I've left school PR.
Sharing some personal news: After 13 yrs in #schoolPR, I've accepted a position @balcomagency. (Sad to leave exceptional @mansfieldisd team)
— Richie Escovedo (@vedo) September 11, 2014
I can now call myself a former education communication professional. It was time for a change. I found myself at a crossroads of sorts in my career. It felt like I either needed take a deeper dive into PR and public education or seriously explore other opportunities.I chose the latter.
To be clear, I've loved my 13 years (including the last eight in a public school district) in school PR. I've worked with a truly remarkable team and I will miss working alongside those dedicated professionals with a heart for education and communication innovation, and a relentless pursuit for what's next.
It was time to see what's next for me.
After a while in school PR one starts to get the hang of things. The school years seem to come and go. While each year is distinctive, you pretty much much know how it'll end up. The trip may be a little chaotic, but you already know the general destination. It's good, some years, really good, but it's also a little predictable.
So what changed?
Me. I think I changed. I look back over the last several months and certain things strike me as being signs of things to come. I didn't notice them at the time, but looking back I believe things shifted. It's telling to me that it's been quite some time since I've sat down to write a post. It's hard to say if that's because I got lazy, busy, bored, or a combination of the three.
On to plan 'B'
I'm heading to Balcom Agency next week (get it, plan 'B'). It was time to stop letting my comfort zone be a barrier for me from fully exploring my career growth. I don't yet know how it will go, but I've received some excellent feedback and support on what others see in me and what I have to offer. Having never worked in an agency setting before, I'm anxious to see how the process works with clients. But I'm loking forward to the new challenge. In fact, I think it'll B great.
It's too soon to determine what, if anything, will change about this blog other than perhaps less of a focus on PR in an education setting. If possible, I hope to come back from time to time to write as much for my sanity as it is for others' professional learning.
Thanks for reading and I hope you stick around for what's next.
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Photo credit: dr via Flickr Creative Commons
