11 strategic steps to optimize district communication

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11 Strategic Steps to Optimize District Communication

11 Strategic Steps to Optimize District Communications White Pape

Few would argue this point, and many districts take

great effort to share their vision, initiatives and

successes with the community. Yet somehow, it often

seems that communication is lacking. Disgruntled

residents oppose a levy because they dont under-

stand the need for improvements. Parents call the of-

ce asking for routine information that was already

sent home with students.

The role of communications has become even more

crucial as districts face unprecedented pressure to be

increasingly accountable and transparent to a broader

community that now encompasses not just principals,

teachers, students and their families, but also the me-

dia, taxpayer coalitions, senior citizen groups, pro-

spective residents and others. Districts must continu-

ally reassure the community that funds are allocated

properly and that they produce positive outcomes.

Districts must dispel misperceptions that can act as

barriers to progress, and share their successes to fos-

ter community support.

This paper details 11 strategic steps to help districtsoptimize their online communications. The content

is based on the experiences of Schoolwires large and

varied district customer base. Applying these proven

strategies will help your district successfully and ef-

ciently connect and communicate with your constitu-

encies in support of your districts success.

1. Dene Your Districts Brand

Whether a private or public entity, every district must

be mindful of its brand the image it presents to the

world and the communitys perception of that image.

Each K-12 district is unique, comprised of different

populations and demographics with different mis-

sions and goals, strengths and weaknesses, and vary-

ing challenges and opportunities. Just as students are

taught to embrace their differences in order to succeed

individually and collectively, so must the districts that

instruct them. More than ever before, districts need to

differentiate themselves and communicate effectively

to their constituent groups in order to sustain enroll

ment, secure funding and more meaningfully inform

and engage with their communities.

A districts brand is especially important today a

schools face increased competition from homeschool

ing, charter schools and online learning. Building an

attractive brand can inuence prospective families

researching the best neighborhoods and schools for

their children, prospective teachers searching for job

opportunities, and taxpayers voting on funding initia

tives. In each case, a districts brand image has a pro

found impact on their decisions.

Brands help people distinguish between services and

offerings and guide them as they make choices. From

software to sneakers, airlines to air fresheners, brands

represent a promise. Think of some of the worlds

most beloved and successful brands:

Apple

Coca-Cola

Google Starbucks

Target

Each brand embodies a distinct promise. Through

this promise and the manner in which it is communi

cated, brands connect with their audiences in deeper

and more successful ways. Higley Unied School Dis

trict developed consistent, professional and compre

hensive Web sites for each of its schools to reect its

brand. Susan Powell, principal at Gateway Pointe El

ementary School, attributes the new school Web site

to helping attract students who previously attended

charter schools. I had more than a couple parents

comment on our school site as they were enrolling last

year, remarks Ms. Powell.

The concept of branding may seem foreign to some

districts. After all, you are not selling a product in the

same sense as a technology or insurance company

does. But because no two districts are alike, and be

Effective and ongoing communications with the community are critical to a districts succe

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cause parents are shopping around for different at-

tributes when choosing a school district, branding is

imperative. It tells your constituents what your dis-

trict has to offer, and communicates its personality

and what you do well to serve the needs of your com-

munity. Be sure your brand is well-dened and then

leverage it everywhere that constituents interact with

your district and schools.

2. Identify Your Communitiesand Their Interests

Districts rely on residents and resources well beyond

just the families of students. Taxpayers of all walks

can impact district funding. In addition, districts

often make resources like tness centers or evening

programs available for use by the entire community.

Be sure to think broadly and comprehensively whenidentifying the groups you need to communicate with.

Include business owners, the media and government

ofcials in your audience. Then reach out to them to

determine the information and resources they are

most interested in, and ask whether and how your

current communications are lacking. Use traditional

as well as online tools to gather their input. These can

include online surveys, blogs and electronic newslet-

ters. Create hard copies of the survey and make them

available at public sites like municipal buildings, com-munity/senior centers, and libraries. Announce the

fact that you are conducting the survey to the media

and at public forums and encourage people to partici-

pate. Consider holding focus groups to gather more

detailed input Use the feedback you collect to revise

and strengthen your strategic communications plan.

The more you engage your communities, the more in-

formation you will have to satisfy them and the bet-

ter informed and involved they will be.

3. Leverage Your Web site

The most powerful engine for differentiation and for

communication of your districts brand is your Web

presence: the district Web site, school Web sites, and

the content, resources and communications enabled

by these sites. These online portals are the central

hubs through which community members most fre-

quently interact with a district and with each other.

For this reason, it is critical for districts to ensure that

these sites provide the most relevant information and

resources to engage and inform each of your distinct

audiences.

Also, prospective teachers and students often form

their rst impression of a district based on the quality

and content of a districts Web site. Thus the quality

of the site can impact staff recruitment and the abilityof the district to attract new students and families and

enlarge its taxpayer base as a result.

Districts have long communicated with communities

via newsletters, community meetings, parent con

ferences and the press. However, todays tech-savvy

educators, students, parents and the public at large

are accustomed to and expect anytime, any

where access to information and resources. Web 2.0

technologies such as online forums, blogs and wikisas well as social networks like Facebook and Twitter

have strengthened virtual community connections

and made them mainstream.

People can access up-to-the-minute bank state

ments and travel services online. They expect to be

able to nd information on their children and their

schools in the same way, says Dr. Peggi Munkit

trick, Director of Product Strategy for Schoolwires

Community connections cant be and arent limited to

students backpacks anymore. Its not enough to send

home a newsletter with the students that only reaches

parents. Districts need ways to reach all their constit

uent groups. Their Web site should be the place where

people engage with the district and get information.

By providing Web 2.0 tools on its Web site, a district

demonstrates that it is truly interested in the com

munitys participation. The 24/7 access provided by a

district Web site also facilitates communications and

involvement with parents who have limited time toengage with their children and the district, or are un

certain about how they can help their children succeed

Gilbert Public Schools in Arizona implemented the

Schoolwires Centricity2 unifying Web content man

agement platform to help strengthen communica

tions with its shareholders and enhance the districts

image. Communicating with our parents and com

munity is paramount, says Nicole Richardson, Web


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site Mulitimedia Communications Supervisor, Gilbert

Public Schools. The Schoolwires solution offers us

the exibility in design and a large number of easy-to-

use communication tools to strengthen our commu-

nications with our constituents. It will give us more

opportunities to provide information in a clean and

accessible fashion, enhancing the image of our dis-

trict.

4. Communicate Consistentlyin Support of Your Brand

All your communications whether online or in

other forms should be consistent and reect your

districts brand. Individual school Web sites should

reect your brand via messaging, visual design, and

available applications. This consistency demonstrates

that no matter where students may attend school,there are uniform standards, leadership, and support.

The district presents the same commitment to stu-

dent achievement on every school site.

Consider how vital brand consistency is outside the

K-12 environment. For instance, when a consumer

goes to Starbucks, she expects that the coffee will

taste the same; the staff will be kind and courteous;

that she will be able to enjoy her drink in the same

comfortable environment regardless of the location.

The same principle applies when considering how

constituents interact with a district. A parent might

have students in several schools over their careers.

Their children may change schools for any number of

reasons, including relocation. As parents are making

choices up the educational ladder, its important that

they know the district consistently applies the same

set of standards.

In addition, a disparity in content and appearanceamong the different schools might lead to mispercep-

tions about the quality of one school versus another.

For example, within a single district, one high school

might have an active core of technology users who

routinely post content and learning resources on-

line. Their attractive Web site and teacher pages give

the impression that their high school is superior in

resources to the other high schools. In addition, the

availability of and access to online resources for aca-

demics gives those students an advantage over stu

dents attending other high schools in the district. This

creates real issues of equality and fairness.

For these reasons, your district family of Web sites

should have a similar look and feel as users move

throughout the applications and Web site. This con

sistency not only assures parents, it also enhancestheir relationship with a district. Parents are better

served if there is a consistent way to access informa

tion. But if every school site is different, they need to

learn several ways to access information. A satisfacto

ry user experience reects positively on your district.

5. Showcase Uniqueness and Successesof Individual Schools

Although consistency should be the goal across al

of a districts Web sites, individual schools need the

ability to customize their sites within the framework

of the districts brand. The ultimate goal is to have a

consistent look and feel throughout the entire district

but still allow individual school sites to showcase their

unique elements and successes.

A Web platform that enables you to create an inte

grated system of district and school sites that look

and feel integrated, yet is exible enough to custom

ize individual sites, is key. Assign communications

ambassadors at the school level to maintain district

brand consistency while individualizing sites to meet

particular constituent needs.

Our Schoolwires Centricity2 platform gives Web mas

ters at each school the tools they need to create pro

fessional looking sites while showcasing the unique

personality of the individual school. The Schoolwires

platform gives each school and each teacher the ex

ibility to be creative, and it is so simple to use thatit improves communications at the school level 100

percent, says Vicki Blackwell, Director of Technology

at Tangipahoa Parish Schools.

6. Be Proactive

A district must continually communicate the positive

impact it is having on students and the community.

Dont assume that constituents are aware of your


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districts accomplishments; proactively communicate

initiatives and outcomes that demonstrate student,

school, and community success.

Display photos, videos, and current events on your

Web site to inform and engage the community. For ex-

ample, a district may choose to display a wide variety

of interactive content that is featured and frequentlyupdated on the homepage to spread good news. The

homepage can prominently feature a box with rotat-

ing photographs that directs users to current success

stories from across the district. At the same time, the

homepage can offer a featured video with additional

positive news content. The intent is to make the site

an easily accessible, interactive front door that gives

parents, teachers and community members a tangible

feeling that great things are happening within the dis-

trict. Posting good news helps provide stakeholderswith accurate, broad and timely information, aiding a

districts reputation management.

Likewise, keep the community posted on challenges

you are facing and include any actions they can take

to support you. The Web site is usually the rst place

constituents go to see what the district is doing with

their tax dollars and what they can do to get involved.

Web sites are also a primary point of reference when

controversies or misperceptions arise within the dis-trict.

Web sites are critical tools to help districts continu-

ally reafrm public condence, as well as respond to

the community and quiet anxiety, says Munkittrick.

Often in a time of crisis, constituents will look to the

Web site rst for information.

7. Enable Two-Way Communications

The breadth of social and interactive media might seemoverwhelming at times, but these tools offer a great

opportunity for districts to actively engage constitu-

ents in a dialog. In fact, many constituents expect the

opportunity to provide feedback and interact online.

Web sites in general are much more interactive and

this trend applies to districts as well, says Munkit-

trick. People come to a Web site not only to access

information, resources, and people; but to interact,

share, and participate. The Web site is no longer

just a destination point, but rather an experience.

District Web sites should provide easy-to-use func

tionality for administrators, teachers and others to

create blogs, wikis, forums and discussion groups

Survey tools are another great way to get community

input on district initiatives and other topics.

The 2011 Speak Up Survey conducted by Project To

morrow supports the growth of interactive communi

cations between districts and constituents. According

to the national survey of more than 380,000 K-12

students, parents, teachers, librarians and adminis

trators:

31% of educators are blogging(vs. 20% in 2007)

45% are regularly updatingtheir social networking sites

12% of administrators are tweeting

A superintendent blog is a great opportunity for ad

ministrators to interact with their constituents. For

example, superintendents can pose a thought-pro

voking topic regarding education and ask for people

to comment. The convenience of online communica

tions makes it possible for people who cannot attend

district functions, as well as others, to interact withthe superintendent. In addition, collaboration and in

formation exchange is now occurring among the dis

trict base and with the district, rather than just ow

ing from the district to the community.

8. Open a Window to the Classroom

Todays students are raised by a generation of heli

copter parents, the term for guardians who pay ex

tremely close attention to their childrens experiences

and problems, particularly within educational institu

tions. District Web sites give these parents a window

into their childs classroom.

At Higley, teachers routinely post classroom rule

calendars, projects, homework, notes, and articles

on their individual Web pages. Similarly, the district

posts a variety of information online, allowing it to

better communicate course curriculums and class syl

labuses and their alignment to the state standards. In


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the past, this information was all in a printed hand-

book and perhaps not even available to parents.

When we rst launched our new Web site, our districts

goal was to increase community awareness about

the learning taking place within our schools. Cen-

tricity2 has met this objective, providing a trans-

parent window into the district and giving us a wayto reach out proactively to our district members,

says Justin Greene, Executive Director of Systems

Services at Higley.

Not only does the Web site satisfy parents, it drives

their engagement which is critical to student suc-

cess. A parent at Higley Unied School District, who

has ve children enrolled in the district, recently

said, I am now able to be much more involved with

my childs education because of my increased accessto the teacher and Web site content. Each night I go

on the teachers Web page to review presentations,

homework assignments, and grading rubrics to en-

sure my child is learning the material and is well pre-

pared for class.

Similarly, Tangipohoa School District is leveraging

its Web sites to engage their constituents. By giving

parents and community members a window into each

school and direct access to teachers and others at the

school, we can strengthen our home-school connec-

tion which is a district priority, says Blackwell.

9. Provide a Satisfying User Experience

Earlier, we discussed the need for a consistent Web

site design and content in support of the districts

brand. Similarly, the navigation within your Web site

should mirror the quality of your district. When a

Web site is poorly organized, it gives users a negative

impression of the district. In contrast, a good user ex-perience across the site gives the impression that the

district is organized, coordinated in its communica-

tions and cares about meeting the needs of its con-

stituents. In addition, an intuitive and consistent user

experience fosters greater adoption of your Web site

and the tools within it, increasing the impact of your

communications.

Kent School District in Washington received the

2011 Best of the Web/Digital Education Achievement

Award in the K-12 District Education Website cat

egory from e.Republics Center for Digital Educationfor its Web site built on the Schoolwires Centricity2

Platform.

The layout of the home page and ease of accessing

information earned us the Best of the Web award,

says Richard Russell, Director, Technical Services, In

formation Technology, Kent School District. Moving

to the Centricity2 Web site has enabled us to rethink

how we present the vast amount of information that

our district users need to access. Making the informa

tion easier to nd helps students, teachers, and com

munity members access the information they need

more efciently.

An important element that contributes to a satisfying

user experience is personalizing the content. Person

alization is based upon roles, rules and/or content

The intent of personalization is to provide the end user

with a customized experience that dynamically aligns

with his or her interests and preferences. Amazon

com, for example, is recognized as an early adopter

of personalization technology, providing repeat visi

tors with books and products that are most likely to

interest them, based on their previous purchases. For

a district, this could come in the form of presenting

information about the band to a band member and

information about parent-teacher meetings to all reg

istered parents.

Higley Unied School District leverages electronic

alerts to help personalize its content. Communitymembers can register for notications from one or

more sites in the district. After registration, members

receive notications from that particular area. For ex

ample, a high school parent can sign up to receive an

nouncements about club activities and athletics. Lat

er, they can opt out, or subscribe to additional alerts

about academics, the bus route, and more. eAlerts

allows us to mass communicate to targeted audiences

and it benets users because they sign up for and re

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ceive only the information they want, says Greene.

Another element that can greatly enhance the user

experience is enabling single sign-on access to dif-

ferent resources and applications. Otherwise, the in-

ability to easily access resources can be frustrating,

time consuming, and reects negatively on the dis-

trict. Districts also need to consider delivering theircommunications through other electronic mediums,

like mobile devices, Facebook, and even gaming con-

soles. Regardless of which access point a constituent

chooses, the user experience must be consistent and

in keeping with the districts brand.

10. Monitor and Measure

Steps 1 through 9 required strategic thought and con-

siderable execution. However, the work is not done

yet. In order to keep communications relevant, you

must continually monitor how your members interact

with your district and schools online. What content is

most popular? Where do people spend the most time?

Are community members truly engaging with your

content and in what ways? Use these insights to tailor

your online presence to better meet the needs of your

constituents and to ensure your messages are relevant

and received.

To measure the true effectiveness of your Web sites,

you need analytics and dashboards that provide de-

tailed information on more than simply the number

of visitors your sites receive. For example, analytics

can give you insight as to how members in your com-

munities are interacting with you online.

Many times, districts build Web sites and dont think

about how they can make it

an active communications tool. The way to achievethat and to carry on a true two-way dialogue is to see

what people are responding and coming back to. Then

apply experience and metrics to continually change

the hierarchy of messaging and more accurately meet

the needs of all your communities.

11. Revisit and Evolve

Continually revisit your communications strategies

and content to make sure they accurately reect your

districts brand. As your community connections be

gin to take shape, strengthen and add to your tactics

and opportunities for engagement.

Also be prepared to adjust your content and tactics

to meet the evolving needs of your constituents and

any changes in demographics. Lastly, be on the look

out for new technology applications that can enhance your communications, and be sure your Web site

platform has the exibility to incorporate them and

adapt to your districts evolving needs. Technology

is integrated throughout the communications strate

gies presented here because it is central to how your

constituents connect today. By integrating your com

munications into their virtual environment, you can

increase community interaction that will positively

impact student achievement, teacher productivity

parental involvement, school board alignment andmedia relations.

About Schoolwires, Inc.

Schoolwires is a leading provider of community-based

solutions and safe social learning environments de

signed to accelerate K-12 district and student success

Centricity2 is its unifying content management system

designed to help K-12 districts more deeply connect

and engage with their communities. Schoolwires Nim

bus supports a collaborative and blended learning en

vironment where teachers can foster student engage

ment and develop critical 21st century learning skills

Through its numerous, long-term district relationships

Schoolwires works with an estimated 8 million users

across the nation. Schoolwires was recognized by Inc

magazine as one of the Top Education Companies on

the 2011 Inc 500|5000 for the fth consecutive year

Schoolwires Inc. (www.schoolwires.com) is headquar

tered in State College, Pennsylvania, USA.

Schoolwires, Centricity, and the Schoolwires logos, and theunique trade dress of Schoolwires are the trademarks, servicemarks, trade dress and logos of Schoolwires, Inc.


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