Maine Township High School District 207 was recognized for its exceptional communications efforts, being awarded six Awards of Excellence and one Award of Merit by the Illinois Chapter of the National School Public Relations Association (INSPRA), the state’s school public relations association.
INSPRA held its annual Communications Contest Awards Luncheon on September 9, where it recognized the top school communications in the state. Professional school communicators from across the country judged the hundreds of submissions. Each entry was evaluated by three judges against a rubric of excellence, with awards given to those that scored within the established ranges for merit and excellence.
District 207 Communications Director Brett Clark, APR, and Coordinator of Digital Media Dan Kolen received Awards of Excellence in the Video (in-house) category for five videos, and in the Newsletter (printed) category. One video also received an Award of Merit.
The District earned the honors for the following publications and videos:
- The “District 207 Newsletter” (https://bit.ly/D207Newsletter) earned an Award of Excellence in the Newsletter (Printed) category, honoring Director of Communications Brett Clark, APR.
- The following videos won Awards of Excellence in the Video (in-house) category honoring Coordinator of Digital Media Dan Kolen: the “My Plan, My Story” episodes of Cami Wesselkamper (https://bit.ly/MyPlanMyStoryCami) and Taras Dzhul (https://bit.ly/MyPlanMyStoryTaras), “Mike Pressler: Celebrating 30 Years in District 207” (https://bit.ly/Pressler30), “Non-Tenure Coaching Academy in District 207” (https://bit.ly/NTCAVideo), and “Maine South Construction Tour of Remodeled Spaces” (https://bit.ly/MSConsTour).
- The video “Maine West’s New Commons Grand Opening” (https://bit.ly/WestCommons) won an Award of Merit.
“It’s an honor to be recognized by INSPRA as we work to tell a wide range of compelling stories of our incredible students and faculty within our school community,” says District 207 Superintendent Dr. Ken Wallace. “Digital storytelling is a critical communication and teaching medium for us to continue to evolve as an organization, and I am so proud of the the work of Dan Kolen and Brett Clark in our Communications Department in developing powerful vignettes that help communicate to our communities the important work being done to advance public education in our schools.”.
“We are proud to recognize the winners of the 2022 Communications Contest, who demonstrate excellence in communicating clearly, effectively, and creatively with their school districts and communities,” INSPRA President Tom Jackson says. “Having a robust communications presence in education has never been more important as we emerge from the pandemic and face numerous other challenges in educating today’s students. The exemplary work of these professionals is a testament to their commitment to serve their students, staff and communities.”