connection. Her leadership is defined by a deep commitment to transparent communication, meaningful engagement, and equitable opportunity. Her guiding vision, Mission Possible: Every Student, Every Day, reflects not only her focus on student achievement but also her belief that communication and collaboration are essential to every success.” — Dr. Felicia Hopson, Director, Burlington County Board of Commissioners
B.A. - Mississippi State University; MPA - University of Georgia
I believe school PR/communications is what I was born to do! One of the biggest decisions a parent can make is where to send their child to school, and it’s an honor to share with our parents the engaging work that their children are doing under the guidance of world-class teachers and leaders. On any given day, in any given school, there are many stories to be told and I take that charge seriously. As school communicators played a key role in COVID-19 communications, storytelling was more important than ever – not only did I share information with parents about our protocols, but I also made over 80 visits to schools last year and told a variety of stories about how students were thriving with both in-person and distance learning options. I also worked with principals to determine best mitigation practices and helped make those pervasive, because positive action must be the foundation of what we are ultimately communicating. School public relations is incredibly complex and I love that each day brings a new challenge.
My greatest school PR success was completing 11 nationally-innovative school communication audits using a process of research, planning, implementation, and evaluation. I am now in phase two of this project and am attending school council meetings to garner feedback from parents about school-level communication and how I can better support the work of their schools. One of the most significant findings is that as students take more ownership of their learning, they also take more ownership in parent communication. Therefore, next steps are to better prepare parents for this transition and to also determine best practices from exemplar teachers and coaches at the secondary level so we can strike the right balance with parents feeling informed and fostering student independence.
My greatest school PR challenge is overcoming rigidity. Like many PR professionals, I am detail-oriented and a self-described perfectionist. It’s a blessing and a curse to see when something is one pixel off, but the greatest challenge I have faced in my 13 years in this field is to learn to be more flexible. I might have an aversion to Comic Sans or Curlz, but it’s not the end of the world if those are a font favorite elsewhere. What’s more important is the bigger picture – staff and parents feeling well-informed and students growing and learning in positive school cultures. Instead of telling someone their website isn’t formatted properly, I now make a 2-3 minute screencast if I think there’s a quick tutorial I can offer to provide ongoing professional learning. By being much more flexible, I have deepened relationships and become better at supporting the most important job that occurs in our school system: teaching.
My favorite part of my job is the relationships. I often say that there is no substitute for showing up, and that’s why I make so many school visits each year. From getting to hold a gorgeous monarch butterfly to watching a vibrant student musical to seeing 3-D printing in action from engineering students, I have witnessed countless unique opportunities, and these experiences are just a small piece of what our students get to take part in each and every day. If I didn’t take the time to form relationships, I wouldn’t know that what students value is knowing that the photos I take may show up in their yearbooks. I wouldn’t know the myriad of annual activities that teachers do across our schools because I wouldn’t have witnessed them firsthand. I wouldn’t know about the families of our principals or what they believe makes their school unique. All of that is invaluable because at the end of the day and at the end of this career, relationships are what will remain – both professionally and personally.
The communication tool I use the most is Canva! I would be a brand ambassador if they asked! I am not very mathematically-minded and it can be challenging for someone with an eye for good design – but not an eye for rulers and gridlines – to be a graphic designer. However, Canva has made it possible and I am able to create aesthetically-pleasing graphics with short turn-around times. I have trained communication ambassadors at our schools how to use it as well. Right after Canva, the tool I most use is iMovie. I am completely self-taught in videography and using iMovie and Canva together has made me someone who can add “videographer” to their list of expertise.