Public Service Recognition Week


For more than 30 years, Public Service Recognition Week (PSRW) has served as a dedicated opportunity to celebrate public servants across the country and throughout the public sector. Federal, state and local employees, city managers, fire/EMS professionals, nonprofit experts and more are all honored during this time for the ways in which they support and care for members of the public.

Nationally, PSRW touches millions of people—but did you know that ASPA and its members play a significant role?

This year, Chapters, Sections and other groups from across the country will be holding events that will celebrate PSRW through awards, lectures and conferences, touching more than 1,000 ASPA members and constituents and celebrating the public servants in their communities.

No matter the size of your organization, there are ways you can get involved, from issuing proclamations from your town to writing op-eds for your local paper to organizing a letter-writing campaign for your local public servants. Public Employees Roundtable, the group that organizes PSRW, has an online toolkit to walk you through these and other options.



Whatever you do and however you engage, make sure you tell ASPA about it so we can include your group's actions/events/news on this page and in our other PSRW publications—and help you honor the civil servants in your community on a grander scale!

For more information about this event, please visit the PSRW website and search Twitter for #PSRW.

Questions? Contact ASPA's communications chief, Karen Garrett.

Upcoming 2019 PSRW Events

For more details about any of the below events, visit ASPA's online calendar.

April 25: Cascade Chapter 5th Annual Celebration of Public Service
April 27: Buffalo Niagara Chapter 2019 Conference at SUNY Buffalo State
April 29: Nebraska Chapter Luncheon and Awards Ceremony
May 1: Rhode Island Chapter 10th Annual Public Service and Leadership Conference
May 2: Quarterly 1st Thursday Social Hour and PSRW Celebration
May 7: Central Florida Alumni Achievement and Public Service Leadership Awards
May 7: Detroit Chapter Lent Upson Lecture: Facilitating Regional Collaboration: New Approaches to an Enduring Problem
May 7: Kansas Chapter Talent with Community Panel Discussion
May 7: New Jersey Chapter Awards Ceremony
May 9: Greater Houston Chapter 2019 Public Service Award Ceremony
May 9: Hampton Roads Chapter Public Service Awards Luncheon and Ceremony
May 9: Research Triangle Chapter Happy Hour & Chapter Award Honorees Reception
May 10: Suncoast Chapter Celebrating Public Service Achievements Luncheon
May 11: Keystone State Chapter PSRW Event
May 14: Sacramento Chapter 37th Annual Dinner and Annual Meeting
May 16: Central Virginia Chapter Public Service Recognition Program
May 22: New York Metropolitan Chapter PSRW Event
May 23: Utah Chapter ASPA Service Awards Luncheon and Ceremony
June 3: Central Texas Chapter Public Service Awards Banquet
July 11: Southern California Chapter 71st Annual Awards Banquet


Ways to Get Involved in D.C.

The Public Employees Roundtable (PER) is sponsoring a number of events in the D.C. area to celebrate PSRW. Visit their website for details about events including:
  • Public Service Charity 5K Run/Walk Supporting FEEA—ASPA members can participate in this event virtually by sponsoring their own local walk/run. More information is online here.
  • Share information about the 2019 Sammies (Samuel J. Heyman Service to America Awards). Finalists for the 2019 Sammies will be announced on May 9, 2019. Help share their stories of excellence in government service using #Sammies2019.
  • Washington Nationals Government Employee Appreciation Night, an annual baseball game honoring public servants, will take place Tuesday, May 14. All government employees with valid ID can receive discounted tickets to this game. Pre-game activities will include tributes to public servants in attendance.

More information is available on the PSRW website.