Rick Kaufman, APR
Executive Director of Community Relations
Bloomington (MN) Public Schools

Rick Kaufman, APR, is the executive director of community relations for the Bloomington (MN) Public Schools. He formerly served as the executive director of public engagement and communications for Jeffco Public Schools, Colorado’s largest school system with 85,000 students. In April, 1999, Rick led the Crisis Response Team and became a familiar face and voice in national media coverage of the Columbine High School tragedy. Among the first to arrive at the high school after the attack began, Rick was responsible for coordinating strategic communications about the crisis and its aftermath.

Kaufman is a nationally respected consultant on crisis management and communications, media relations, community engagement, communication planning, and tax levy campaigns. He directed school communications programs for 17 years. Kaufman is a past president of both the National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA) and the Wisconsin School Public Relations Association (WSPRA).

Mary Pat Pfeil
Senior Director of University Communication
Marquette University

Mary Pat Pfeil has served as president of the Wisconsin School Public Relations Association and as a  consultant to school districts throughout the state and other parts of the country.

As the community relations director for nearly 20 years in the School District of Wauwatosa, she coordinated the district’s crisis response in one of the country’s first school shootings in 1993. She also served as the district’s interim superintendent for nine months and as the director of human resources for 18 months, in addition to her communication responsibilities.