Awards

The CHESPRA Communications Contest recognizes outstanding communications produced by public school districts located in the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia.

Winners are announced during the Fall CHESPRA Conference and posted on the CHESPRA website. 

Each entry costs $20 for members and $30 for non-members.

Contact Jaclyn Goddette at jaclyn.goddette@acps.k12.va.us with questions about the contest. The submission deadline is 5 p.m. on Oct. 4, 2023.

How to Submit

CHESPRA Award Submission Form 2023

 

Please use the CHESPRA submission form hosted through the National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA) to submit your entries/nominations at https://www.nspra.org/award-apply. If you have a website account with NSPRA, please use your credentials to log in. If you do not have an NSPRA website account, you may use the "Login as a Guest" button. NOTE: Logging in as a guest will not allow you to save and return to a submission to finalize at a later time. If you'd like the option to save and return to a submission, click the "Login (NSPRA)" button and follow the prompts to create an NSPRA website account. You do NOT need to be a member of NSPRA to create an account.

Please enter only one entry per submission form. If you wish to submit additional/multiple entries/nominations, complete a new submission form for each.

Upon completion of the submission form, click "Add to Cart" and "Check Out" to submit. Review the payment instructions displayed and click "Process." A confirmation email will be sent to your email address with a payment link.Please note that your entry/entries will not be complete until payment is submitted.

Print, Electronic and Campaign Awards

Purpose

To recognize outstanding communications produced by school divisions and local schools in the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia and to encourage Chesapeake Chapter members to evaluate and enhance their communications.

Eligibility

Any public school divisions (K-12), including special schools such as vocational-technical centers, located in the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia.

Judging and Recognition

• The top award in each category is the Award of Excellence, followed by the Award of Merit and Honorable Mention.
• Entries will not be judged against each other, and awards will be given in any category only if merited.
• Entries will be judged against criteria for content and design. Districts and divisions of all sizes are encouraged to submit entries.
• Judging will be conducted by media and public relations professionals who work for entities not eligible to enter the contest.
• Winners will be notified and awards will be distributed at the Fall CHESPRA Conference.

Rules

Entries not meeting these requirements will not be considered for the contest.

• Entries must be produced during the PRIOR school year, 2022-2023 (July 1, 2022 through June 30, 2023).
• All entries, both print and electronic, must be submitted in some digital form, either via URL or file upload.
• The same publication may not be entered in more than one category. Choose the primary distribution method when deciding on submission category.
• Multiple issues of the same publication count as one entry.
• Student-written and/or student-produced publications are not eligible for this contest.
• Entries must be received 5 p.m. on Oct. 4, 2023.

CHESPRA School Communicator of the Year

Purpose

To recognize outstanding professionals in school communications who work in the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia.

Eligibility

The nominee must be an employee of a public school division, including special schools such as vocational-technical centers, located in the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia, and West Virginia. The nominee must also be a member of CHESPRA and the NSPRA.

Judging and Recognition

Nominees will be judged on the following criteria:

• Leadership: Demonstrated leadership in successfully meeting the communication needs of their school system or educational service agency. Examples may include leading successful communication campaigns, overcoming an internal communication challenge or creating a robust strategic communication plan.
• Communication: Demonstrated strength in both personal and organizational communication. Examples may include evidence of persuasion, the power of engagement or influence in decision making.
• Professionalism: Constant improvement of knowledge and skills, while providing professional development opportunities and mentoring to others. Examples may include achieving accreditation in public relations (APR), participating in NSPRA’s Mentor Match program or serving as a speaker at the chapter or national level.
• Community Involvement: Active participation in their local community activities and an understanding of regional, national and international issues. Examples may include volunteering in their local community, organizing a fund-raising event for their community or writing an article that demonstrates broad knowledge of the complexities of public education.

Judging will be conducted by media and public relations professionals who work for entities not eligible to enter the contest.

Winners will be notified and awards will be distributed at the Fall CHESPRA Conference.

Rules

Entries not meeting these requirements will not be considered for the contest.

All entries must include the following submission materials:

• Biographical Sketch: Name of nominee, title, organization, years in school PR and one paragraph outlining their career and current role.
• Letter of Support: No more than one page outlining why the nominator believes the nominee is deserving of the award, with reference to the criteria and examples of the nominee's accomplishments.
• Additional Materials (Optional): Up to five pages of additional materials, which may include work samples, evaluations/awards or additional letters of support.

Nominators may only nominate one person. Group nominations are welcomed.

Entries must be received by 5 p.m. on Oct. 4, 2023.