School PR Happy Hour

For the past 9 months, CESO Communications has been hosting monthly webinars on their Youtube channel. This month Justin and Nicole Kirby, APR are bringing that format to podcast. You can learn more about these professional development opportunities on CESO Communications's LinkedIn and X accounts.

Becca and Alex, a teacher in Illinois, talk about the role communications and administration play in the day to day for teachers and how we as administers can step up and help out!

Justin is joined by show co-host Becca Latham and School PR pro, David O. to talk about their APR journeys. All three are in the middle of the process somewhere and wanted to share whats working for them, what worries them and some of the roadblocks we all have faced. This is a bit of a different approach to our usual show. We hope you enjoy the raw uncut feel of this very transparent conversation.

Whether it is closing schools due to dropping enrollment or your community questioning all things finance, we are all dealing with complex issues in School PR. Julie and Justin chat about how to communicate during these times. The main focus of this episode is financial transparency, but many of the ideas shared work with many complex issues. Thanks for being here!

As you know we like to flip the script a little around Valentine's Day and feature guests that we may not hear from on the regular. In the past it has been spouses, significant others, or kids of the hosts... Today, we get to meet Becca's boyfriend Keith and hear his thoughts on the stresses of School PR.

Becca is joined by one of NSPRA's Golden Achievement Award Winners, Jacqueline Paul, Director of Communications with Jurupa Unified School District in California. Jaqueline shares some of the creative approaches her HR and Communications team collaborated on to get GREAT results in staff recruitment! Enjoy!

Justin is joined by co-founder of SPRHH, Erin McCann to get an update on her life and talk about the similarities and differences between SchoolPR and the Aviation Industry. We hope everyone had a great holiday season and we are pumped for 2024!

Becca is joined by Karen Eber, the author of the recently released book, "The Perfect Story". They take a deep dive into telling stories that inform, influence and inspire. We hope you enjoy this conversation.

School PR Happy Hour is officially on hiatus to spend some time with loved ones over the holiday season, but we will be back with more content and more episodes for you on January 15, 2024! Cheers Happy Hour family!

Justin is joined by Ben Pankonin from Class Intercom to talk about a new "job title" in Ben's life and how that is forcing him to look at content... and life... a little differently. With the advances in AI of late, we as School PR Pros have to stay connected to content that is distinctly human. What does that mean and how can we use it everyday? Learn more in this episode.

Thanks for being here!

Becca is joined by one of her close, non-#SchoolPR friends, Chris Way, to talk about life in a non-profit and how it directly correlates with our industry. This candid conversation is so much fun and so encouraging!

One tip everyone should take from the show... Get Screened! Screening saves lives! #AmericanCancerSociety

Justin is joined by his colleague and friend, Bob Noyed, APR, Vice President of Communications for CESO Communications to talk about Branding and how it is vital in a competitive marketplace. Justin nerds out easily on this topic, so be warned, this episode is a bit longer than our usual episode. This episode was also recorded during the first round of the MLB Playoffs, and we can't post this one without saying... Go Rangers!

Becca is joined today by Becca Bultsma and they are talking EVERYTHING AI and Chat GPT! This topic is a hot one across all of our networks right now. We hope that after you hear this one, you will step outside of your comfort zone and try it out!

Thanks for being here.

We hope you enjoy today's show that takes a bit of a scientific turn. If you are into True Crime or if you are a Dr. Spencer Reid from Criminal Minds superfan, today's topic will be one you love! We are talking about profiling and engaging your community like an FBI Agent. This NSPRA 23 session was a trending session around the seminar and we knew we needed to bring on Sondra Whalen, APR to discuss.

Thanks for being here!

Becca Lathem, the new co-host of the School PR Happy Hour podcast, interviews Trent Allen, APR, the soon to be incoming president of NSPRA. Trent is the Chief of Staff at San Juan Unified School District. He discusses various topics, including his background in school PR, his journey from tech PR to education PR, the recent launch of a new logo and style guide, and his role as the incoming president of NSPRA. The two also spend time talking about next year's big event Seattle! Thanks for joining us!

In the Season 5 launch of School PR Happy Hour, hosts Justin Dearing and Becca Latham introduce the new season with excitement and anticipation. They thank their sponsors, Class Intercom and CESO Communications, for their support. Justin expresses his gratitude to Erin McCann APR, the previous co-host, and introduces Becca as the new co-host. They discuss their upcoming plans for the season, including exploring various topics in the school PR industry, featuring guests, and engaging in insightful conversations. The hosts hint at the diverse and engaging content to come, such as discussions on social media, web design, branding, student enrollment, and self-care.

Justin and Ben from Class Intercom talk about the latest fish to jump in the pool, Threads. Is it legit? Is it worth playing with? Should your schools be on the platform? Do we really know these answers after only 8 days of life?

We also look ahead to the NSPRA Seminar in St. Louis and talk about what School PR Happy Hour have planned for the week! See ya in St. Louis #SchoolPR

Erin and Justin look back at the goals they set at the beginning of the season and reflect on the fourth season of this podcast. Stick around until the end for a show announcement about Season 5.

Thank you as always for listening and engaging with us during this adventure!

Join Erin as she chats about the outstanding teaching career and recent change to the EdTech world of Scott Nunes from Canva. They spend some time talking about some of the latest additions to the Canva arsenal when it comes to content creation! We hope you enjoy this conversation!

Justin is joined by everyone's School PR BFF, Andrea Gribble to chat about her new book, tips to finish strong this school year and a few things you can do this summer to get ahead of the game going into next summer!

Our Brene Brown fans out there are going to enjoy this one! Justin sat down with his friend Tony who was recently named Teacher of the Year for a local high school to talk about how Communications folks can make their job easier. The true gems of this episode come in hearing the passion that Tony has for teaching and impacting his students. There are teachers like Tony in every district out there. We need to find them and show them off!

This was a fun conversation between Erin and, the BFF of the SPRHH, Ben Pankonin from Class Intercom on AI's role in School PR. A few office references and a lot of AI nuggets were shared in this episode. Thanks for being here!

Justin is joined by Mitch Roush to talk podcasting in schools in 2023! Things may look a little different now than they did before the pandemic, but Podcasting is still a great opportunity to meet your parents where they are and share the story of your district!

Guest Host Julie Thannum, APR is joined by Melissa Robinette and Ashley-Michelle Thublin, APR to discuss different ways School PR pros can make an impact no matter where they are in their careers!

Justin is joined by Elishia Seals to talk about why the #SchoolPR community is SO special and unique!

Erin is joined by Tyler ISD's Jennifer Hines to talk about how Tyler ISD is doing Staff Recruitment differently. Listen to learn more about switching from a school to a business mindset when it comes to recruiting the best in brightest teachers and staff available.

Are the Robots taking over? Is Short-Form Video here to stay? What happens when no traditional media folks are hanging out in our districts anymore!?

2023 is shaping up to be an interesting year in the School PR world and Justin is talking about with Sarah-Jane Menefee from Rappoport Academy in Waco Texas!

Justin is joined by one of his favorite people in the world, Tracy Jentz, APR to talk about mentoring and reverse mentoring. During this episode, you will learn about a new service that NSPRA offers that can help match you with the perfect mentor or mentee! We hope you enjoy this episode and we will be back on January 15 after a few weeks off with our families! Happy Holidays, School PR!

In the front half of the show, Erin sits down with Brian Bradley to talk about everything from idea generation to talent acquisition for his podcast 90 Degrees South. In the second half of the show, Justin and David Olsen chat about takeaways from that interview that pertain to School PR. We hope you enjoy our second "What Can We Learn From...." episode!

Justin is joined by Melissa Reese to chat about Instagram Reels, Parent/Student Engagement and a small NFL rivalry. (Go Cowboys!) This episode is perfect for the person who is a little skeptical of jumping into the TikToks or the Instagram Reels area of social media!

Erin is joined by Mandee Puleo, APR to talk about communicating through tense situations both locally and nationally. With Mid-Term elections approaching dive into a communications approach, backed by the RPIE model, that can help unite your community during these potentially divisive times! 

This is the first episode in a series this season where we go outside of School PR and pick the brains of some of the brightest folks in other industries. Today, Travis Brown (@travisbrown on Instagram) is here sharing his expertise in content creation and workflow. The second half of the show features a conversation with show favorite Adam Harris on his takeaways from Travis' interview!

Two Shows in One Day! Welcome to Season 4!

Erin and Justin are BACK for season 4 of School PR Happy Hour! This season is about learning from the best in brightest in School PR and industries outside of education. Today's show is a little life update with our hosts and forecasting this incredible season they have planned.

We missed you all! We are so happy to be back!

Justin and Erin wrap up another excellent season of School PR Happy Hour. They talk about life updates, their favorite episodes and look ahead at the future of SPRHH. Thank you to our Happy Hour Friends that listened and joined us on the show this season, and a HUGE thank you to Class Intercom for their continued support of the show.  Get some rest #SchoolPR, it's summer!

For the last regular episode of the season, it's a meeting of the Erins!  Erin McCann talks with Erin Gregg of Lubbock ISD about creative comms strategy in a district with declining enrollment.

Erin and Justin will have their final episode of the season with a season wrap up on June 1!

Justin is joined by Christy McGee, APR to talk about the important work of NSPRA's APR Committee. 

Join Mary Ellen Rowe as she and Erin talk through some early PR Practitioners and the lessons that we, as School PR Professionals, can learn from them.

Justin is joined by Klein ISD's Justin Elbert and Chelsea Ceballos to talk about their presentation from the 2022 TSPRA Conference about Hugging Your Haters! For me, this was the perfect presentation at just about the perfect time. Hope you enjoy!

It's been tough for School PR professionals lately and some of our peers are evaluating how they want to spend the remainder of their career.  The opportunities for growth, learning and change are endless if you are strategic about the choices you make.  Dr. Amanda Holdsworth, APR, joins Erin to talk about her story in #SchoolPR and why she made her choices along her journey.

Justin is joined by Dr. Jill Johnson from Class Intercom and they discuss the power of building students as content creators! 

Happy (belated) Valentine's Day!

This year, we knew you needed to feel the love on a more professional basis.  Dr. Georgeanne Warnock, Superintendent of Schools in Terrell ISD and one of NSPRA's Superintendents to watch, talks with Erin about the value that School PR practitioners bring to the field of education.

This month's episode is a little different than past episodes. Due to moving, COVID and all the things... Justin JUST got internet in time to post this show. This month, we bring you a recast of the webinar Erin and Justin took part in with our friends from Class Intercom in December.

Enjoy the show!

Welcome to 2022!

We'd say "Wow!  What a year last year was,"but it's becoming redundant at this point.  Instead, School PR Happy Hour is looking forward to the work we may all be called to do this year - assist our HR departments in hiring great teachers.

Jason Wheeler, CPC, from Garland ISD comes back to the show to share what he focuses on regarding recruitment marketing.

We love emergent media at School PR Happy Hour, and the chance to talk to one of the Virtual Reality pioneers was too good to pass up!

Erin talks with Amber Krasinski about VR, AR and how School PR practitioners can work this media form into K12 schools

Justin and Becca Latham have a candid conversation about the importance of meeting people where they are in times of uncertainty. We hope you enjoy this episode!

We are obsessed with professional development at School PR Happy Hour, and Erin had the opportunity to sit down with one of the most fun and innovative Strategic Communication professors around. Dr. Lambiase heads up the Certified Public Communicator program at Texas Christian University and talks about the value in having a strong strategic plan.

Skyler Hefley from Tyler ISD joins Justin to talk about a variety of topics centered around Marketing and the Customer Experience. Skyler is a wrapping up his first year in School PR and has brought a new energy to this industry. We hope you enjoy meeting Skyler from Tyler!