Pre-Seminar Workshops

Maximize your NSPRA 2022 National Seminar experience by registering for pre-Seminar workshops on July 16-17! These in-depth, information-packed workshops will take place in person at the Sheraton Grand Chicago Hotel. Early birds, register now to make the most of your summer professional development.  

Two-Day Workshop

• APR Prep: Get Ready for Universal Accreditation
  (Saturday, July 16, and Sunday, July 17, from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. Central Time)

One-Day Workshops

• Strategic Planning for the Overwhelmed
  (Saturday, July 16, from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. Central Time)
• The Communicating Principal: A Train-the-Trainer Approach to Improving Communication at All Levels
  (Saturday, July 16, from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. Central Time)
• Video Storytelling: Low-Budget Tips to Better Engage Your Audience
  (Sunday, July 17, from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. Central Time)

Half-Day Workshop

• Four Social Media Features You Can Implement Now to Boost Engagement
  (Sunday, July 17, from 9 a.m. - Noon Central Time)

Those who register for pre-Seminar workshops and the National Seminar receive discounted registration rates on pre-Seminar workshops. Register online now!

​Cancellation Policy: For pre-Seminar workshops, 25% of the workshop fee is nonrefundable for cancellations received by May 28. For cancellations received from May 29 - June 12, 50% of the workshop fee is nonrefundable. After June 12, no refunds are available. If a workshop is canceled by NSPRA due to low enrollment, its registrants may enroll in a different, similarly priced workshop of their choosing.

Two-Day Workshop

APR Prep: Get Ready for Universal Accreditation - REGISTER

Want to advance your public relations role from tactician to adviser? Then now is the time to earn your accreditation in public relations (APR).

When: Saturday, July 16, and Sunday, July 17, from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. Central Time

Where: Sheraton Grand Chicago Hotel, room TBA

Registration Fee: 

• $425 workshop only
• $375 workshop + Seminar (additional registration fee)

What to bring: Laptop/tablet

Presenters: 

Naomi Hunter, APR, has more than 26 years of experience in strategic communications and public relations in the public, private and non-profit sectors.  She served as director of communications for the Redwood City School District for more than 10 years before launching Naomi Hunter Communications in 2017. She served as president of the Public Relations Society of America, San Francisco Chapter in 2014 and currently serves on the board of the California School Public Relations Association (CalSPRA). She has presented workshops at conferences for NSPRA, CalSPRA, the Association of California School Administrators' Women in School Leadership Conference and the Association of California School Administrators' Classified Educational Leaders Institute. She is chair of NSPRA's Accreditation Committee.

Shawn McKillop, APR, has nearly 15 years of experience in school public relations. He is the manager of communications and community engagement for the Hamilton-Wentworth District School Board in Hamilton, Ontario. A co-leader of the #K12prWell movement, he has presented numerous times on personal wellness and professional accreditation at the NSPRA National Seminar and SPRA chapter conferences.  He earned a NSPRA Gold Medallion in 2019 and 2017, and was named a 2017 NSPRA Front-Runner.

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One-Day Workshops

Strategic Planning for the Overwhelmed - REGISTER

Whether you fly  solo or  have  a  communications  team, one  thing  we  all  have  in common is  no time. This session will  allow  school  public relations  practitioners  to come  together  and work to develop and improve  their  strategic  communications  plans,  as  well  as  their  knowledge  base  and skill sets, with guidance  from  other  school  PR  pros  to lean on.

Participants will have  the  opportunity  to  either  create  a  strategic  communication  plan  for  their  district or refine  the  plan  they  have  in  place.  Working with  those  with  similar  experience,  time  will be  built into this  workshop for  participants  to collaborate, organize  and write  their  plan  following  the  four-step strategic  public  relations  planning  process.  Small-group breakout discussions  based on level  of experience  will  cover  topics  most of  interest to  participants  such  as  tools  to help effective  and  efficient workflow, crisis  communications, social  media  trends, internal  engagement  and  more.

This workshop  is  open to professionals  of  any size  communications  department  or  level  of  experience. Register now!

When: Saturday, July 16, from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. Central Time

Where: Sheraton Grand Chicago Hotel, room TBA

Registration Fee:

• $389 workshop only
• $339 workshop + Seminar (additional registration fee)

What to Bring: Laptop/tablet

Presenters: 

Erica  Chandler, APR, is the director of communications for Affton School District in St. Louis, Missouri. She has been working in school public relations for 10 years, with an additional 12 years spent in concert and entertainment PR and marketing. Erica currently serves as president of the Missouri School Public Relations Association, received the MOSPRA Tina Zubeck Spirit Award in 2018, and was named an NSPRA Front-Runner in 2019. She has presented at numerous regional, state and national conferences.

Jill Filer is the director of communications and community relations for the Harrisonville School District in Harrisonville, Missouri. She has 29 years of experience in public education, first as a high school journalism teacher for eight years and then, 21 more in her current position. She has served as the president of the Missouri School Public Relations Association, and was the recipient of the MOSPRA Professional of the Year Award in 2013, the MOSPRA Tina Zubeck Spirit Award in 2015, and the MOSPRA Distinguished Service Award in 2020. She was named an NSPRA Front Runner in 2011. She has presented at numerous regional, state and national conferences.

Stephanie Smith, APR, is the director of public relations for the Fort Osage R-1 School District in Independence, Missouri. She has been with Fort Osage for 18 years. She is very active in the community, including being the past president of the Eastern Independence Rotary, past Buckner Chamber of Commerce President, and serving on various non-profit committees. In 2021 she was named a Woman of Distinction for her work with the Fort Osage School District. She is the past president of the Missouri School Public Relations Association and was named the MOSPRA Professional of the Year in 2016 and the MOSPRA Distinguished Service Award winner in 2021. She has presented at numerous regional, state and national conferences.

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The Communicating Principal: A Train-the-Trainer Approach to Improving Communication at All Levels - REGISTER

This  workshop will  prepare  you to return to  your  school district ready  to  train  your district and  campus  leaders  with  digital materials  and  templates  they  can  immediately  put to  use. Organized by  the  four-step  strategic  public  relations  planning  process,  the  workshop  will  cover  a variety of  best  practices  related to communication channels, internal  communication, customer  service, crisis messaging, and  building  communicating  cultures  and  systems.  It also  will  tackle leadership  with  an equity  lens  and  explore  school-  and district-level  communication impact  on student  success.   

Each participant  will  receive  a copy  of  the presenters' book, The  Communicating  Principal, published in fall 2021. Participants also will receive tips, checklists, templates and examples on researching,  planning and measuring communication success.   

This session is appropriate for anyone with district communication responsibilities as well as district and school leaders who want to improve their practice and share best practices with others. Register now!

When: Saturday, July 16, from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. Central Time

Where: Sheraton Grand Chicago Hotel, room TBA

Registration Fee:

• $413 workshop only (includes book)
• $363 workshop (includes book) + Seminar (additional registration fee)

What to Bring: Laptop/tablet

Presenters: 

Trinette  Marquis,  APR, is passionate about using data-driven evidence to improve school community relationships. Early in her career, she cut her public relations teeth with Fortune 500 companies, statewide nonprofits and internet start-ups, but realized something was missing. Inspired by her father’s positive contributions as a custodian, she brought her business talents back to the neighborhood school district where she grew up and eventually started her own company to help school districts throughout the country. Her work has been recognized by the National School Public Relations Association, the American Association of School Administrators, the Medical Marketing Association, and the International Association of Business Communicators. She is currently the executive director of the California School Public Relations Association and regularly presents to national audiences on public relations and communication best practices. In addition, she serves as a part-time professor at California State University, Sacramento.

Natalie Nash has served as the director of communications for south suburban school district Crete-Monee School District 201-U in Create, Illinois, since 2005. Her extensive background in communication and public relations spans a range of disciplines, from print journalist and media relations specialist to non-profit communications strategist. In 2014, she was asked by the Illinois Association of School Administrators (IASA) to write about her work with crisis communication in schools following the protests in Ferguson, Missouri. She has been honored by the Illinois School Public Relations Association (INSPRA) for Excellence in Communications. She is also the recipient of a NSPRA Golden Achievement Award. She earned her master's degree in communication from Northwestern University.

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Video Storytelling: Low-Budget Tips to Better Engage Your Audience - REGISTER

Struggling  to  truly  connect with  your  community?  Worried  your  district  is  missing out  on  social  media engagement?  This  interactive  workshop will  provide  hands-on experiences  to improve  your  video  storytelling  skills.   

Learn how  to  create  engaging  videos  in the  most  effective  and efficient  ways  possible. Discover  lowbudget  tips  and tricks  for  conducting  emotional  interviews, capturing  footage, improving  audio  and basic  mobile  editing.  Walk  away  with  completed  video  elements  specific  to  your  district.   

To ensure  you  can  get  to  work during  the  session,  bring  a  smartphone, tablet  and/or  camera  to record video. Having  access  to existing  classroom  footage  and district  graphics  is  also encouraged for  an optimal experience.  A  smartphone  or  tablet is  necessary  for  mobile  editing  activities,  but a  laptop for editing  is  also  welcome.

This  session is  intended for  those  with beginner  to  intermediate  video  skills. Register now!

When: Sunday, July 17, from 9 a.m. - 4 p.m. Central Time

Where: Sheraton Grand Chicago Hotel, room TBA

Registration Fee:

• $389 workshop only
• $339 workshop + Seminar (additional registration fee)

What to Bring: Laptop/tablet

Presenter: 

Paul Weller is the director of media services at Central Indiana Educational Service Center (CIESC), which produces marketing content for 30 public school districts around Indianapolis, Indiana. Since joining CIESC in 2013, he has produced more than 450 educational videos. As an award-winning videographer, he has presented at the NSPRA National Seminar and multiple chapter conferences. Before focusing on educational content, he worked with the Indianapolis Colts and local PBS stations.

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Half-Day Workshop 

Four Social Media Features You Can Implement Now to Boost Engagement - REGISTER

How would it  feel  to have  great  content  already  scheduled on social  media  as you start  the  2022 school  year?  It’s possible  when  you attend this  workshop!   

There are  four  common  features  that  drive  significant  engagement  for  K12  school  districts:  students, staff, alumni  and #ThrowbackThursday.  You’ll spend the  first  30  minutes  of  this  workshop viewing district  examples  of  each  type  of  feature, along  with an overview  on how  to  plan and design these features  for  your  school.  Then it’s time  to take  action!

There will be four stations, each one focusing on one  of  the  feature  types. Pick the  one  you want  to start with and get  to work. Templates will  be  available  for  you to plan and design these  social  posts, which can be  scheduled for  the  first  few  weeks  of  your  school  year.   

Get all of the pieces in place for you to share these weekly features throughout the school  year!  Register now! 

When: Sunday, July 17, from 9 a.m. - noon Central Time

Where: Sheraton Grand Chicago Hotel, room TBA

Registration Fee: 

• $250 workshop only
• $200 workshop + Seminar (additional registration fee)

What to Bring: Laptop/tablet

Presenters: 

Andrea  Gribble has spent eight years supporting K-12 schools' social media as the owner of #SocialSchool4EDU. She has a love for cheering people on, helping them do their best and shining a spotlight on their accomplishments. In high school, she cheered from the sidelines, but in her career, she celebrates through the use of technology. She is a podcast host, blogger and cheerleader for school public relations. She has presented at the NSPRA National Seminar and numerous chapter conferences.

Presenting with her will be members of the #SocialSchool4EDU team, including Chief Inspirational Officer Heidi Feller, Chief People Officer Stephanie  Sinz and membership coordinator Melissa Marti.

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