Rockwood Communications Team Earns National Awards from NSPRA

The Rockwood School District has been recognized by the National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA) for its efforts to inform our community across multiple channels, including an Excellence award and three Merit awards. 

Each year, more than 100 experienced communication professionals from around the country volunteer to serve as judges in NSPRA's National School Communication Awards contest using a set of established criteria based on industry best practices.

In the 2025 National School Communication Awards, Rockwood earned an Excellence award for its eNewsletter, Rockwood eNews. The newsletter represents the combined efforts of the entire Rockwood Communications team – Chief Communications Officer Mary LaPak, coordinator of web services Chris Bennett, communications coordinator David Morrison, digital communications specialist Curtis Brennecke, communications administrative assistant Katherine Miller, senior webmaster Terra Miller, school and community relations specialist Kate Moore and senior internal communications specialist Andrew Shin – and is produced weekly by Morrison for an audience of more than 37,000 Rockwood community members. 

Rockwood earned one of only 59 Excellence awards for Newsletter nationally and is the only recipient from the state of Missouri.

Rockwood also earned three Merit awards for:

• Photography - A Warm Welcome Back (by Shin) – one of 92 nationally to earn Excellence or Merit and five from Missouri 
• Video Series - the Snow Day series (by Brennecke, with assistance from Moore and students from all four Rockwood high schools) – one of 91 nationally to earn Excellence or Merit and two from Missouri
• Writing - Partners in Education Celebrates 40 Years of Enriching Rockwood Students’ Educational Experience (by Morrison) – one of 155 nationally to earn Excellence or Merit and five from Missouri

"Words cannot express how proud I am of our team for winning multiple national communications awards,” LaPak said. “They are talented individuals who are committed to the Rockwood mission, and they do outstanding work celebrating and informing Rockwood patrons on a daily basis.”

The Rockwood Communications team’s work is displayed on the NSPRA website and will be honored during the Annual Meeting and Celebration of Achievement at the NSPRA 2025 National Seminar on Sunday, July 20, at the Washington Hilton in Washington, D.C. Winning entries will also be spotlighted in a display at the Seminar as well as in association member eNewsletters in the coming school year.