Vincent McCaskill:
CLASS OF 1989
West Marion High SchoolClass of 1989
Foxworth, MS
Vincent's Story
Life
He has rubbed shoulders with the likes of Janet Jackson and her famous family, Muhammad Ali, Morgan Freeman, Hank Aaron, Dan Rather, Lou Gossett Jr. and Jay Leno, but Vince McCaskill, 35, and a 1989 West Marion High School graduate, remains humble despite his successful career track as a journalist and public relations and corporate development executive. McCaskill, a former television news anchor and reporter, was recently promoted to the position of Director of Development for Memphis City Schools. It is the 18th largest school system in the United States with 191 schools, 16,500 employees and 121,000 students, and it is the largest school district in Tennessee. Prior to his current appointment, McCaskill serve as the Manager of Communications/Media Relations (spokesperson). In his role as spokesperson for the school system, McCaskill represented the district on every issue in the press. He remains a regular face on Memphis nightly television news, and he is constantly quoted in the print media. You can simply google Vince McCaskill and see just how much he is in the local, national and international press. It is a high profile position due in part because of the school districtÂs size and fiscal challenges. The Memphis school districtÂs budget is nearly $800 million, larger than that of the Memphis city and Shelby County government budgets combined. ÂIt is a very challenging job, but I absolutely enjoy what I do, said McCaskill. ÂMy relatives back in Marion County often joke and call me Âbig money because of the job I have, But I am quick to point out that with Âbig money comes huge job responsibilities and tremendous pressure. McCaskillÂs responsibilities include developing corporate fundraising and communication strategies that are used to help the school system offset budget woes, articulate a clear message to the public on a variety of school system issues and position the district strategically. It may sound like an easy task, but one wrong word ...Expand for more
can set off a chain reaction of negative press coverage for days. In a town where everything is political, a slip of the tongue can flat-line a public relations career. While the Memphis job is demanding, the former Marion County resident has also found time to use his expertise in other areas. He runs a public relations consulting firm where his biggest client is no stranger to national attention. He is the publicist for a national non-profit philanthropic organization called Behind the Bench an association of NBA players wives such as Jason KiddÂs spouse - Joumana, Alonzo MourningÂs spouse - Tracy and Gary PaytonÂs spouse - Monique. ÂI have been tremendously blessed to work with Behind the Bench, said McCaskill. ÂThe organization has put its complete trust in my ability to oversee the PR (public relations) aspects of all of its major events. Each year during the NBA All-Star weekend, Behind the Bench holds its fundraising gala for a select charity in the city of the game. The gala always kicks off the All-Star weekend. In 2004, the $500 a ticket gala was in Los Angeles at the Beverly Hills Hotel where I worked with Janet Jackson, music producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, singer Anthony Hamilton, and actress Holly Robinson-Peete. We raised more than $300,000 in one night for the Boys & Girls Clubs of Santa Monica and the Challengers Boys & Girls Club.Â
Superstar Janet Jackson was honored by Behind the Bench for her philanthropic and humanitarian efforts during that event. It was her first public appearance one week after the infamous Super Bowl wardrobe malfunction. McCaskill was responsible for handling the national and international press. He was quoted in hundreds of publications around the world in response to Behind the BenchÂs decision to honor the pop star despite tremendous public pressure to drop her from the Beverly Hills gala. The NBA Wives Association relied heavily on McCaskill to create a communications plan that would eliminate the negative press.
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