Mideast Region Chapter Reports March 2014 Prepared by: Barbara Hunter, APR, NSPRA Mideast Region Vice President Assistant Superintendent, Communications and Community Outreach Fairfax County Public Schools, Falls Church, Va. bmhunter1@fcps.edu VP s General Overview Overall, school division finances are impacting the work of school public relations professionals in the Mideast Region. This severely limits or eliminates travel to chapter conferences, which impacts the financial health of the chapter. School district budget cuts are also resulting in eliminating the public relations function and/or drastically limiting their operating budgets. School districts are being called upon to do more and more with less and less. VP s Environmental Scan Common Core continues to be the top issue cited among Mideast chapters (except for Virginia which is not a Common Core state). In addition, decline in state and federal education spending, unfunded mandates and school vouchers (Indiana) appear to be among the top issues. Chesapeake Chapter of the National School Public Relations Association (Virginia, Maryland, DC, West Virginia) Chapter Well-Being The chapter continues to improve in terms of finances and in our continued efforts to grow membership. We focused attention this past fall to increase paid memberships. As of February 2014, CHESPRA has 129 active, paid members, the highest number anyone can remember for some time. Because the larger number of members live and work in Virginia, we have focused attention to increase the number of Maryland members. The District of Columbia continues to be unresponsive to any outreach to join or attend CHESPRA events, and West Virginia has a limited number of staff and, for those in that state, the commute to Virginia or Maryland for conferences is either too long or too costly. Because Maryland has only 24 school divisions compared to 133 school divisions in Virginia, this imbalance continues to be a challenge. In addition, there have been several leadership changes in Maryland school divisions over the past six months, so we are working on ways to reach out to new colleagues as they are hired, to encourage them to consider joining CHESPRA as a source for professional development and support. We continue to see greater participation and engagement with our members as evidenced by attendance at our most recent fall conference. Finally, the chapter s financial operations continue to be strong, with a balance of $16,256.26 (as of 2/20/2014). Fall 2013 Conference The Fall Conference was held on November 7 and 8 at the Crowne-Plaza Richmond Downtown Hotel in Richmond, Va. We had 65 members register for the conference, believed to be the largest in chapter history, building on the momentum from our 2013 spring conference in Baltimore, Md. Conference speakers and
topics included Social Media Next by Evelyn McCormack, NSPRA vice presidentat-large for technology and innovation; and Stirring the Pot or Calming the Waters: Effective Issues Management by Bob Mosier, Anne Arundel County, Md., Public Schools. The conference also included the popular Back Story featuring a presentation by one member s about a recent communication dilemma or crisis, including steps taken and a debriefing on what worked and what didn t, and lessons learned. The seminar also included Roundtable Discussions (similar to the NSPRA Gold Mine Sessions), and breakout sessions from representatives from both the Maryland and Virginia state education departments, as well as from members and sponsors. CHESPRA continued to use its weekly Email Blasts to market the fall conference. These short blasts are well designed and attractive, and members regularly cite them as the primary marketing effort that led them to register for the conference or join the Chapter because the email design and content caught their attention in the midst of a daily avalanche of emails. A post-conference survey indicated that 59.26% of the respondents were Very Satisfied with the conference, and 37.04% were Satisfied. Upcoming Chapter Projects Attention has now turned to the CHESPRA spring conference, which will be held April 3 and 4 at the Grand Hotel in Ocean City, Md. Featured speakers include Nora Carr, APR, NSPRA president, who will speak about strategic planning, and Mike Mather, a local TV reporter in Virginia Beach, Va., who will speak about handling difficult media interviews. We will also again have the representatives from the Maryland and Virginia State Departments of Education, as well as the Spark roundtable sessions. Major Chapter Issues The CHESPRA Board and Seminar Host Planning Committee are busy preparing for the NSPRA conference to be held in Baltimore in 2014. Teri Kranefeld, formerly the manager of communications from the Harford County, Md., Public Schools, has left the school system as well as public education. At this time it is unclear whether or not she can continue to chair the committee. However, SchoolMessenger has been secured as the sponsor of the event, which will be held at the National Aquarium at the Inner Harbor in Baltimore, and work is underway in conjunction with SchoolMessenger on planning the details of the evening. We will also soon begin planning the sign-up dinners and what will be handed out at the chapter s table in Baltimore. Issues or Areas that Could Use NSPRA Regional Support Understanding that many CHESPRA members continue to struggle with limited or no travel budgets due to the impact of reductions in local and state funding, we continue to focus on keeping our regional conferences affordable through a successful sponsorship program. We use available chapter funds and/or sponsorships to buy down the cost of the rooms to keep the conference room rates under $100 per night. In addition, all meals, including food and beverages during conference breaks, are being underwritten fully by our chapter sponsors. Sponsors include School Messenger, Relatrix, Blackboard, Alboum Associates, Parent Link Education Funding Partners, and PeachJar. To add value to our sponsors and build loyalty, we
added an opportunity for our major sponsors to be presenters in our Spark mini sessions during the fall conference. The same sponsors will be in place for the spring conference. In these difficult economic times, the CHESPRA board believes that we need to continue to make this conference a reasonably priced professional development option for members so that their district funding can cover the cost or so that, in the event of members who pay to attend using their own personal funds, participation is personally affordable. The board also believes that the greatest service CHESPRA can offer members is time to network, exchange ideas and build contacts to support our work. Underwriting the full cost of all meals and other expenses for participants has resulted in a significant increase in participation at our last three conferences. Our focus continues to be holding the cost of the two-day conference to $100-125 to ensure that participation is affordable for members, both for those paying with their district budget as well as for members who are paying to attend with personal funds. The Board will continue to explore sponsorship relationships to keep participation affordable for members. Local/State Issues to Watch As a benefit for CHESPRA members, we continue to work with the state PR representatives from Virginia and Maryland to include them in our Conference programs. Time is set aside during our program for state discussions. In addition, CHESPRA underwrites the hotel costs for state communications staff to attend the conference to encourage informal and casual discussions and collaboration between our members and their state communications team during the conference. We believe that facilitating this time is a major benefit to our members. Issues we continue to focus on include: Reduced funding for public education through federal, state or local revenue streams; Staff morale; Pay for performance, teacher tenure and teacher evaluation legislation; Winning or maintaining support from those without children in schools (the majority of the population); Changing demographics and engaging minority families in public education; Future changes in state accountability and ESEA requirements. Common Core rollout (for our Maryland members). A-F school report cards (for our Virginia members). Kentucky School Public Relations Association (KYSPRA) Chapter Well Being Kentucky s chapter is doing well. Membership is remaining steady at more than 150. The resources provided via KYSPRA are acknowledged by the membership as valid and valued. 2013-2014 KYSPRA Board Meetings held thus far include: September 17, 2013, November 4, 2013 and February 18, 2014.
We have a Board meeting planned for March 20, 2014, in Bardstown, KY, which will be held in conjunction with our Spring Retreat to which our full-membership is invited. Chapter Projects/Collaboration Efforts Professional Development Program: KYSPRA and the Kentucky School Boards Association (KSBA) are continuing to work together to further enhance the professional development opportunity provided by the OASIS (Outstanding Achievement in School Information Services) Awards program. Spring Conference: The KYSPRA Spring Retreat theme is Tricks of the Trade. The focus is on sharpening the skills school public relations professionals already have and possibly adding a few new tricks to the bag. Mentoring: We are continuing to mentor new members who have also sought KYSPRA s assistance. One new member is working with her mentor regularly and had attended the professional development opportunities offered. Professional Development Programs/Activities The chapter s main conference the fall conference was held November 4 and 5 in Bowling Green, KY. The conference had nearly 70 participants in the sessions and nearly 90 at the OASIS awards banquet. The fall 2012 conference was moved to the summer to collaborate with the Kentucky Association of School Administrators annual conference, but attendance fell sharply. As a Board, we voted to move the conference back to the fall and saw our attendance rise to the levels of previous years. Each year, KYSPRA works with the Kentucky School Boards Association (KSBA) to host the Annual OASIS Awards Program. OASIS, which stands for Outstanding Achievement in School Information Services gives KYSPRA members the opportunity to submit a variety of work samples for a review, scoring, and feedback from professionals in the applicable field. Our OASIS Awards Banquet was held in November 2013. This program has proven itself to be a valuable source of professional development and recognition for outstanding achievement. Many district administrators attend the OASIS Awards Banquet to show their support for the work being done across the state. KYSPRA maintains a speakers bureau from among the KYSPRA membership which provides regional chairpersons a resource for obtaining local professional development at no or minimal cost. Major Chapter Issues or Concerns The major concern of the Kentucky School Public Relations Association is the declining attendance at state-wide retreats and conferences. The decline in attendance has potential to affect the quality of our events, and of course, our association s financial wellbeing, as our conferences have traditionally been the major source of income. Sadly, smaller numbers also mean professionals in the field who once were receiving annual trainings are no longer doing so, which may have a negative impact on the effectiveness of the profession at large. We feel the decline in attendance is due to budget constraints throughout the state. We have sought ways to address the declining numbers and have made adjustments accordingly.
Issues or areas that could use NSPRA regional or national support See below. State or local issues that NSPRA should keep an eye on Budget concerns remain in the forefront. Continually tightening budgets have resulted in some districts making the decision to cut from their payroll individuals uniquely qualified in public relations. Other districts have maintained their personnel, but have severely limited their public relations operating, travel, and professional development budgets thus potentially limiting the effectiveness of the PR practitioners. Very simply, schools are being called upon to do more with less. Additional items of note KYSPRA is looking forward to an exciting and busy year and we invite anyone to join us for our spring retreat March 20 and 21 in Bardstown or our fall conference in November. Indiana School Public Relations Association (INSPRA) Chapter well-being Fiscally thriving; stable membership, regular board meetings and several Power Hours sponsored by our chapter for members Chapter projects/collaboration efforts Our chapter had a table at the School Board Association state conference and presented at two Center for Leadership and Learning conferences this winter. Hugely successful. Professional development programs/activities Spoke about social media and marketing Sponsoring Power Hours for members and coordinating our state conference on April 18 (our second one ever). Conference is entitled Let s Talk Money The Road to Referenda. We also send out monthly Tip Sheets to members. Major chapter issues or concerns Difficult to get people together from all over the state. Same people always doing all the work. Issues or areas that could use NSPRA regional or national support Reference material; guidance for putting on a state conference. State or local issues that NSPRA should keep an eye on School vouchers; unfunded mandates; Common Core Standards Additional items of note Chapter is doing well. This year we had board member retire and have hired her as the Executive Director which is helping out tremendously.
Michigan Chapter Report (MSPRA) Chapter well-being Regular in-person board meetings monthly, with more members participating via phone Healthy finances; have taken many steps to reduce costs over the past 5 years Membership crisis in state due to loss of jobs and stress on existing members Chapter projects/collaboration efforts Reviving and renewing an electronic library in collaboration with our state superintendents group Professional development programs/activities Final preparations for our Annual Conference, March 13 14; have a great line-up of speakers, sessions Working to finalize materials and revised processes for our Communications Contest; planning to hand out promo materials at the Conference. This important project has struggled at the hands of a group or members all from local districts (explained below) Major chapter issues or concerns Decline in school jobs for professional communicators Extreme job stress of the communicators left, especially hard on those in local districts. Not a single board member from a local district has been able to participate in meetings or activities this year, and when we hear from them, they are dealing with an impossible task list Losing board members to work load, both from local districts and ISDs Chapter workload shouldered by a very small, but extremely dedicated group Issues or areas that could use NSPRA regional or national support I wish I knew; just making you aware of this chapter s struggle is a good thing State or local issues that NSPRA should keep an eye on Common Core debate as a surrogate for displeasure with standardized tests Public s ignorance/unwillingness to examine the root cause of so many education issues, which is poverty Interesting collaborations, such as those with business community and K12 over career readiness and National Career Readiness Certificate Ohio School Public Relations Association (OHSPRA) No report was provided.