Ventura County Office of Education Communications Manager Dave Schermer has received two awards from the National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA). VCOE received NSPRA's Award of Excellence in the category of electronic newsletter for its Focus on Education publication and an Award of Merit for the redesign of the VCOE website. The winners were selected from a pool of 965 entries submitted by schools and districts nationwide in NSPRA's 2016 National School Communication Awards competition.

Focus on Education is a VCOE publication that highlights topical issues in public education with Ventura County residents. Recent editions have taken a look at early childhood education, career education and students' social and emotional well-being. The VCOE website was completed redesigned and reorganized in 2015 to make it easier to use and more visually appealing. Mr. Schermer coordinated the project entirely in-house at a significant savings to the organization.

About the National School Public Relations Association
Since 1935, the National School Public Relations Association has been providing school communication training and services to school leaders throughout the United States, Canada, and the U.S. Dependent Schools worldwide. NSPRA's mission is to advance education through responsible communication. We accomplish that mission through a variety of diverse services that we provide. Learn more at www.nspra.org.

More about Dave Schermer
Dave Schermer joined the Ventura County Office of Education in 2014 as the organization’s first Communications Manager. Schermer is a former television news reporter and manager who was honored with two Emmy awards while serving as News Director at KSBY-TV in San Luis Obispo. He also taught journalism as an adjunct lecturer at Cal Poly State University. Since coming to VCOE, Schermer has launched our presence on Facebook and Twitter, taken over writing and production of our Focus on Education publication and led a complete redesign of the VCOE website.

About the Ventura County Office of Education
The Ventura County Office of Education provides a broad array of fiscal, training and technology support services to local school districts, helping to maintain and improve lifelong educational opportunities for children, educators and community members. VCOE also operates schools that serve students with severe disabilities and behavioral issues, provides career education courses, and coordinates countywide academic competitions including Mock Trial and the Ventura County Science Fair. Learn more at: www.vcoe.org.