Following two years of service to Orangeburg County School District, Merry Glenne Piccolino will return to Aiken County Public Schools (ACPSD) to lead communications for the school system.
The Aiken County Board of Education approved her appointment during the school board’s Tuesday, July 26, 2022, regularly scheduled meeting.
Piccolino’s work in K-12 school communications began in Aiken County. Throughout her previous six years with the district, she supported the work of several district leaders, including Dr. Elizabeth Everitt, Dr. Sean Alford, and also served during the beginning of Mr. King Laurence’s superintendency. In Aiken, she led the school system in rebranding, school facility improvement referendums, and establishment of the district as “One Team.”
In 2020, Piccolino accepted a position in Orangeburg County to serve as the Assistant Superintendent for Communications, Business and Community Partnerships and lead the district’s divisions of Communications and Technology. In Orangeburg, she restructured the Communications Department, developed new websites for the district and schools, created weekly newsletters to engage internal and external stakeholders, and established partnerships with community groups and businesses that have helped propel the school system forward.
“I’m proud of the work accomplished during the last two years I’ve spent in Orangeburg,” Piccolino said, “and leave with confidence in a team that will continue moving the district, schools and community along a trajectory defined by purpose and poised for collective achievement.”
On her return to Aiken County, she said “it feels like coming home.”
“We are thrilled to welcome Merry Glenne back to Aiken County Public Schools,” Laurence said. “Her immense talent as an award-winning communications professional paired with her knowledge of our District will suit us well.”
Piccolino has served in K-12 communications since 2014, and entered public education following a successful career spanning more than a decade in the private sector. Prior to her work in school PR, she served in philanthropy as a Development Officer for University Health Care Foundation, and in magazines as the Regional Editor of skirt!. She previously worked in medical sales, planned catering and events in her family’s business, and, early on, gained experience in varied communications roles, including the office of Senator Strom Thurmond, M. Blackmon Public Relations and Safe Campuses Now, while also learning the art of service in the restaurant industry.
“It’s been a unique journey,” Piccolino said. “The experiences I gained in every previous position, from fundraising and event planning, to magazines, medical sales, and waitressing, created a career path which prepared me uniquely well for school PR. I’m excited about continuing my journey in Aiken County and for the opportunity to serve alongside former colleagues in strengthening public education in the community that’s remained home for me.”
Piccolino is a graduate of the University of Georgia’s Grady College of Journalism and Mass Communication. Additionally, she has received Leadership Certification from the Darla Moore School of Business, is trained in Diversity Leadership through Juan Johnson’s work affiliated with the Riley Institute, and has achieved certification from the Society for Human Resources Management (SHRM).
She will transition from her role in Orangeburg over the next month and join Aiken County on August 29 as the Director of Communications and Community Partnerships.
LINK TO DISTRICT PRESS RELEASE: 2022 PR Piccolino Director of Communications