The School District of Pickens County (SDPC) is proud to announce that 10 schools, the SDPC Work-Based Learning Program, and the district communications office have earned a combined 30 awards from the South Carolina chapter of the National School Public Relations Association (SC/NSPRA) and the National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA) for their exceptional communication efforts. This recognition places SDPC among South Carolina’s top-performing districts, with the second-highest total of awards statewide.

Twenty-nine awards were presented to SDPC during the annual SCNSPRA Rewards for Excellence celebration, which honors outstanding communication projects and strategies that strengthen trust and engagement between schools and their communities. This program recognizes outstanding communications and public relations efforts by South Carolina schools, school districts, education agencies, and associations. Public relations veterans from across the US with extensive experience in educational and business communications evaluated over 390 entries. SC/NSPRA recognized the following SDPC schools for their award-winning entries: Dacusville Elementary, D.W. Daniel High, Easley High, Forest Acres Elementary, Gettys Middle, Liberty Elementary, Liberty Primary, McKissick Academy, R.C. Edwards Middle, and West End Elementary.

In addition to the 29 state-level awards, SDPC also received a Golden Achievement Award at the national level from the National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA). The nationally recognized submission, highlighting the communication plan for the SDPC Work-Based Learning Program, was created by Anna Esuary, Work-Based Learning Facilitator, and Caroline Morris, SDPC Marketing & Communications Specialist. More information can be found on the NSPRA website: https://www.nspra.org/Awards/Award-Winners/2025-Golden-Achievement-Award-Winners.

“This recognition at the state and national levels speaks to the incredible work happening every day across our district,” said Dr. Darian Byrd, Chief Communications Officer for SDPC. “We are proud not only of the awards earned by our Communications Department, but especially of the fact that 10 different schools and our Work-Based Learning Program contributed to our total of 30 awards. That kind of representation reflects our shared commitment to clear, creative, and consistent communication throughout the entire school system.”

The Rewards for Excellence Program features three award programs:

Publications and Digital Media Excellence Awards

· For individual products designed to improve communication. This program recognizes outstanding work in print and digital publications, video, audio, websites, social media, and more. These are focused on stand-alone projects and documents. Golden Achievement Awards

· For a single project or an aspect of a comprehensive program. This program recognizes outstanding, strategic work in all aspects of school public relations, communications, marketing, and engagement. Gold Medallion Awards

· For comprehensive public relations programs. This program recognizes superior educational public relations programs and campaigns grounded in strategic communication best practices.

This year, 11 schools/programs within the district earned a combined 30 awards:

SDPC Site Publications and Digital Media Excellence Awards Golden Achievement Awards

State Level Awards

SDPC Communications Department 4

Dacusville Elementary 2

D.W. Daniel High 11

Easley High 21

Forest Acres Elementary 4

Gettys Middle 1

Liberty Elementary 21

Liberty Primary 5

McKissick Academy 2

R.C. Edwards Middle 2

West End Elementary 1

National Level Award

SDPC Communications Department & Work-Based Learning Program 1

Over the past four years, SDPC has earned a total of 85 state-level recognitions and four national-level awards for its communication and marketing efforts.

The SDPC Communications Department is led by Dr. Darian Byrd, Chief Communications Officer; Joy Ellison, Coordinator of School Promotion and Communications Development; and Caroline Morris, Marketing & Communications Specialist.

SC/NSPRA is an affiliate of the National School Public Relations Association. The state chapter is composed of more than 140 school public relations practitioners, superintendents, and other educational professionals from across the state. The organization strives to foster development in the field of school public relations and to encourage meaningful community involvement in and understanding of the public school system. Visit www.scnspra.org for more information.