Get Your Mind Right: Mental Health Tips for School PR Pros
Date: 7/21/2026
Time: 4 - 5 PM
Room: Grand Salon 13 & 16 (Floor 1)
Skill Session - Live lecture, panel discussion or interactive session with time for Q&A. 60-minutes.
CAREER–Charting a personal career path in communications
Session Description
School PR is rewarding, meaningful work — and it can also be intense, relentless, and emotionally demanding. Join Nate and Samantha Hunt for an honest and practical conversation about what it takes to get your mind right in the fast-paced world of school communications.
Drawing on Nate’s experience in School Public Relations and Samantha’s background as a professional counselor, this husband-and-wife duo blends real-world perspective with practical, easy-to-use mental health strategies designed specifically for school PR professionals. Together, they’ll explore common challenges such as burnout, imposter syndrome, and the pressure to always be “on,” while sharing tools to help participants stay grounded, resilient, and mentally healthy.
Whether you’re new to school PR or a seasoned professional, you’ll leave with actionable strategies to support your well-being — helping you show up as your best self both at work and at home.
Presenter(s)
Nate Hunt
Director of Communications & Marketing
Grand Haven Area Public Schools (MI)
Nate and Samantha Hunt:
As the son of two educators, Nate grew up with a heart for serving children and seeing them succeed. Determined to blaze a different path from his parents', he chose a career in public relations over education. In the summer of 2018, though, life brought him back to the world of education in his hometown of Battle Creek. Nate spent the next six years with Battle Creek Public Schools, gaining invaluable experience in the many joys and challenges school PR professionals face while building his skills - and resilience - along the way.
Samantha's passion for helping others has always been the driving force in her career. Her early experience as a foster care and child protective services (CPS) worker offered her valuable insight into the lived experiences of children and families from all walks of life. These experiences instilled in her a deep empathy for the challenges many face, an understanding of the ways mental health needs can complicate them, and a keen awareness of the ways in which our current systems are failing to meet those needs. Determined to be part of the solution, Samantha earned her Master's in Counseling from Spring Arbor University in 2022 and went on to serve as a school-based behavior support specialist and mental health counselor.
Nate and Samantha, along with their three boys, recently moved to the West Michigan lakeshore, where Nate serves as Director of Communications and Marketing for Grand Haven Area Public Schools, and Samantha works as a professional counselor. Both are vocal advocates for the importance of prioritizing mental health because of the positive impacts they have seen in their own lives and the lives of countless others. LinkedIn Profile
Samantha Hunt LLPC
Professional Counselor
Healthy Mind Counseling
*See combined bio above. LinkedIn Profile
Get Your Mind Right: Mental Health Tips for School PR Pros
Category
Skill Session - Live lecture, panel discussion or interactive session with time for Q&A. 60-minutes.