AASA/NSPRA Leadership for Public Trust

A joint NSPRA + AASA experience for superintendent and district leaders

This virtual experience is designed to help district leadership teams strengthen their ability to lead through complexity, build and sustain public trust, and align communication with decision-making at the highest levels.

Anchored in three integrated leadership domains, Civic Leadership, Narrative Leadership, and Crisis Leadership, this experience positions communication as a core leadership responsibility. Each track stands on its own while also contributing to a broader approach that enables districts – regardless of size or structure – to navigate competing expectations, shape understanding, and lead with clarity when it matters most.

This registration includes access to all 3 tracks (9 sessions).

Civic Leadership Track

As public education becomes increasingly shaped by political tension, competing community expectations, and heightened scrutiny, leadership teams must be equipped to navigate complexity while maintaining focus, alignment, and trust. This series explores how leaders incorporate communication awareness into decision-making so that actions are understood, supported, and grounded in community context.

Session 1: Leading in Complex Community Contexts (March 4, 2027 12 - 1:30 pm Eastern)

Superintendents are expected to lead in environments defined by competing values, public pressure, and rapidly shifting expectations. Strong leadership requires not only sound decisions, but an awareness of how those decisions will be experienced across the community. This session focuses on how leadership teams can make stronger, more informed decisions by incorporating communication awareness early, considering how issues may be interpreted, where tensions may emerge, and how to align internally before decisions become public. The goal is not simply to manage reaction, but to lead in ways that build clarity, credibility, and public trust from the outset. This session moves beyond engagement and transparency as standalone practices and focuses on how leadership teams use community awareness to make more effective decisions in real time.

Presenter: Jennifer Perry Cheatham, Ed.D., senior lecturer on education and co-chair of the Public Education Leadership Project | Harvard University (Mass.)

Session 2: Leading with Trust in Complex Times (April 1, 2027 12 - 1:30 pm Eastern)

Trust is not built in moments of crisis, it is built through consistent leadership over time. High-functioning districts treat trust not as an outcome, but as a deliberate approach embedded in how decisions are made, communicated, and followed through. Rather than focusing on how trust is built, this session examines how established trust allows leaders to move forward with clarity, even when decisions are difficult or unpopular. Participants will examine how leadership behavior and communication – formal and informal – either reinforce or erode trust when decisions are tested in real time.

Presenters: Celi Haga, APR, Chief of Staff and Executive Director of Strategic Communications and Erin Rathke, Ed.D., superintendent | Eastern Carver County Schools (Minn.)

Session 3: Engagement as Shared Leadership Work (May 6, 2027 12 - 1:30 pm Eastern)

Engagement is often treated as a communications task rather than a leadership responsibility. In practice, meaningful engagement strengthens decision-making, builds shared ownership, and reinforces public trust. This session reframes engagement as part of how districts operate, ensuring that leadership decisions are informed by community perspective while maintaining clarity and momentum. Participants will explore how to design engagement approaches that move beyond one-way communication and support understanding and action. This session also focuses on how districts move from gathering input to using that input to shape direction, ensuring engagement informs decisions rather than existing alongside them.

Presenters: Claire Mitzel, Director of Communications & Public Relations and Verletta White, Ed.D., superintendent | Roanoke City Public Schools (Va.)

Narrative Leadership Track

As public education becomes increasingly shaped by political tension, competing community expectations, and heightened scrutiny, leadership teams must be equipped to navigate complexity while maintaining focus, alignment, and trust. This series explores how leaders incorporate communication awareness into decision-making so that actions are understood, supported, and grounded in community context.

Session 1: Understanding and Owning the District Narrative (March 22, 2027 12 - 1:30 pm Eastern)

Every district operates within a narrative, whether intentionally shaped or not. These narratives influence how leadership decisions are received and whether stakeholders interpret actions with trust or skepticism. This session moves beyond responding to misinformation and instead focuses on how leadership teams create the conditions where clear, consistent understanding reduces the need for correction. This session also focuses on helping leadership teams understand how their district is currently perceived and where gaps may exist between intention and community understanding.

Presenter: Moira O'Neil, Ph.D., senior vice president of programs, FrameWorks Institute (D.C.)

Session 2: Aligning Leadership, Messaging, and Direction (April 19, 2027 12 - 1:30 pm Eastern)

Narrative breaks down when leadership actions, internal messaging, and public communication are not aligned. Inconsistent signals create confusion and weaken trust. This session explores how leadership teams can build internal clarity first – ensuring that direction, language, and expectations are aligned before communicating externally. Rather than focusing on communication routines alone, this session also explores how alignment at the leadership level determines whether strategy is understood and sustained across the system.

Panelists & Presenters: Luis Correa, Ed.D., superintendent - Gurnee School District 56 (Ill.), Toriano “Tori” Holloway, Ph.D., superintendent - Vicksburg Warren School District (Miss.), Delaina McCormack, APR, social media manager - Fairfax County Public Schools (Va.)

Session 3: Using Story to Drive Understanding and Support (May 17, 2027 12 - 1:30 pm Eastern)

Stories help make leadership priorities visible, but only when used intentionally. When aligned to district goals, stories can build understanding, reinforce direction, and sustain momentum over time. This session focuses on how leadership teams can use real examples and experiences to make their work more tangible and meaningful for stakeholders. It positions the story not as a communication output, but as a leadership tool for reinforcing priorities, demonstrating progress, and maintaining alignment over time.

Presenters: Laurie Dent, Ph.D., superintendent and Elle Warmuth, APR, director of communications | Sumner-Bonney Lake School District (Wash.)

Crisis Leadership Track

As public education becomes increasingly shaped by political tension, competing community expectations, and heightened scrutiny, leadership teams must be equipped to navigate complexity while maintaining focus, alignment, and trust. This series explores how leaders incorporate communication awareness into decision-making so that actions are understood, supported, and grounded in community context.

Session 1: Decision-Making and Leadership Under Pressure (April 30, 2027 12 - 1:30 pm Eastern)

In moments of crisis, leadership teams must make high-stakes decisions quickly, often with incomplete information and intense scrutiny. This session focuses on how leaders approach decision-making under pressure, balancing urgency, accuracy, and long-term impact while maintaining alignment across the organization. This session also emphasizes how leadership decisions – not just communication – shape outcomes during high-pressure situations.

Presenters: Celina Baguiao, director of communications, and Rubén Aurelio, superintendent | Vallejo City Unified School District (Calif.)

Session 2: Communicating with Credibility in Uncertain Moments (May 28, 2027 12 - 1:30 pm Eastern)

In a crisis, stakeholders are not only listening to what is said, they are evaluating how leadership shows up. This session focuses on how leaders communicate when information is incomplete and where credibility is shaped more by presence and consistency than by certainty. This session also explores how leaders communicate with clarity, transparency, and consistency even when all answers are not yet known.

Presenters: Grace Becker, APR, director of marketing & customer experience, Josh Swanson, Ed.D., superintendent, and Dirk Tedmon, APR, executive director of marketing & communications | Eden Prairie Schools (Minn.)

Session 3: Sustaining Trust Beyond the Crisis (June 25, 2027 12 - 1:30 pm Eastern)

What happens after a crisis often determines whether trust is strengthened or eroded. Recovery requires continued clarity, consistency, and follow-through. This session focuses on how leadership teams move forward by supporting their communities, reflecting on their approach, and strengthening systems for the future. This session also examines how districts use post-crisis moments to strengthen leadership systems, not just recover from the event itself.

Presenters: Ivan Duran, Ed.D., superintendent and Tove Tupper, APR, chief communications officer | Highline Public Schools (Wash.)

Pricing for the 9 virtual modules as one package*: $1750

*Full program registrants will receive calendar invitations with the Zoom links for each session.