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

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.
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.
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.
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.
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.