PSJA ISD communications leader earns accreditation in public relations

PHARR – Pharr-San Juan-Alamo ISD’s Director of Communications, Marketing, and Public Information was recently honored for receiving her Accreditation in Public Relations (APR) at the Texas School Public Relations Association’s (TSPRA) Annual Conference held in Cedar Creek, Texas Feb. 18-21.

Arianna Vazquez-Hernandez earned this prestigious accreditation by the Universal Accreditation Board last December, and was one of only 16 recipients across the nation and the only one from Texas to earn this professional accreditation that month. The UAB is a diverse group of educators, military public affairs personnel and public relations professionals who oversee the Accreditation program. The APR is a test of professional expertise, ethics, and personal commitment to the public relations industry.

In addition to earning her APR accreditation, Vazquez-Hernandez completed the Texas Christian University’s Certified Public Communicator (CPC) program in 2017. She has 14 years of experience in the communications field, as a former newspaper journalist and school PR practitioner. She is currently serving her 12th year as part of the PSJA Family. Her job includes ensuring the successful development and execution of all internal and external communication at PSJA ISD, catering to over 32,000 students and close to 5,000 employees.

During her tenure, she has been a recipient of numerous Gold, Best of Category, and Crystal TSPRA Star Awards, as well as a Golden Achievement Award and Award for Merit from the National School Public Relations Association.

She served as Vice President of TSPRA’s Gulf Coast Region for two terms and recently completed her first year of a two-year term as the association’s Vice-President At-Large.

“Earning the APR reflects a mastery of the knowledge, skills and abilities needed to succeed in our increasingly complex profession,” said Mitchell E. Marovitz, Ph.D., APR, and 2018 chair of the Universal Accreditation Board. “Practitioners who achieve the designation are demonstrating their commitment not only to our profession, but also a strong code of ethics and to the betterment of their organizations and clients.”