Grapevine Police Media Manager Amanda McNew is the 2021 International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) Leadership in Public Information Management Award Winner. The announcement was made during the General Assembly of the IACP Annual Conference on Monday, September 13, 2021.

The IACP Leadership in Public Information Management Award recognizes the accomplishments of an individual public information officer and his or her ability to effectively disseminate information to the public. It is the highest international honor awarded to a public information officer in the field of law enforcement. 

Upon hiring by the Grapevine Police Department, Amanda McNew quickly identified areas of improvement, including changes to social media posts, a new delivery style for news releases, the development of crisis communications plans, and the creation of a network of neighboring PIOs to aid in the case of a critical incident.

McNew’s accomplishments as a public information officer include messaging with local and national media during critical incidents, community response to civil unrest, various social media campaigns and public safety announcements, a drive-through event for National Night Out, and her continued work helping educate other public information officers in north Texas, where she serves as Vice Chair of the North Texas PIO Group.

“I could not be more proud of the recognition and award Amanda received this year from the IACP.  She does an amazing job, every day, for us and has elevated our ability to communicate and serve our community members.  I’m very thankful she is on our team, as she continues to make a significant impact in our daily operations and the communications we provide,” said Chief Mike Hamlin.

The Grapevine Police Department congratulates Media Manager Amanda McNew on earning this prestigious honor, and thanks the International Association of Chiefs of Police for honoring this emerging issue in public safety.

You can watch the award announcement here.