About BNPR
Barb Nicol, APR, founded Barbara Nicol Public Relations in 1990 and is committed to providing high quality communications expertise to meet your needs and your budget. She is also committed to loving her work, while working with people she respects and enjoys. Her motto, "Life is short, live it well!" applies to her professional life as well as her personal life.
Barb has worked with dozens of school districts, educational associations and non-profits, and has presented at local, regional and national conferences on school marketing and communications strategies. She has served as part-time/interim communications director for six districts while they conducted a search or to cover a maternity leave. She is a past-president of the Minnesota School Public Relations Association (MinnSPRA) and has received the Universal Accreditation Board's APR accreditation, a credential given to PR professionals who demonstrate expert knowledge, experience and judgment in public relations (APR = Accredited in Public Relations). She has received awards and recognition from MinnSPRA, NSPRA (National School Public Relations Association) and PRSA (Public Relations Society of America) and is a sought-after presenter.
Barb is also a proud contributor to and supporter of the MinnSPRA Good Trouble PR statement, which explains how communications professionals can commit to racial equity in our organizations and communities.
Barb's awards and honors:
Client references gladly furnished upon request. Barb adheres to both the PRSA code of ethics and the NSPRA code of ethics.
Barb has worked with dozens of school districts, educational associations and non-profits, and has presented at local, regional and national conferences on school marketing and communications strategies. She has served as part-time/interim communications director for six districts while they conducted a search or to cover a maternity leave. She is a past-president of the Minnesota School Public Relations Association (MinnSPRA) and has received the Universal Accreditation Board's APR accreditation, a credential given to PR professionals who demonstrate expert knowledge, experience and judgment in public relations (APR = Accredited in Public Relations). She has received awards and recognition from MinnSPRA, NSPRA (National School Public Relations Association) and PRSA (Public Relations Society of America) and is a sought-after presenter.
Barb is also a proud contributor to and supporter of the MinnSPRA Good Trouble PR statement, which explains how communications professionals can commit to racial equity in our organizations and communities.
Barb's awards and honors:
- Dawn Kay McDowell Award (2014), the highest honor given by MinnSPRA for a school PR professional who advocates for strategic communication, mentors and counsels others, advances the practice of school PR and places a high value on collegial and professional relationships.
- National School Public Relations Association Front-Runner (2019). Front Runners are school PR leaders who are doing outstanding work for their schools, their chapters and for NSPRA. They have demonstrated professional leadership at the state and national level and/or have been recognized for innovation and excellence through NSPRA award programs or presentations.
- National School Public Relations Association representative on the Universal Accreditation Board (2015-17), which oversees the Accreditation in Public Relations (APR) program.
- Co-hosted a webinar on the 6 Rs of enrollment marketing with Jake Sturgis of Captivate Media (2020).
- Interviewed on Andrea Gribble's podcast, "How social. media fits into your referendum campaign" (2020).
- Wrote a blog, "Are your social media posts meeting your communication goals" featured on #SocialSchool4EDU (2020).
- Co-authored, "School Tax Elections: Planning for Success in the New Normal" with Don Lifto (2019), a book about planning and running successful school referendums.
- Co-wrote the "Marketing and Branding Your Schools" section of "Rubrics of Practice and Suggested Measures," NSPRA's school communication benchmarking project (2014).
Client references gladly furnished upon request. Barb adheres to both the PRSA code of ethics and the NSPRA code of ethics.
| bnpr_bio_2019.pdf |
People who know Barb well know there's more to her than her work life. To see another side of Barb, click here. To learn about BNPR's 25th anniversary, click here.
Follow me on Facebook!
4025 Queen Avenue South • Minneapolis, MN 55410 • PH: 612.920.2279 • barb@barbnicolpr.com • www.barbnicolpr.com
4025 Queen Avenue South • Minneapolis, MN 55410 • PH: 612.920.2279 • barb@barbnicolpr.com • www.barbnicolpr.com
