1. Elaine Avila
Elaine Avila <elaine@ehosted.com>
To the Emerge Scholarship Committee,
It is with great pleasure that I recommend Elaine Avila for the Emerge Scholarship. I have come to
know Mrs. Avila through her volunteer work as the Public Relations Director at Langston Charter
Middle School. Mrs. Avila is a cheerful, good natured woman with a strong work ethic. Six years ago,
Mrs. Avila stepped into this “New to Langston” position with little guidance and information from the
school administration. Charter schools run with a minimal staff and little monetary assistance from the
school district and state. We rely heavily on parent volunteers to fill in the gaps at the school. PR was
an area that had been neglected since the opening of the school in 2005.
Mrs. Avila began, immediately, forming relationships with the local media, including newspapers,
radio, television news, and internet news. She gathers school information from teachers and our
weekly parent newsletter, takes pictures at school events and during daily activities, and submits,
both written and visual communications, to the media. She is responsible for meeting deadlines,
writing press releases, and planning publicity strategies and campaigns that generate publicity for
Langston.
Her success in this position has been realized over the many years she has served. She began as a one
woman show researching, learning, and developing the role of the PR Director. Today she organizes
and directs a committee of moms that volunteer to photograph our students and the many activities that
occur throughout the school year. Her record reflects not only her dedication to this position, but the
depth of commitment to the success of this volunteer position and the positive impact it has had on the
amount of publicity generated for Langston Charter Middle School.
I am genuinely impressed by Mrs. Avila’s motivation and clarity of vision for the Public Relations
position that she, and she alone, has developed over the years. She has the ability to prioritize and plan
effectively. As a result, Langston shows up regularly in each of the three local weekly papers, as well
as the Greenville News, our Greenville community paper, and the local internet news. Larger
Langston events have been televised on several different television stations and announced on local
radio stations as a result of the many press releases written and submitted by Mrs. Avila.
Charter schools are choice schools. Our student body is generated through a lottery system. Publicity is
essential in order to successfully fill our classrooms. The ingenuity and dedication Mrs. Avila has
shown to promote Langston throughout the years has grown our exposure among the community. The
result, many applications and long waiting lists for the different grade levels.
2. I have nothing but praise for Mrs. Avila’s hard work, her conscientiousness, and her positive attitude
toward this most necessary volunteer position. Led by her own initiative and vision, Elaine has
developed the PR position into one of extreme importance to our school and its success. The skills
Mrs. Avila possesses, as evidenced by her role as Langston’s PR Director, will, without a doubt, serve
her well as she pursues further education and employment in the non-profit field. Mrs. Avila stands out
as an excellent candidate in which to invest in her future.
I give Elaine Avila my most enthusiastic recommendation for the Emerge Scholarship.
Kelly Weekes
Director of Campus Affairs
Langston Charter Middle School
(864)286-9700
kweekes@langstoncharter.org
