BCPS scores nine CHESPRA awards for communications

Awards reflect achievement in digital, traditional communications

The Ravens aren’t the only champions in town!

Coming on the heels of the Baltimore-based football team’s victory against the Pittsburgh Steelers is the news that, in 2014, Baltimore County Public Schools’ Department of Communications and Community Outreach received nine communications awards from CHESPRA, the Chesapeake chapter of the National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA).

“Each of these awards is a major honor,” said Superintendent Dr. S. Dallas Dance. “The fact that BCPS earned nine awards in one year speaks volumes about its strong commitment to providing the community with information that is not only timely and transparent but also educational and engaging.”

Reflecting achievement in both digital and traditional communications, the honors include:

• Multi-media Blog Award of Excellence for Deliberate Excellence (www.deliberateexcellence.wordpress.com)
• Web – Internet Subsection Award of Excellence for BCPS Careers (http://www.bcps.org/jobs/)
• Web – Internet Homepage Award of Excellence for Team BCPS (http://www.bcps.org/teamBCPS/)
• Print Op-ed Award of Excellence for “How Technology Will Help Students,” an op-ed by Superintendent Dallas Dance in The Baltimore Sun (http://bit.ly/1HGy1dz)
• Print Speech Award of Merit for the 2014 State of the Schools address (http://www.bcps.org/stateoftheschools/pdf/DanceSotS.pdf)
• Print Special Publication Award of Excellence for the human resources teacher recruitment brochure
• Multi-media Video Award of Merit for Chat Café, a program on BCPS-TV (http://bit.ly/1AmwJU6)
• Miscellaneous – Special Event Award of Merit for State of the Schools (https://www.bcps.org/stateoftheschools/)
• Special Campaign Award of Merit for “We Are Team BCPS” (http://www.bcps.org/teamBCPS/)

One of 17 school systems recognized by CHESPRA last year, BCPS ranks second only to Newport News Public Schools and Virginia Beach City Public Schools in the number of honors earned. Those school districts each received 10 awards.

Annually, the CHESPRA Communications Contest recognizes the outstanding communications efforts of private and public school systems in the District of Columbia, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia with awards of excellence, merit and honorable mention. To participate in the competition, school systems must submit communications materials that fall into one of the four contest categories, print, web, multi-media and miscellaneous. Winning school districts receive their awards at the annual Fall CHESPRA Conference.

For more information on the CHESPRA Communications Contest, visit http://www.chespra.org/Page/23.