Communications checklist for back to school
If you listen very carefully, you can probably hear children and youth in your community groaning, as their parents break into a knowing smile every time they look at the calendar. That’s because it’s almost time to head back to the classroom and back to a more set family routine – or maybe, it’s already happened in your district.
As the days tick down, the rituals commence. Registration fees are paid. School supply lists are checked off, as shopping carts are filled. Perhaps, new school clothes are purchased and the all-important “What to wear on the first day?” decision is made, after much agonizing (at least in my house).
Of course, you know the sure signs of an approaching school year within your district, your buildings and, of course, the classrooms themselves. It’s all about getting ready for the return of students and the amazing educational accomplishments they will make during the coming school year.
The arrival of the new year often means a “restarting” of more active communications with key stakeholder groups. As those activities move back into a higher gear, it’s important not to let the rote messages that are part of kicking off every school year be the only thing that stakeholders hear from your school district.
After all, you’ll never have more of their (relatively) undivided attention than you will now. Take advantage of the situation and you have the chance to really set the table for the rest of the year. For example:
- Detail what’s taken place during the summer. Report on construction or renovation projects, if that applies, the accomplishments of students during summer school, the arrival of new staff and/or new programs – anything to document that your school district is always working, changing and improving…even in the summer.
- Provide updates on the status of long-term initiatives. Facility plans, strategic plans, boundary discussions – anything with a long-time window and a lot of steps should be updated. Don’t make the mistake of assuming that your patrons will remember the progress, if the last time you talked about it was three months ago.
- Demonstrate enthusiasm for what’s to come. This is more than just having teachers say, “I’m looking forward to getting back in the classroom.” That’s a quote with all the surprise of a day-after-Thanksgiving shopping story on a news broadcast. Instead, think bigger. A lot bigger. Take district-wide stories and personalize them. For example, “This year, our students will no longer have to wait for access to technology, because every one of them will have a laptop or tablet to use. They’ll be able to do so much more, so much more quickly than ever before.”
The message: Take full advantage of this time of the year to build your district’s brand, rather than just disseminating the perfunctory back-to-school news that stakeholders are already expecting.
