Barry Gaskins Award

The Barry Gaskins Service Award is the highest honor bestowed on an individual by the North Carolina School Public Relations Association. The award is named in memory of Barry Gaskins, the first public information officer for Pitt County Schools in Greenville, who was known to so many people as “Mr. School Public Relations.”

Barry was a trailblazer in our field, and he helped to put the North Carolina chapter on the map. Barry Gaskins is the reason why North Carolina is viewed as one of the top state chapters in the country.

He served our state organization so well and even took his service, leadership, and vision to the national level, serving as president of the National School Public Relations Association from 2001 until 2002.

Barry died unexpectedly in March 2003 at the age of 49. While Barry is no longer with us, his legacy lives on through the Barry Gaskins Award.