Finding Common Grounds at NSPRA 2024

The Nichols Strategies team recently returned from the National School Public Relations Association’s 2024 National Seminar, held in beautiful Bellevue, Wa. This year’s seminar drew a record number of participants, and our team embraced the opportunity to connect with so many talented school PR colleagues from across North America. Here are some of our team’s top takeaways from this year’s “Finding Common Grounds” conference:

Celebrating our wins

The NSPRA Seminar is a celebration of our profession and a chance to reflect on hard work done well. We were honored to share two NSRPRA Publications and Digital Media Excellence awards this year with the San Benito High School District.

San Benito High School District National School Public Relations Association Award of Merit Award of Excellence 2024

  • Nichols Strategies helped the district create a Fast Facts one-pager, highlighting the programs and achievements that make Hollister High School special. The handout received an Award of Excellence for Marketing Material.
  • In addition, Nichols Strategies prepared a comprehensive sentiment analysis report for the San Benito, summarizing more than 1,300 comments received during a series of 12 public engagement sessions during the Fall of 2023. This K-8 Listening Sessions Report received an Award of Merit for Special Purpose Publication.

Congratulations to San Benito High School District!

School PR is a universal language

Our remote team had the opportunity to network with school PR professionals from the regions where we all reside, and it was enlightening to see how easily we all found common grounds. East Coast or West, big school district or small, our team found that our shared experiences as school communications professionals far outweigh any local differences.

A white woman spekas into a microphone in a room crowded full of seated people
Nichols Strategies Vice President for Strategic Communications Emily Popek, APR, drew a crowd for her presentation on “From Short-Order Cook to Master Chef: Taking Control of Your Workflow”

No one has to go it alone

We met many of our school PR colleagues who are running a “one-person shop” – singlehandedly managing communications for their entire school district. Even in small districts, that’s a massive job. That’s why Nichols Strategies offers bespoke communications support for school districts of any size, tailored to each community’s specific needs. From high-level executive coaching and crisis communications, to graphic design and social media management, our team is here to reach out that helping hand we know so many school districts could use.

We made some great friends and deepened so many relationships at NSPRA this year, and we’d love to build a relationship with you. Reach a hand out to us today to learn more about how Nichols Strategies can support your district this school year.