Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Audit Report
Conducted
by the
National
School Public Relations
Association
for the
Baltimore County
Public Schools
Towson,
Maryland
February 2002
A&q lft
. . .
THELEADER IN SCHOOL
COMMUNICATIONS `
National School
Public Relations Association
15948 Derwood Road, Rockville MD
20855
0
301/519-0496
0
www. nspra. org
Table of
Contents
Introduction
Perceptions ofFocus Groups
Observations
and Recommendations
Appendix
Introduction
Superintendent Joe Hairston and members of the Board of Education are commit-
ted to improving communication within the Baltimore County Public Schools and with
residents . This audit was contracted for, approved and supported by the Board and
superintendent as part of a commitment to increase communication both within and
outside the
organization. It clearly demonstrates their willingness to risk change in order
to improve educational opportunities
for
Baltimore County Public Schools
students .
The challenges of building and maintaining public and community
engagement,
dealing with growing enrollments and inadequate funding, and communicating effectively
with all segments of the community affect not only the school district but the community
as
well .
Throughout
the focus group sessions with a variety of school employees and
community representatives, it was obvious to the
consultants that there is a solid base of
support for and pride in the school district .
The goal of this communication audit was to seek facts as well as perceptions, and
from these to propose recommendations that could ensure improved management of
public
relations, greater parent and community involvement, and enhanced two-way
communication between the
internal and external publics of the Baltimore County Public
Schools .
The
observations
and
recommendations included in this report should be reviewed
carefully. Whether they pertain to the work of the district' s Office of Communications or
any other unit, they are intended to improve communication in a school district that is
poised and committed to facing the challenges of education in the 21 st century.
NSPRACommunication
Audit
NSPRACommunicationAudit
BaltimoreCounty
PublicSchools
Guiding
Definition
Since 1935, theNational School Public
Relations Association(NSPRA)
has
workedwith school districts, stateandnational
educationorganizations andagencies
to
advancethecauseofeducationthrough responsible
public relations, informationand
communicationpractices . I ndoingso,
NSPRA uses the followingdefinition
as a
foundationfor all educational
public relations programs :
Educational public relations is a planned,
systematic managementfunction,
designedto help improvethe programs
andservices ofaneducational
organization. I t relies ona
comprehensive, two-way communication
process involvingboth
internal andexternal publics with the
goal
of
stimulating
better understandingoftherole, obj ectives, accomplishments
andneeds
ofthe organization.
Educational public relations programs assist in
interpretingpublic attitudes,
identify andhelp shapepolicies and
procedures inthe public interest, and
carry oninvolvementand
informationactivities which earnpublic under-
standingand
support.
Assumptions
I t is assumedthatschool districts undertake
communicationaudits becausethey
are committedtoimprovingtheir public relations/communication
programs . I t is also
assumedthatthey wish to view thedistrict and
its work through theperceptions ofothers,
andthatthey wouldnot enter into an
auditunless they were comfortable indoingso.
However, some
cautionshouldbe observedregardingthenature ofsuch
a review.
Whenever opinions are solicitedaboutaninstitutionandits work, there
is a tendency to
dwell
on
perceivedproblem areas . This is natural and, indeed, is one ofthe
obj ectives of
anaudit. I mprovementis impossible unless there is information
onwhatmay needto be
changed.
NSPRA CommunicationAudit
D istric t
pol ic ies regardin g Commun ity
Rel ation s
"
Organ ization al
c harts ( distric t an d departmen ts)
"
1997 Review of
the Sc hool System' s Strategic
Commun ic ation Pl an
"
Bl ueprin tforProgress
: Real izin g the Vision bookl et
"
Overview
of Gen eral Fun dFY02
Budget an d Commun ic ation sbudget
"
Bal timoreCoun ty
Publ ic Sc hool SystemFeedbac k
Report2000 on Bal drige
Assessmen t
"
Sampl e
rec ogn ition l etters an d
c eremon y programs
"
Sampl eEmergen t
Bul l etin
"
L ist of administrators'
interpersonal
communication activities
"
News media
list
"
Information
on School-Business Partnerships
"
BCPS
Magnet
Programs brochure
"
Emergency
Procedures
andSafety Manual
"
Th i s grou p gav e
sch ools a B+or A- on
cu stomer serv i ce ef f orts,
f eeli ng th at th ey and
oth er
admi ni strators were v ery good at
deali ng wi th i nappropri ate
staf f responses
to th e
pu b li c .
NSPRA
Commu ni cati on Au di t
Balti more
Cou nty Pu b li c Sch ools
Group: SecondarySchoolTeachers
Things
t hat t he
dist rict coulddot o
immediat elyimprovecommunicat ion
include: sending
communicat iont oalladminist rat orsinab uilding, not
j ust t heprincipal; using t heweb sit e
foremergencycommunicat ionsandpub licizing t hat fact ; permit t ing
assist ant principalst o
at t endprincipals' meet ings; andt heneedforsome
principalst odoab et t erj ob of
communicat ing wit h
t heir
assist ant s.
Thisgroupdescrib edt he
dist rict ' s
st rengt hsas: t hewide-ranging curriculum; nurt uring of
st udent s; highq ualit yeducat ion; aninclusionprogram t hat workswell; andt hehigh
q ualit yof new t eachers. Theyalsonot edt hedist rict ' s
encouragement of parent
involvement , goodcommunicat ionwit hparent s, andq ualit y
ex t racurricularofferings.
Alt hought hisgroupfelt t hat t hepub licschools
weregenerallyb et t ert hanlocalprivat e
schools, somefelt t hat somepub licschoolsareb edeviledb yundeservedreput at ions.
Somefelt t hat great erst andardizat ionof t hecurriculum andofferingsfrom schoolt o
school( i . e. , someschoolshaving four-periodvs. seven-perioddays) might
helpimprove
pub licschools' images. F inally, t hisgroupcomment ed
t hat
t hey
havegoode-mailcont act
wit hmanyparent s, andonepersoncommendedamiddle
schoolt hat put sst udent
homework assignment s
onit sweb sit e
.
Whenaskedab out weaknesses, somefelt t hat manyposit ivest oriesab out minorit yst udent
achievement arenot pub licized. Thegroupagainment ionedt hat t herearepercept ion
prob lemsab out somepub licschoolst hroughout t hecount y.
Somefelt t hat great er
communicat ionisneededb et weenst aff from element ary
t hroughmiddleandhighschool
sot hat t herecouldb eb et t er
"K-16
alignment . " Thisgroupfelt t hat st aff development
offeringswereex cellent , b ut somenot edt hat t hereislit t let imet ot alk wit hcolleaguesand
ex changeideas. Somewerecrit icalof "meet ingsj ust fort hesakeof having ameet ing . "
Somefelt t hat t eachersarenot informedab out dist rict event sandprocesses, andcit edt he
recent reorganizat ionasanex ample. F inally, manyfelt t hat t he
dist rict shoulddomore
market ing of it sprogramst okeeporat t ract st udent saway
from privat eandparochial
schools.
Balt imoreCount y
Pub lic
Schools
When asked about viewing
Channel 73, some
said ther e was
too
much
"canned"
pr ogr amming .
They would like to see mor e locally pr oduced pr ogr amming, especially
on
student achievements
. Somef elt that notices of meetings wer enot timely, sometimes
r eaching
them onthe day of or
the day bef or e a meeting . Many said they pr ef er r ed to
r eceive
news and inf or mationby e- mail, but
other s
noted that they do not have
convenient
access to a computer
ter minal .
This gr oup f elt that customer
ser vice was good distr ictwide, noting that the
per sonnel,
benef its, and payr oll of f ices
ar e ex cellent in r esponding to staf f inq uir ies .
I n r esponse
to what the distr ict could
do immediately to impr ove communication,
suggestions included
having a centr al clear ing house f or inf or mation
. Somef elt that the
Of f ice of Communications
needs to do a better job of coor dinating inf or mation,
and one
per son said that Staf f
Ex change f r eq uently mentions the samepeople and
schools .
Another
suggestion was to
pur sue better ar ticulation with the community colleges,
enabling
students to ear n college cr edits .
Cr oup:
Stakeholder s
This gr oup of
"stakeholder s"
included individuals f r om non- pr of it
or ganizations, a police of f icer ,
the county
ex ecutive's chief of staf f , a
r ecr eation depar tment staf f per son, and
a r ealtor .
This gr oup said
BCPS of f er s a ver y good
education ( "at least as good as pr ivate
schools,"
one said) ; ease of
communicationwith teacher s
and pr incipals ; competitive and saf e
schools ; a r elatively
small amount of discipline pr oblems
; and wise spending on
f acilities
and
maintenance of
buildings .
w
Someweaknesses
noted by this gr oup
included a lack of consistency
in communication,
with the suggestion
that it should be
disseminated f r om one place,
and the need f or gr eater
consistency in dealing
withthe media . Somef elt
ther e is too muchvar iance
in pr incipals'
attitudes
and behavior s
f r om school to school. One per son
f elt that some centr al of f ice
per sonnel
need to better
under stand the use and contr ol
of joint par k and r ecr eation
sites .
Responses
to the q uestion,
"What is your best sour ce of
news and inf or mation about
the
distr ict? "
r anged f r om newspaper s, to
no r eliable sour ces, to "I
call Shar on Nor man
. "
Few in this
gr oup look at the distr ict
web site. Some suggested that
a single sour ce of
school news and
inf or mation would be helpf ul
.
Some in this gr oup
f elt that the distr ict
web site should be the sour ce
of inf or mation
about
schools .
Some suggested using dif f er ent
media channels to
r each dif f er ent gr oups and
communities
. Other s f elt that
a lot of inf or mation comes
f r om r umor s, and much
of the
distr ict inf or mation is
one- way. Some
complimented the school- business
par tner ships .
NSPRA Communication Audit
10
Baltimor e
County Public Schools
Several
suggested wider use of the Welcome
Wagon, and more contact with Realtors .
Some
felt
that
Channel 73 could be
a good source of information, but that it needed more
p ublicity .
Customer service, this group felt, was good at the central office,
but varied from school to
school
. "A p rincip al' s attitude toward the p ublic is communicated
to the staff," one
p erson noted
. Some
in the group rep orted having unp leasant
exp eriences with school
p ersonnel .
When asked what the district could do to immediately imp rove communication, one
p erson said, use the Office of Communications to better coordinate information. Another
said there was great communication and rap p ort between the p olice dep artment and
schools .
Group : Board of Education Members (Group 1)
D istrict strengths
mentioned by this group of two Board members were : diversity ; a
talented staff; good curriculum and infrastructure ;
and many longtime
emp loy ees who
have a commitment to students and to the community . They felt there was a p ositive
relationship between the sup erintendent and the various unions who rep resent emp loy ees,
as
well as with Baltimore County state legislators and the county government . They
believe there is
strong community sup p ort both sy stemwide and at individual schools . One
noted that a
large board (12 members) is a great strength, because "its members are
inq uisitive, and there is more active engagement with a
large
and diverse community . "
These Board members felt that district weaknesses include diversity (disp arities in racial
and
socioeconomic factors in various geograp hic areas), siz e, and the difference between
eq uality and eq uity ,
which they saw as based on p eop les' p ercep tions . They felt that
"sq ueaky wheels" tended to get
the most attention at both schools and districtwide, and
that tended to create "up sets . "
They felt that the district doesn' t alway s make the best use of
resources, and that its
community and p ublic relations efforts are not adeq uate or p roactive . They felt the central
office should anticip ate "negatives" and have p lans for dealing with them. They
believe
there should be better utiliz ation of community structures and group s . They felt that the
district
does not resp ond adeq uately to criticisms .
These members felt the Board needs help in anticip ating events, p resenting its case, and
obtaining more community engagement .
The school sy stem, they said, needs to p lan and
deliver more effective communication. One p erson
felt that the sy stem needed to develop
some strategy for the
forthcoming elections (Sep tember and November 2002) for the
county executive and county
council because of a p otential for the schools to become p art
NSPRA Communication Audit
1 1
Baltimore County
Public Schools
e
of the p ol i ti c a l deba te
. Other i s s u es tha t need c a refu l c ommu ni c a ti on p l a nni ng a nd
s tra tegi es a re redi s tri c ti ng
for the new hi gh s c hool , a nd the forthc omi ng mi ddl e
s c hool
s tu dy . Al s o ra i s ed wa s the fa c t tha t the
Bl u ep ri nt
for
Progres s
ha d been devel op ed, bu t
not wel l
di s s emi na ted or p romoted . And,
fi na l l y,
thes e Boa rd members s a i d tha t p a rents
a nd others need to
better u nders ta nd howthe s c hool s ys tem works a nd how to a c c es s i t to
get wha t they need .
Grou p :
Pa rents
Thi s grou p s a i d fel t the di s tri c t offers
ex c el l ent s ec onda ry ma gnet p rogra ms a nd s c hool s ;
good di s c i p l i ne ; a
s trong rea di ng p rogra m wi th ba s a l
rea ders a nd p honi c s ; a nd good
res ou rc es (p a p er
a nd books ) i n s c hool s . Some s a i d tha t the di s tri c t does a good job
of
hel p i ng s tu dents p rep a re
for the s ta te MSPAP tes ts . Other s trengths i nc l u de:
s a fe s c hool s
a nd
nei ghborhoods ; a good l ea rni ng
di s a bi l i ti es p rogra m; c l ea n bu i l di ngs ; a nd good
bu i l di ng
ma i ntena nc e . Mos t s a i d there wa s good
c ommu ni c a ti on between p a rents a nd
s c hool
s ta ffs .
Thi s grou p s a i d
i ts bes t s ou rc es of i nforma ti on a bou t the di s tri c t
i nc l u de: PTA meeti ngs ,
the p ri nc i p a l s ; s c hool news p a p ers
; the di s tri c t c a l enda r ; a nd
vi ewi ng Boa rd meeti ngs on
Cha nnel
73 . Some s a i d, however, tha t
Boa rd meeti ngs on tel evi s i on were
c onfu s i ng
bec a u s e no
one p rovi des the c ontex t or
ba c kgrou nd for the i s s u es tha t a re di s c u s s ed .
Some fel t there
wa s a l a c k of p u bl i c i ty a bou t s c hool
events .
When a s ked a bou t other s c hool
i nforma ti on they wou l d l i ke to ha ve,
s evera l i n thi s grou p
s a i d "more
i nforma ti on from tea c hers
a bou t wha t the s tu dents a re
goi ng to l ea rn thi s
yea r, "
a nd "why the c u rri c u l u m
keep s c ha ngi ng . " They wou l d l i ke to hea r
from tea c hers
a bou t wa ys
p a rents c a n hel p thei r c hi l dren
l ea rn . They s a i d mos t s c hool s
ha ve news l etters
tha t keep them
p retty wel l i nformed, a nd a few
ha ve a u toma ted p hone
c a l l i ng s ys tems .
Sec onda ry s c hool s
need to ma i l i nforma ti on to
p a rents , a ddres s ed to them, a s op p os ed
to
c ou nti ng on s tu dents
to c a rry i t home.
Wi th
res p ec t to the di s tri c t' s
c u s tomer s ervi c e, there wa s a
wi de ra nge of feel i ngs . Some
who s p end a l ot
of ti me a t s c hool fel t i t
wa s very good ; others
s a i d i t dep ended on the
ra p p ort between
the p ri nc i p a l a nd p a rents .
One p ers on s a i d i t wa s
l i ke "p u l l i ng teeth" to
get a ny
i nforma ti on from the s ec reta ry
a t her c hi l d' s s c hool .
Some s a i d they fel t tha t the
tea c hers
i n thei r s c hool were "very
a p p roa c ha bl e . " Mos t fel t
tha t not enou gh p a rents
ha ve
c omp u ter a c c es s to
the Internet to ma ke thi s a good wa y
of c ommu ni c a ti ng
wi th s c hool s .
When
a s ked wha t one thi ng the s ys tem c ou l d
do to i mp rove
c ommu ni c a ti on, the grou p
s u gges ted
p rovi di ng for more money
for s c hool news l etters , a s
op p os ed to redu c i ng
a
s c hool ' s c op yi ng bu dget ;
a u toma ti c di a l i ng p hone s ys tems
tha t s c hool s c ou l d u s e
to
NSPRA Commu ni c a ti on
Au di t
12
Some participants in this group felt that staff needed training in how to
communicate
with
parents and others, and that the district doesn't tout many of its good programs, or
what
they described as "buried strengths . "
For this group, their best sources of information about the schools were
through
volunteering in their schools, kids and other parents, and
school newsletters . Some use
the district
web site and Channel 73 . Others mentioned
PTSA meetings, newspapers, and
the very negative nature of talk radio .
"
This group said they would like to receive more information about "positive things, " and
would like to see more participation by school staff in community organizations . Some
said parents need to understand how the system works and that
BCPS ought to do
more
outreach to parents . Some recommended a parent orientation regarding
homework
expectations, dress expectations, and behavior at each
school level .
These participants rated schools as average in customer service, with some saying it was
not uncommon to be left waiting at school counters for a long time . One person said that
the possibility of a student receiving failing grades needed to be communicated in advance .
Immediate steps to improve communication included telephones in every classroom ;
greater
efforts to "get the good news out" ; and more marketing .
Group : Employee Union Leaders
"
Many in this group felt that the district leadership was "a bit too distant" from their
members
( district
employees) ;
that
communication was frequently
delayed
or
sluggish
;
that employees got mixed messages ; and some questioned the accuracy of communication
.
One person felt that the former area administrators were "a layer between the
superintendent and principals who put their own ` spin' on information . " Some felt that
the district is characterized by confusion, spinning wheels, and frustration
. One said that
some people don't do
anything "because in three weeks, it's going to change . " One
person argued for "message simplicity, clarity, and straightforwardness .
Implementation
should be clear ; when it's not, people make up what to do, and as a result lots of time and
energy are wasted . "
NSPRACommunication Audit
13
14
16
a nd
be l ie ve
it
is growing inc re a singl y so. The y f e e l t ha t ma ny pe opl e
d on't wa nt t he ir c hil d re n
NSPRACommunic a t ion
Aud it
17
Ba l t imore Count y
Publ ic Sc hool s
to go
to c i ty sc hools, so they are movi ng to the c ounty . I t was suggested that Balti more
County
has lost posi ti on when c ompared to Harford and Howard c ounti es wi th respec t to
good j ob s,
hi gher i nc ome, j ob b ase and c ounty fac i li ti es .
One parti c i pant sai d he had
vi si ted Eastern Tec hni c al Hi gh Sc hool and found i t to b e very
i mpressi ve,
b ut i t doesn't tell i ts story well
. He
sai d
he saw 15-20
stori es that c ould b e
told
on hi s vi si t, b ut the only noti c es the
medi a ever
gets are ab out a c ar that i s gi ven away
at the end of
the y ear .
"
emergenc y
si tuati ons. One c i ted an i nc i dent
where a pri nc i pal verb ally
assaulted a reporter
who was
c overi ng a sc hool story
from a pub li c si dewalk . They i ndi c ated
there i s a lac k of
c onsi stenc y from sc hool to
sc hool i n handli ng c ri ses, b ut
noted that di saster plans
are
NSPRA
Communi c ati on Audi t
1 8
19
Respond to peopl e in a
timel y manner. The group noted
that this is the biggest
compl aint they hear .
The group fel t that
empl oy ees express the most
concern about communication
.
NSPRA
Communication Audit
20
Bal timore
County Publ ic School s
Group: Elementary School
Principals
This group's best sources of news and information about
the district are: TheBaltimore
Sun; and the Superintendent's Bulletin which,
they said, is helpful, but it often
gets
duplicated
with information from
the various departments. This
group said they applaud
the consolidation of information. Countywide principals'
meetings are helpful because
everyone hears the same thing at the same time. This group
thinks communication
between the county and the State Department of
Education could be improved
They feel
information is often piecemeal
and not timely, but that this is improving .
The groupindicated there was a lot of confusion on September I I
about whetherornot
schools were closing . They would have liked to have been
contacted and informed about
what
the media was being told that
day. They also expressed concern that if information
in such situations is sent only by
e- mail,
they aren't in their offices to receive it .
They
suggested that the same information also be sent tothe school secretary toinsure
that
principals get it.
This group would like to receive more advance
notice from central office about when
things are due. They are often given due dates ranging from three days to the day that
reports and paperwork are due. They also would like to be able to access
some of the
AMS screens online in orderto track their budgets, although they find
the system
cumbersome and hard to
use. Asimpler process
is needed .
They also believe communication about renovations needs tobe improved . They
are not
in the loopat the beginning of the process. I t was noted that communication about
renovations conducted in- house is excellent in comparison to outside
contractors .
These principals believe schools are "on the firing line" for
customer service and that it is
critical to have good
people in the front office
. They see the school secretaries as the first
ambassadors and feel they are very committed to their schools, students and their
principals. They also feel secretaries are asked to do too much.
The group indicated there are a lot of new secretaries, but not much inservice training has
been offered tothem of late. There have been customerservice inservice
options available
to
clerical staff in the past, but not all have taken advantage
of it.
This group said it
would be helpful if the district built a
customer
service
component into
the orientation
program for new employees. They indicated
that
the only
customer service
training offered
currently
is what they
provide
to their staff. All
agreed
that they must
make time to dothis because it is important. Some in the group said they also make time
to prepare staff members whohave to deal with complaints from parents orthe public.
One participant has mentors work with new teachers in this area.
NSPRACommunicationAudit
21
22
Baltimore
County Public Schools
she thought
they wouldn't
r a te i t a s
hi gh
a s she does . They noted tha t
pa r ents
a r e
welcomed i n the schools dur i ng Amer i ca n Educa ti on Week.
When a sked wha t BCPS could do to i mpr ove communi ca ti on, thi s gr oup
suggested the
followi ng : be tr uthful i n telli ng students when cha nges a r e
bei ng ma de -tell them why
a nd wha t i s
bei ng done ; mor e di r ect
conta ct
wi th
pa r ents a nd students (newsletter s
a r e not
enough) ; tea cher s should ta lk to students a bout i ssues a nd r ea d them letter s fr om the
pr i nci pa l; a nd r ea ch out to new pa r ents or those who a r e not nor ma lly
i nvolved i n the
school . They beli eve thi s would help thei r chi ldr en get mor e i nvolved .
Over a ll, the gr oup felt ther e i s " pr etty decent" communi ca ti on
between the home a nd
school .
Thi s gr oup of students sa i d tha t on September 1 I ever yone wa nted to ta lk a bout wha t ha d
ha ppened a nd to wa tch the news cover a ge . They i ndi ca ted tea cher s held
di scussi ons
a nd
some wer e a llowed to wa tch televi si on cover a ge . One pa r ti ci pa nt sa i d the
di str i ct should
ha ve closed the schools beca use
they
couldn't concentr a te on a nythi ng else . They a lso felt
i t wa s i r oni c tha t cell phones ha ve been ba nned i n the schools, beca use students ha ve them
a nywa y a nd tea cher s a llowed them to use them on September 1 1 . I t wa s a lso noted tha t
pa y phones a r e shut off a t the schools dur i ng school hour s now. One pa r ti ci pa nt sa i d one
school ha s only one pa y phone .
Gr oup :
Boa r d of Educa ti on Member s
(Gr oup 3)
These boa r d member s sa i d tha t the di str i ct holds a number of for ums a nd
a dvi sor y
counci l
meeti ngs i n or der to i mpr ove communi ca ti on wi th the publi c, but noted tha t the loca l
newspa per s ha ve li ttle enthusi a sm for cover i ng them. One suggested the pa per s mi ght be
mor e wi lli ng to help tell the stor y i f they wer e a sked .
They sa i d a dvi sor y counci ls wer e desi gned
to be
loca l communi ty for ums for di scussi ng
i ssues, but those who a pply to be on the counci ls a r e often " super compla i ner s . " They
i ndi ca ted the Boa r d sha r es gener a l i nfor ma ti on a nd boa r d goa ls wi th the gr oups, but the
counci ls a r e not gi ven speci fi c cha r ges
r ela ted to these goa ls .
One
i ndi ca ted tha t,
i n
the
pa st, for ums wer e used a s " wa r m-ups" for r edi str i cti ng a nd for ga ther i ng i nput . I t wa s
noted tha t ther e i s a need to r edi r ect the focus of the a dvi sor y counci ls .
These boa r d member s sa i d they get ma ny posi ti ve comments a bout the schools dur i ng
Amer i ca n Educa ti on Week. However , they feel communi ca ti on br ea ks down a t the
bui ldi ng level . They beli eve some people a r e good a t bei ng a mba ssa dor s a nd some a r e
not
.
The
di str i ct needs to help sta ff become better a mba ssa dor s a nd
fi nd someone to tr a i n
them,
not
necessa r i ly the pr i nci pa ls
.
One
member felt tha t the schools do
not vi ew
students a nd pa r ents a s customer s, but mor e often a s i nter r upti ons . Thi s member
NSPRA Communi ca ti on Audi t
23
24
,
NSPRA Communi cati on Audi t
26
27
28
Baltimore
County Public Schools
They f el t t ha t t he d i s t r i c t ' s r es pons e
i s not c ons i s t ent or pr oa c t i ve i n
c r i s i s s i t u a t i ons .
Ther e i s not a c l ea r pl a n on how t he c r i s i s
s hou l d be ha nd l ed . They a l s o
s a i d t ha t t he c ha i n
of c ommu ni c a t i on i n t he
d i s t r i c t need s t o be c l a r i f i ed . Wi t h t he
r eor ga ni za t i on, t hey a r en' t
s u r e wher e t o go f or a ns wer s a nd who d oes wha t a nymor e
(a nd t hey d on' t ha ve a
d i r ec t or y) .
Thi s
gr ou p' s bes t s ou r c es of news a nd i nf or ma t i on a r e e-ma i l a nd t he
Su per i nt end ent ' s
Bu l l et i n . They f i nd
t he
Bu l l et i n
hel pf u l , bu t f eel t her e i s a d i s c onnec t
bet ween wha t i s
wr i t t en
a nd t he a t t a c hment s t ha t c ome wi t h i t . Somet i mes
i t i s mor e c onf u s i ng t ha n when
i nf or ma t i on c omes d i r ec t f r om t he va r i ou s d epa r t ment s .
However , i f i t ' s i n t he Bu l l et i n,
t hey know i t i s a "mu s t c ompl y" i s s u e.
They t hi nk t he St a f f Exc ha nge c ou l d be mor e
c ompr ehens i ve a nd s er ve a s a voi c e f or t he
d i s t r i c t (bu t t her e need s
t o be a s t a f f i ng c ommi t ment f i r s t ) . They f eel t he r ec ogni t i on
s ec t i on
i s i mpor t a nt a nd t hey a l l l ook a t t he r et i r ement c ol u mn. Some
s a ve t he Cu r r i c u l u m
a nd Ins t r u c t i on c ol u mn . Bu t mos t s a i d t hey pu t t he r ec yc l e bi n next
t o
t he
s c hool ma i l
boxes a nd mos t of t he news l et t er s end u p i n t he bi n .
Thes e pr i nc i pa l s
i nd i c a t ed t hei r l oc a l c ommu ni t y news pa per s wi l l pr i nt wha t t hey wr i t e f or
t hem,
bu t t hey need mor e d i r ec t i on f r om t he Of f i c e of Commu ni c a t i ons t o
t a ke a d va nt a ge
of t hi s . They wou l d l i ke t o u s e t he news pa per s t o bu i l d s c hool s u ppor t
a t t he
nei ghbor hood l evel .
Anot her
s u gges t i on wa s f or t he d i s t r i c t t o i d ent i f y 25 key s t a f f member s a c r os s t he d i s t r i c t
who c a n s er ve
a s s pokes peopl e on d i f f er ent t opi c s .
Thi s gr ou p s a i d c u s t omer s er vi c e ha s not been
a d d r es s ed a s a s ys t em a nd t hey bel i eve
t ea c her s need t r a i ni ng i n or d er t o c ou nt er a t t a c ks on
ed u c a t i on. They not ed t ha t t hey
never s ee t op l evel
a d mi ni s t r a t or s ou t pr omot i ng t he s c hool s ys t em u nl es s pol i t i c i a ns a r e
t her e
. They t hi nk t her e i s a need t o "br a nd " t he s c hool s ys t em .
Bec a u s e t hey a r e a l l wor r i ed a bou t a c c ou nt a bi l i t y, t hey f eel
i t
i s ea s y t o
f or get t he
i mpor t a nc e of pr omot i ng t hei r s c hool s . They s ee
a need f or ongoi ng t r a i ni ng s o t hey c a n
c r ea t e a nd wor k ef f ec t i vel y wi t h
bu i l d i ng l evel c ommu ni c a t i on c ommi t t ees . A s u gges t i on
wa s ma d e
t ha t t he Of f i c e of Commu ni c a t i on s end ou t pa c ket s wi t h t i ps a nd s t r a t egi es l i ke
a s s oc i a t i ons
d o . They wou l d a l s o l i ke t o know wha t t he pu bl i c wa nt s t o hea r a bou t t he
s c hool s s o t hey c a n f i ne t u ne t hei r s c hool news l et t er s .
NSPRA Commu ni c a t i on Au d i t
29
30
3 1
Thi s g roup
s a i d t hei r b es t s ourc e of news a nd
i nforma t i on i s t he "g ra pevi ne
. " They s a i d
t hey
a re s urpri s ed a t how oft en t hey
rea d t hi ng s a b out s c hools i n t he
news pa per b efore
hea ri ng di rec t ly from t he di s t ri c t
.
NSP RA
Communi c a t i on Audi t
32
Ba lt i more
Count y P ub li c Sc hools
For formal
communication, the Superintendent's Bulletin helps them get their
information
and it deliv ers the same message to ev eryone .
They indicated that there is an electronic b ulletin b oard that was supposed to deliv er
priority news b ut the Emergent Bulletins hav e supplanted this . They said the system of
information has turned into the Superintendent's Bulletin and Emergent Bulletins .
The Staff Exchange is not particularly helpful to this group. They wonder
how many
employees read it . They feel it does prov ide staff with a link to the system and
a
sense
of
b elonging, b ut it is clearly focused on teachers .
This group suggested that it might b e helpful if they met as a group after b oard meetings
to identify issues and determine who should address them.
"
33
34
Baltimore
County Public
Sc hools
This group would lik e the distric t to publish information
afte r board me e tings
on what
ac tion was tak e n. The y also
would
lik e
the distric t to de ve lop a c onsiste nt
way of
notifying sc hools of c losure s
and de lays .
Se ve ral in this group fe lt the distric t was some time s
c ustome r-frie ndly to a
fault . One
partic ipant said, "The re 's a point
whe re
you have
to say, `We 're the
profe ssionals' . "
The y indic ate d the re are proble ms
with pare nts be ing allowe d to pop
into c lassrooms . I t is
disrupting to
te ac he rs whe n pare nts inte rrupt c lasse s . The y se e this
as a safe ty issue as
we ll,
and fe e l
the re
is
a
fine line be twe e n be ing frie ndly and maintaining
se c urity. The
administration ne e ds to de ve lop guide line s and support the sc hools
in this are a .
The group said the y would lik e to se e a proac tive polic y
on pare nt visits se t at the
be ginning of the sc hool ye ar . Te ac he rs
are the frontline as ambassadors
and are how
pare nts
judge the distric t .
The y did not fe e l the are a e xe c utive dire c tors are
c ommunic ating e ffe c tive ly . The y
had
assume d that with the c hange in struc ture ,
c ommunic ation would be more c onsiste nt but
have n't found this to be the c ase .
The y que stione d whe the r all five are a
e xe c utive s we re
saying
the same things . The y thought the old are a supe rinte nde nt
mode l wasn't brok e n,
so why fix
it? The y
are
unc le ar about what the are a e xe c utive s' jobs
are now. The y
thought the inte nt was to mak e the line of c ommunic ation
to the top dire c t, but fe e l it is
le ss so now than be fore .
This group fe lt princ ipals should be le ade rs more
than bosse s . The y se e c ommunic ation
bre ak ing
down be c ause princ ipals are too busy be ing bosse s inste ad
of
le ade rs
.
The y indic ate d that te ac he rs have no forum to talk to administration
and fe lt the y
shouldn't have to wait to be invite d ( to foc us groups lik e
this) to be he ard. While fac ulty
c ounc ils provide an opportunity to disc uss
issue s, no one re ally voic e s the ir opinion
be c ause the y are e valuate d subje c tive ly.
The group also fe lt the re
is an ine quity in re sourc e s and fac ilitie s . The y
do not fe e l the
distric t has
be e n proac tive in addre ssing this, e spe c ially in sc hools
whe re familie s don't
value
e duc ation as muc h as the y do at othe r sc hools .
The y would also lik e to re c e ive ac k nowle dgme nts whe n
the y mak e c omplaints . The re
ne e ds to be c ommunic ation and e xplanation of what is
work able .
This group be lie ve s c ommunic ation c ould be improve d
by having c onsiste nc y in me ssage s
and mak ing e ve ryone ac c ountable to uphold the
me ssage . The y fe e l some te ac he rs le ave
the
syste m be c ause of a lac k of opportunity for
c re ativity ( i . e . , if the are a e xe c utive wants
to se e a word wall in the
c lassroom, te ac he rs have a right to
k now that be fore the y are
e valuate d)
NSPRACommunic ation Audit
35
36
Baltimore
County Public
Schools
Observations and
Recommendations
The following observations and recommendations are offered to help
the Baltimore
County Public Schools develop and implement
a strategic communications and public relations
program. Our observations
and recommendations are based on what NSPRAknows is working
in
other districts across the United States and Canada that are facing situations similar to those in
the Baltimore
County Public Schools .
Observations
Baltimore County Public Schools (BCPS) is perceived by the community and the staff as
having talented and dedicated employees, high standards and clear expectations for students, an
excellent curriculum and goodinstructional leadership .
Nearly all focus group participants commented
that BCPS has implemented and upgraded
technology and has
created outstanding magnet, extracurricular, and special needs programs.
Many people commented onthe system's openness and its good communication with parents, as
well as the good community support it receives. Most felt that the schools are safe, discipline is
good, and students are well-prepared for higher education.
Several groups commented that school buildings are clean
and well-maintained, and
commended the high quality staff development
program and the School Improvement Plan
process.
37
38
Baltimore County
Pub lic Schools
Guiding
Principles
Successful school
dist rict s in t oday's rapidly changing world use effect iv e
communicat ion
as a
management t ool t o
help
t hem achiev e t heir goals and lay a foundat ion t hat
support s success
for all st udent s
.
St rat egic, planned communicat ion is achiev ed t hrough t he commit ment
of dist rict
leaders, adequat e resources and personnel, careful research and planning,
creat iv e implement at ion,
and ev aluat ion of result s . This is especially import ant wit h t he
dist rict 's int ernal audiences .
Ev eryone in a school syst em is a communicat or and must accept a
port ion of responsib ilit y for
t hat role .
St aff memb ers
who are informed and inv olv ed
t ake great er pride in t heir performance
and perform
more effect iv ely
.
I t is import ant t o recognize t hat qualit y educat ion and effect iv e communicat ion
go hand in
hand. Posit iv e reput at ions are not dev eloped solely t hrough effect iv e
communicat ion. Similarly,
a dist rict wit h
a qualit y
educat ional program will not garner t he
support it deserv es wit hout an
effect iv e communicat ion program t hat keeps it s st aff and communit y informed and allows for
t wo-way dialogue and int eract ion.
Guiding Principles for t he Balt imore Count y Pub lic Schools
Communicat ion Effort
1 .
All communicat ion effort s must b e t ied t o t he dist rict 's Blueprint for Progress.
To b e effect iv e, communicat ion effort s must b e driv en b y
t he dist rict 's mission and goals,
and b e designed t o support
t eaching
and
learning.
Communicat ions should focus on
where t eaching and learning t ake place -at t he b uilding lev el -and inform t he pub lic of
progress t oward t he mission and goals.
2.
39
A
major core message shouldposition
Baltimore County Public Schools as "the district
ofchoice"far
quality teaching, learning and
student achievement.
Service industry leaders,
such as Nordstrom and Disney, are known for one or two core
values.
Every school district and school
should also be known for its core values. BCPS
has already
developed goals which support
the district' s focus on achievement . Core
values should be
emphasized to market the schools
and support the district' s image .
4.
Internal communication
must be apriority.
No
communication effort will be
successful if employees do not become ambassadors for
teaching,
learning, student achievement,
their schools, departments, and the Baltimore
County Public
Schools. Staffmembers have the
ability
to
make or break the image of
their schools and
the district . Staffwho are negative, non-responsive
or unable to provide
timely and appropriate
answers to parent and community requests
will quickly undermine
any communication effort . Staff
should be provided with the information, tools
and
training
needed to support them
in their roles as "Ambassadors for Achievement . "
S.
The
communication effort
shouldfocus on engaging stakeholders
to take action on
behalfofstudents.
Astrategic
communication plan should be
designed to seek action by parents,
community
members,
business leaders, staff, and
others to find ways to improve teaching and
learning
and support student
achievement in BCPS . To be
most effective, this should be a
collaborative effort
that seeks out the resources and
expertise
of
citizens and community
organizations . It should
involve a structured, ongoing process
to engage the public and
promote
an open dialogue on
educational issues and goals.
6.
People programs
beat paper and
mass media when it comes to engaging
audiences to
action.
People
are persuaded to action
by others whom they respect
or perceive as
knowledgeable. When
interpersonal connections are made by
credible opinion leaders
and
spokespersons,
people are more
likely to be persuaded to
action . Influential peers,
such as
respected staff
members or parent
leaders, are often the most effective
advocates for
education
. The communication effort
should also demonstrate that
BCPS is customer-
friendly and
committed to responding
to citizen concerns in a timely
manner.
7.
School building-level
communication should
be the major thrust ofthe
communication
effort
Research
in school communication
shows that the local school
is usually seen as
the public
opinion barometer of
how well schools or school
districts are doing. It' s a
natural hub for
NSPRACommunication
Audit
40
Baltimore County
Public Schools
communication with parents and others and should
become the central focus of the
communication plan.
8.
Technology
should
continue
to be used and enhanced to support an
efficient, timely
and effectiv e system of communication.
The district should continue to mov e toward a paperless information
distribution system
whenev er possible . E-mail, v oice mail, web
sites, electronic surv eys, an employee
I ntranet, and cable
telev ision can all be used adv antageously to improv e and expand the
district' s communication
infrastructure .
9.
41
Baltimore
County Public Schools
Recommendations
The recommendations
below are not intended to be
p rescrip tiv e, but rather, are
a
road
map
f or imp rov ing communication,
dev elop ing a comp rehensiv e two-way communication
p rogram, and building staf f and community
sup p ort. Weadv isethe Board
and administration to
caref ully consider
and p rioritiz e which recommendations
can be imp lemented immediately, and
which should
beincluded in long-range p lans.
Create an annual,
strategic communication p lan.
Simp ly generating more
inf ormation does not constitute an
ef f ectiv e communication
ef f ort. I t
is help f ul to remember
PRguru John Budd's communication
maxim: "Waxing acar
doesn't make
the engine run better. " Ef f ectiv e
communication should be p lanned to sup p ort
the
district's strategic
directions. I t also should f ocus on
inv olv ing p eop le as well as inf orming them.
Regular f ormal and
inf ormal research, knowing the system,
understanding the p roblems,
seeking
stakeholders'
op inions, ev aluating
what works and what
doesn't, and determining how the system
can
imp rov e are all imp ortant
comp onents of the communication ef f ort.
Theconsultants'
rev iew of the Of f ice of
Communications showedthat it is
resp onsible f or
a wide v ariety of tasks
and p rojects. Nev ertheless,
communication ef f orts
can
be
ref ined and
targeted
to better meet the
inf ormation needs of the district's
v arious audiences.
The
greatest need identif ied by
the consultants is f or an
annual, strategic communication
p lan. For communication
to be ef f ectiv e inthe
21 6 ` century, it must be a
p lanned, systematic,
comp rehensiv e, two-way
p rocess designed to create better
understanding of the
role, objectiv es,
accomp lishments and needs of the
organiz ation.
Exp erience demonstrates that
ef f ectiv e
communication
p rograms are based on
research.
The
communication p lan should be
tied directly to the district's
Bluep rintf or
Progress
and take into
account all of its major audiences
( i. e. , certif icated
and classif ied staf f , p arents,
business leaders,
community members, news
media), the inf ormation they need
and wantto know,
and
the channels of communication
thatwill be used to
reach them.
Without ap lan, it is dif f icult
to create
an op en dialogue, deliv er
the messages that are
imp ortant to these
audiences, and build
sup p ort
f or the schools.
An
ef f ectiv e strategic communication
p lan includes the
f our-step p ublic relations
p rocess
of
research, p lanning,
communicationand ev aluation,
and addresses the
f ollowing questions f or
ev ery action or activ ity
the district undertakes
:
Whoneeds to know?
Why do they need to
know?
Whendo they need to
know?
NSPRA
CommunicationAudit
42
Baltimore
County Public
Schools
Howare we going totel l them?
43
44
45
What it is marketing
( what messag e it wants to send)
"
When is the
best time to deliver the messag e
.
Once needs, g oals and audiences
have been determined,
marketing materials should be
evaluated . Many of the ex isting
inf ormation and marketing
materials developed
by the Of f ice of
NSPRA
Communication Audit
46
c c.rcr-.,
c-..
-c cc -c:r -., c.c-:,
-c c.rrrc....
48
Baltimore County
Pub lic Schools
Make a commitment to v is ib l e l eaders hip . Focus group
participants agreed they
woul d l ike to s ee dis trict adminis trators and
Board memb ers in the s chool s more
often.
Whil ethis is time-cons uming,
empl oyees appreciate efforts b y dis trict l eaders
to s how an
interes t in them and their work, and it can al s o b ring l ong-term b enefits
to the dis trict.
Thes ev is its s houl d b e s chedul ed in addition to thos e inv ol v ing
b us ines s or prob l em-
s ol v ing . An effort s houl d al s o b e madeto v is it s upport s taff s uch
as trans portation, food
s erv ice and maintenance.
Recognizing that it may b e difficul t for Board
memb ers to v is it s chool s depending on their
work s chedul es , ones ugges tion is for them to s chedul e attendance at v arious ev ening
activ ities and ev ents .
School v is its s houl d continue to b e a regul ar
part of the s uperintendent's s chedul e. This
wil l hel p to es tab l is h him
as a credib l e, approachab l e l eader. Whil eDr . Hairs ton
maintains
a v ery
ful l
s chedul e of meetings with community l eaders and v arious groups ,
mos t
empl oyees are unaware of this . Wes ugges t creating a s hort update b ox in
the
Staff
Exchange titl ed "On the Road with the Superintendent"
or "Trav el s with Dr . Hairs ton"
that l is ts where he has b een that month or week.
We
find
that many empl oyees hav e a
l imited unders tanding of the
s copeof the s uperintendency, s o we b el iev e it is important to
keep them informed ab out
his
activ ities onb ehal f of the dis trict.
Weal s o recommend that al l v is its b e reported on in s omefas hion as a fol l ow-up
.
For
exampl e, the s uperintendent, adminis trators
and Board memb ers coul d report on v is its or
attendance at s pecial ev ents as a regul ar part of the Board
meeting agenda. Not onl y does
this rais e the v is ib il ity of dis trict l eaders , it al s o giv es
them "b ragging rights " ab out the
dis trict, which b uil ds pride and s taff moral e
.
Prov ide communication ins erv ice training for s taff.
Principal s s aid they woul d l ike an ins erv ice program in communications or pub l ic rel ations
for their s taff (s ee Appendix for Communication Checkl is t for School Principal s ) . Wewoul d urge
the Office of Communications to prov ide a v ariety
of communication ins erv ice training
opportunities for s taff on a v ol untary b as is . I f thes e s es s ions fil l a need,
offering them periodical l y
on a
v ol untary
b as is wil l
b e
preferab l e
to making them "command performances . " I ns erv ice
training s houl d b e cons idered in
the
fol l owing
areas :
Media
training -
s ince the majority of external communication is executed at the
b uil ding l ev el , offering b as ic mediatraining for adminis trators and teachers onwhat
cons titutes a news s tory and how to write a news rel eas e or mediaal ert for a s pecial ev ent
wil l hel p the
dis trict
tel l its
s tory to the pub l ic. Weal s o recommend that adminis trators
and Board memb ers receiv e media
rel ations
training
that incl udes s kil l s for del iv ering an
NSPRA
CommunicationAudit
49
so
Policies, procedures a nd rules tha t govern their jobs a nd their rela tions with
students a nd other employees
"
Opportunities or suggestions f or
improving
job
perf orma nce
"
Expla na tion
of
district philosophy a nd direction
"
Communica tion tips on sha ring inf orma tion with pa rents a nd
the
public
"
51
Ba ltimore
County Public Schools
One way t o address t h i s i s t o set
up co mput er ki o sks i n st af f lo unges ( part i cularly at o f f
sch o o l si t es such as mai nt enance and
t ranspo rt at i o n) f o r emplo yee use.
Aweekly o r
bi -mo nt h ly newslet t er, av ai lable i n PDF f o rmat o n t h e I nt ranet , as
well as i n
pri nt f o r t h o se wh o do
no t h av e access t o co mput ers co uld i nclude much o f t h e
i nf o rmat i o n t h at
i s no w co nt ai ned i n t h e
Superi nt endent 's Bullet i n and t h at publi cat i o n
co uld
beco me mo re o f a management
memo , pri mari ly addressi ng mat t ers t h at are
i mpo rt ant t o
pri nci pals and o t h er admi ni st rat o rs .
Emph asi ze t h e ro le o f
emplo yees as Ambassado rs
f o r Educat i o n. One ex cellent
way t o
creat e emplo yee "ambassado rs"
i s t o i nclude a co mmuni cat i o n co mpo nent
as part
o f
new emplo yee o ri ent at i o n ( cert i f i cat ed
and classi f i ed) . Th i s pro v i des an o ppo rt uni t y t o
st ress t h e i mpo rt ance
o f relat i ng accurat e i nf o rmat i o n
and f act s t o t h e publi c and a ch ance
t o do so me "myt h bust i ng" o f
emplo yee and co mmuni t y percept i o ns o f
t h e di st ri ct .
Ori ent at i o n sh o uld acquai nt
new emplo yees wi t h t h e di st ri ct cult ure
and pro cedures and
h elp t h em f eel part o f t h e t eam . Emplo yees
new t o t h e area and di st ri ct may
be unf ami li ar
wi t h lo cal
cust o ms and co mmuni cat i o n st yles
and t h i s can h elp t h em f eel mo re
co mf o rt able
i n t h e
co mmuni t y.
Pro v i de new
emplo yees wi t h an o ri ent at i o n packet t h at
i ncludes general i nf o rmat i o n
abo ut
t h e di st ri ct , t h e mi ssi o n,
beli ef s and st rat egi c di rect i o ns, an
emplo yee h andbo o k, t i ps o n
bei ng an "ambassado r f o r educat i o n, " and
any requi red f o rms . I t i s i mpo rt ant
t o i nclude
suppo rt
st af f because t h ey are also key
co mmuni cat o rs wh o are v i ewed as credi ble
so urces
o f i nf o rmat i o n by
t h e co mmuni t y. We suggest t h e di st ri ct 's
ex i st i ng o ri ent at i o n pro gram
be rev i ewed t o i nsure i t
suppo rt s t h e di st ri ct 's
co mmuni cat i o n ef f o rt s . Emplo yees sh o uld
recei v e a clear message
f ro m t h e di st ri ct t h at co mmuni cat i o n
i s
an
i mpo rt ant part o f t h ei r
jo bs
and no t just a f unct i o n o f
t h e pri nci pal o r cent ral o f f i ce.
Rei nf o rce emplo yees' ef f o rt s by
h i gh li gh t i ng go o d ambassado rsh i p i n t h e
emplo yee
newslet t er
and o t h er publi cat i o ns, o r by
reco gni zi ng an "Ambassado r o f
t h e Mo nt h " at
Bo ard meet i ngs .
I ncrease
o ppo rt uni t i es f o r f ace-t o -f ace
co mmuni cat i o ns . Th e
pri nt ed wo rd i s an
ef f i ci ent way t o
pro v i de i nf o rmat i o n, but
ch angi ng percept i o ns and beh av i o rs -
and
bui ldi ng t rust
and emplo yee mo rale - requi res
t wo -way co mmuni cat i o n
. Research sh o ws
t h at emplo yees
pref er f ace-t o -f ace co mmuni cat i o n
f ro m di rect superv i so rs
o v er memo s
and newslet t ers . We
suggest t h at t h o se wh o plan
and run meet i ngs creat e
o ppo rt uni t i es f o r
di scussi o n and i nt eract i o n. An
o ppo rt uni t y t o di alo gue and ask
quest i o ns pro mo t es bet t er
underst andi ng o f i ssues
and pro blems and, i n t urn, creat es
bet t er ambassado rs
f o r t h e
sch o o ls .
Wh enev er
po ssi ble, cent ral o f f i ce
admi ni st rat o rs sh o uld f i nd ways t o get
o ut i nt o t h e
sch o o ls and suppo rt bui ldi ngs, sh are i nf o rmat i o n
di rect ly wi t h emplo yees
and creat e t wo -
NSPRA
Co mmuni cat i o n Audi t
62
"
Commending them
f or their initiative in
a public setting
"
Sending cards f or
birthdays and work anniversaries
"
Sending notes of congratulations f or work well done and copying those notes to
their personnel f iles
NSPRA Communication Audit
53
54
Encourage s tudent groups , s uch as computer cl ubs and National Honor Society
chapters , to teach s eniors computing s kil l s at s enior or recreation centers .
"
Make annual pres entations at s enior centers on what s chool s are teaching and
incl ude s tudents from different grade l evel s in the pres entation .
"
I ncl ude repres entatives from the s enior community in the Key Communicators
Network.
"
Al l ow s enior vol unteers to join s tudents for breakfas t and l unch in the cafeteria.
"
55
BiLe.- e. .cLc
SceeL.
t o be co nfro nt at io nal but t o creat e an enviro nment t hat allo ws fo r civil disco urse . Similar
fo rums can also be held o n a smaller scale at individual scho o ls . The dist rict
co uld also
invest igat e using Channel 73 t o ho ld a video t o wn hall fro m
mult iple lo cat io ns acro ss t he
dist rict .
Ho ld st udy circles o n "ho t t o pics" t hat emerge fro m fo rums. To wn halls and
fo rums do n't o ft en lend t hemselves t o in-dept h discussio n o f specific t o pics
o f
co ncern
due t o
t he fo rmat and large numbers o f peo ple invo lved
. St udy circles are facilit at ed
gro ups t hat invo lve
15-30
peo ple . Discussio ns o n a part icular t o pic may t ake place o ver a
perio d o f several weeks . They pro vide an o ppo rt unit y t o surface all sides o f an issue as
well as so me underlying co ncerns t hat may have an impact o n t he o ut co me . NSPRAcan
pro vide mo re info rmat io n o n co o rdinat ing st udy circles .
) ! -
Pro vide o ppo rt unit ies fo r
t he
public
t o
have input
t hat
do n't require at t endance
at a meet ing . Offer a sit e o n t he dist rict web page t hat allo ws co nst it uent s t o reco rd t heir
co mment s o r react io ns t o a specific quest io n, issue o r pro po sal befo re t he Bo ard . Pro vide
cc
co mmunicards" at Bo ard meet ings and in scho o ls t hat ask a specific quest io n abo ut an
issue t he
dist rict is dealing wit h t hat pat ro ns can writ e a respo nse o n and ret urn t o t he
dist rict .
) ! - Co nt inue t o develo p co llabo rat ive
part nerships wit h co unt y agencies .
Co llabo rat io n is
key t o creat ing a dist rict co mmunit y t hat act ively suppo rt s families and
o ffers a lifest yle peo ple will seek o ut . Part nerships wit h agencies and fo undat io ns t hat can
pro vide services such as medical/dent al care, behavio ral healt h, and o t her special areas can
help meet t he needs o f children and families who fall t hro ugh t he gaps o f insurance and
o t her st at e and federal means o f suppo rt . Ano t her kind o f co llabo rat io n t hat can be very
beneficial is
building wo rking relat io nships wit h law enfo rcement , fire and o t her
emergency
services t o
develo p co mprehensive crisis plans .
Enco urage principals, execut ive direct o rs o f scho o ls and cent ral o ffice
administ rat o rs t o beco me act ive in lo cal civic and service o rganizat io ns . Co mmunit y
and business leaders are regularly asked t o beco me invo lved in educat io n and t he scho o ls .
I t is
equally impo rt ant fo r scho o l leaders t o play an act ive ro le in t he co mmunit y and
demo nst rat e t heir co mmit ment t o t ho se who suppo rt t he
scho o ls o n a regular basis . This
also pro vides o ngo ing
o ppo rt unit ies
t o
share info rmat io n abo ut t he dist rict wit h influent ial
leaders .
Develo p o ut reach pro grams t o neighbo rho o ds, churches, and co mmunit y
o rganizat io ns t o dist ribut e info rmat io n and gain feedback abo ut issues
affect ing
families . Many et hnic and cult ural gro ups are
mo re
o pen and
respo nsive when appro ached
NSPRACo mmunicat io n Audit
57
68
59
60
61
62
BaltimoreCounty
Public Schools
publications . This
may also be an area where a business sponsor could support monthly mailings
of broadcast schedules
to residents or cable customers .
The district may want to consider forming a stafflparent/ student/ citiz en
task force to
explore the communication role of Channel 73, and what kind
of programming people are
interested
in
watching .
We
believe
that a major role should be one of informing viewers about
important issues in BCPS. The superintendent uses Channel 73 to communicate with all district
employees, and we encourage the district to continue this practice . Because the operation of
Channel 73 does not fall under the auspices of the Office of Communications, it is important that
these departments collaborate on content so that the communication value of cable television is
not overlooked .
As time and resources allow, we
would encourage the district to expand its cable TV
productions to reach a wider audience, particularly those citiz ens and taxpayers who don't have
any direct contact with the schools . I n addition to televised board meetings, programming that
focuses on student and staff excellence, issues that will be coming up for discussion and decision,
information about the budget and how it impacts tax dollars and property values,
and
the value
of
dollars
from
a
taxpayer perspective,
would help build
regular viewers .
Other
future
cable
projects
to consider include :
"
63
64
News medi a
"
Telephone bank
"
65
67
Baltimore
County Public Schools
Chief Communications Officer -I n many l arg e
school d istricts comparabl e to BCPS,
there is a senior communications/publ ic rel ations professional
who serves as the strateg ic
communications/publ ic rel ations counsel to the
superintend ent, board and top l evel
ad ministration, and
who attend s
al l
cabinet and executive l evel meeting s in ord er
to
provid e ad vice and input
on the communication aspects of emerg ing issues
.
This
position
is responsibl e
for overseeing al l functions ofthe communications office,
incl ud ing med ia
rel ations and marketing .
Many d istricts across the country the siz e ofBCPS,
as wel l as a number that are smal l er,
have a senior l evel communications
ad ministrator in ad d ition to a d irector or coord inator
of communications. This al l ows the
chief communications officer to function more
effectivel y as
a
senior
ad visor, manag e crisis communications and critical issues,
oversee
publ ic
eng ag ement processes and buil d strong community rel ationships whil e
important
ong oing
activities and internal communications are hand l ed by the
d irector or coord inator .
Recog niz ing that the ad d ition of such a
position is a bud g et issue, the d istrict wil l need to
consid er it in terms ofits
priorities and overal l need s . We d o not consid er this position
to
be critical
at this time, but we bel ieve it d eserves consid eration in l ig ht of the
communication
g oal s set in the Bl ueprintfor Prog ress.
Director of Communications -
I n offices with a chief communications officer, this
position woul d report to the chief
and assist in carrying out the d istrict' s communication
g oal s. I n many
d istricts this position is the l ead position in the communications
office and
oversees
communications and the office staff, as is currentl y the case in BCPS.
Keyjob responsibil ities for both the chief
communication officer and the d irector of
communications shoul d incl ud e :
"
Devel oping
specific communication pl ans for any major chang es, initiatives or
projects that the d istrict is pl anning .
"
Serving as l iaison
to
key
community l ead ers and org aniz ations .
"
Provid ing
communications training workshops for d istrict staff.
"
Assisting the
superintend ent by provid ing backg round information and support for
buil d ing strateg ic al l iances with l ocal communities, the
county and the state .
"
68
Gathering
information and soliciting
media coverage on
news stories that focus
on
progress
toward the district' s goals .
"
F acilitating
media access to administrators
and staff as appropriate
.
"
Preparing news
releases, alerts, tip
sheets and weekly event
calendars .
"
Preparing "talking
points" for staff and board
members on specific
issues of
importance
to the district .
"
Preparing
and producing reports
on board meetings
( for cable and for electronic
and print distribution)
.
"
Disseminating
emergency or breaking
news through appropriate
channels .
"
Coordinating new
conferences as needed
.
"
Expanding,
preparing and
updating news for
the district web site and cable
television
channel scroll .
"
Writing for
district publications .
"
Producing video
news stories for
the cable television
channel .
"
Developing communication
outreach to
external audiences .
"
Providing media
relations training for
administrators .
"
Coordinating
media coverage
of special events
( i . e . , groundbreakings,
ribbon
cuttings etc . ) .
Publications
Specialist -
Given the large
volume and number of
publications produced
in large
districts, a full-time
publications position
is needed to handle
the following job
responsibilities :
"
Write,
design and produce an
employee
newsletter .
"
Write
content for the district
web site.
"
Write, design
and produce
electronic publications
for staff and
targeted audiences
( i . e . , key
communicators, business
leaders, parent
leaders) .
"
Write, design
and prepare calendars
and annual
reports .
"
Write, design
and produce
marketing materials for
the district .
"
Advise
schools on improving
building-level
newsletters and
information materials .
"
Advise
other central
office departments on
publication
design and preparation
.
"
69
Baltimore County
Public Schools
Coordinate
p rint orders
.
Provide newsletter workshop
training for staff.
Evaluate effec tiveness of p ublic ations on a reg ular basis .
Communic ations Sp ec ialist
-
I n
addition to the direc tor,
many larg e sc hool distric ts
also have
a
full-time
sp ec ialist p osition that assists the direc tor and handles
resp onsibilities
suc h as the following :
"
Provide c ommunic ations sup p ort at the building -level and sp end time in the field
working direc tly with the sc hools and g athering news and information.
"
Assist Public I nformation Offic er in resp onding to media inq uiries and arrang ing
interviews with staff and
on-c amp us media visits .
"
Assist in p rep aring news releases, alerts, tip sheets and weekly
event c alendars .
"
Resp ond to internal and external req uests for information about the distric t
and
sc hools that c annot be handled by c leric al staff.
"
Assist
Public I nformation
Offic er
in
up dating news
for the distric t web site and
c able television c hannel sc roll
.
d
Volunteer Sp ec ialist ( . 5 p osition) -Given the size of the BOPS volunteer p rog ram, we
believe a p osition is needed if this func tion is to remain in the Offic e of Communic ations .
The log istic s of running a p rog ramwith 12, 000 volunteers is time-c onsuming , but we
believe that a . 5 p osition devoted exc lusively to develop ing and
op erating the p rog ram
would be
effic ient
and c ost-effec tive
for
the distric t . One
op tion
to
c onsider is hiring a
retired administrator or teac her to manag e the volunteer p rog ram.
Review the resp onsibilities and work loads of the Administrative Sec retary and
Rec ep tionist
p ositions and
their
roles as members of the Offic e of
Communic ation
staff
.
These p ositions should be looked at with an
eye
toward how work is
p rioritized as it
relates to c ommunic ation g oals . How muc h time is being sp ent on eac h task? I s the
time
sp ent alig ned with c ommunic ation p riorities?
Rec ommendation for additional staffing
We
rec ommend the distric t
hire a . 5 volunteer c oordinator at this time . I n addition, we
sug g est the distric t c onsider the c reation of a
full-time Chief Communic ations Offic er p osition
when the budg et allows . Our overall rec ommendation is to
add
an additional
1 . 5 FTE to the
Offic e of Communic ations .
NSPRA
Communic ationAudit
70
71
BaltimoreCounty
PublicSchools
n?~A_L
. . . THE LEADER IN SCHOOL
COMMUNICATIONS
Since 1935, the National School Public Rela-
tions As s ociation has been providing
s chool commu-
nication
training
and
s ervices to s chool leaders
throughout the United States , Canada, and the U. S.
Dependent Schools worldwide .
NSPRA's
mis s ion is to advance education
through
res pons ible communication. We accomplis h
that mis s ion through a
variety of
divers e s ervices
that
we provide
to our members and to other s chool
leaders who contract with or
purchas e products from
us .
With over 65 y ears of experience, we
have a
reputation
in the field for practical approaches to
s olving
s chool dis trict and agency communication
problems . We have us eful communicationproducts ,
offer works hops and s eminars ,
maintain res ource and
res earch files ,
have contacts and res ources within the
corporate communication
indus try , and
have
35
chapters throughout
the country that provide local
networking opportunities for members .
Inkeeping with our mis s ion, NSPRA
provides
works hop as s is tance
to s chool dis tricts , s tate depart-
ments of education, regional s ervice
agencies , and
s tate and national as s ociations . For
many of thes e
groups ,
we have completed res earch-bas ed commu-
nication audits to analy ze the communication flow,
targeting, content, and effectivenes s
of their com-
munication
mes s ages .
The NSPRA
National Seminar, the mos t
comprehens ive s chool communication works hop
any -
where, is held each July .
This four-day s es s ion
offers more than
70 topics on a wide array of s chool
communication is s ues . The July
2002 s eminar will be
held in San Diego, California
.
What is NSPRA?
NSPRA's monthly
members hip news letter
Network is s een as a communication
res ource
for
s chool leaders , not jus t our members
.
Each
edition
tackles a
major problem and explains how commu-
nicationcan play a vital role in s olving it .
PRincipal Communicator
is our building-
level PRnews letter which
provides practical help to
s chool principals and other building-level leaders .
The calendar and variety
of communication topics
are helping many to effectively improve communica-
tionat the community level .
Our three electronic news letters , The NSPRA
Couns elor, NSPRA Alert, and Opportunities , provide
s ummaries of breaking national education
news , in
depth s tudies of is s ues and
trends , and updates on
s eminars , products and s ervices available to educa-
tors .
The Flag of Learning and Liberty is a national
education s y mbol, developed by NSPRAin its 50th
Annivers ary Year. On July 4 , 1985, the Flag of
Learning and Liberty flew over the s tate hous es of all
50 s tates to launch the rededication of America's
commitment to education and a democratic, free
s ociety .
NSPRAis a member of the Educational Lead-
ers Cons ortium and works with all major national
organizations to help improve educational opportu
nities for the nation's y oung people . In addition,
NSPRA is a s pons oring agency of the Educational
Res earch
Service (ERS).
The as s ociation als o s pons ors four
national
awards programs to bring recognition for excellence
in communication to individuals , dis tricts
and agen-
cies .
National School Public Relations As s ociation.
1594 8
Derwood Road - Rockville MD20855 - (301)
519-04 96
" FAX (901) 51-04 4 4 . www. ns prs
. org
. . . THE LEADER IN SCHOOL
COMMUNICATIONS
Karen H. Kleinz, APR
KarenH.
Kleinz, APR, as s o c iat e ex ec u t iv e d irec t o r o f
t h e Nat io nal Sc h o o l Pu blic Relat io ns As s o c iat io n
(NSPRA)
h as o v er 20 y ears ex perienc e
in pu blic relat io ns , wo rking in t h e priv at e s ec t o r as well as pu blic
ed u c at io n.
Sh e h as wo n nu mero u s s t at e and nat io nal
award s fo r h er wo rk . Sh e is als o ac c red it ed
in
pu blic
relat io ns (APR)
.
Sinc ej o ining
NSPRA, Karenh as repres ent ed t h e as s o c iat io n ina
part ners h ip wit h t h e Annenberg Ins t it u t e
fo r Sc h o o l Refo rm t o
pro mo t e pu blic engagement s t rat egies d es igned t o
h elp ed u c at o rs d ev elo p effec t iv e
relat io ns h ips
wit h parent s and
c o mmu nit y . Sh e h as als o beenv ery inv o lv ed
in t h e is s u e o s c h o o l v io lenc e
and inh elping s c h o o ls
and ed u c at o rs c o mmu nic at e wit h
t h eir pu blic s in a c ris is s it u at io n,
inc lu d ing
pro v id ing o n- s it e as s is t anc e
t o t h e J effers o n Co u nt y (Co lo . )
Pu blic Sc h o o ls c o mmu nic at io n d epart ment in
t h e aft ermat h o f t h e
Co lu mbineHigh Sc h o o l t raged y .
Karen h as d ev elo ped
and managed s c h o o l pu blic relat io ns
pro grams fo r d iv ers e s c h o o l d is t ric t s , fro m
s mall, s emi- ru ral d is t ric t s
wit h large no n- Englis h s peaking
mino rit y po pu lat io ns t o t h e larges t element ary
d is t ric t in Arizo na, s erv ing
s u bu rban Ph o enix . As d irec t o r o f d is t ric t
pu blic relat io ns s h ewas res po ns ible
fo r
int ernal and ex t ernal
c o mmu nic at io ns , inc lu d ing s erv ing as s po kes pers o n
inc ris is s it u at io ns . Sh eals o
was
res po ns ible fo rmed iarelat io ns ,
o v ers eeing d is t ric t pu blic at io ns ,
t raining ad minis t rat o rs and t eac h ers in
effec t iv e
c o mmu nic at io ns , pro mo t ing
c o mmu nit y inv o lv ement and v o lu nt eeris m
in t h e s c h o o ls , c o o rd inat ing
bo nd elec t io n
c ampaigns and
engaging t h epu blic in d eliberat iv e d is c u s s io ns
abo u t ed u c at io n t h ro u gh s t u d y
c irc les and
c o mmu nit y fo ru ms .
Her d is t ric t ex perienc e
inc lu d es o perat ing as a o nepers o n
o ffic e t o s u perv is ing a
c o mmu nic at io ns s t aff t h at
inc lu d ed afu ll
s erv ic e print s h o p . Sh e h as c reat ed award
winning pu blic relat io ns o ffic es
in d is t ric t s t h at
h ad no ne, and ex pand ed
pro grams ind is t ric t s wit h es t ablis h ed
d epart ment s .
Kleinz als o
o perat ed a pu blic
relat io ns c o ns u lt ing bu s ines s in Arizo na
s pec ializing in s c h o o l
c o mmu nic at io ns .
As a c o ns u lt ant s h e as s is t ed
s c h o o ls and d is t ric t s in d ev elo ping
a po s it iv e image and
wo rk
env iro nment t h ro u gh
impro v ed c o mmu nic at io ns . Sh e
c o llabo rat ed wit h Caro ly n
Warnero nPro mo t ing
Yo u rSc h o o l -
Go ing Bey o nd PRpu blis h ed by Co rwin
Pres s Inc .
Befo rej o ining t h eNSPRA
s t aff Kleinz s erv ed o nt h e
NSPRAEx ec u t iv e Bo ard as Vic e
Pres id ent o f t h e
So u t h wes t
Regio n and t wic e s erv ed as
Pres id ent o f t h e Arizo na
Sc h o o l Pu blic Relat io ns
As s o c iat io n. Sh e
was als o amembero f
t h eTeac h er Vent u re Arizo na
ex ec u t iv e bo ard , ano n- pro fit
gro u p o f bu s ines s and
s c h o o l lead ers wh o d is t ribu t e c las s ro o m
minigrant s t o t eac h ers
annu ally , and was afo u nd ing
bo ard
member o f t h e Yu ma
Co u nt y (Arizo na) Ed u c at io nal
Fo u nd at io n.
NSPRA's mis s io n is
t o ad v anc eed u c at io n t h ro u gh
res po ns ible c o mmu nic at io n,
and it h as been pro v id ing
s c h o o l
c o mmu nic at io n t raining and s erv ic es t o
s c h o o l lead ers t h ro u gh o u t
t h e Unit ed St at es and Canad a
s inc e 1935
.
Nat io nal Sc h o o l
Pu blic Relat io ns
As s o c iat io n" 15948
Derwo o d Ro ad " Ro c kv ille
MD
2085 6
" (301) 518- 0496 "
FAX(301)
519- 0494 "
www. ns pra. o rg
T n q p ~ l _ k
M
. . . T HE
LEADER IN SCHOOL COMMUNICAT IONS
Ken n eth K. Muir,
Ed. D
. ,
APR
Ken Muir is an education writin g, p l an n in g
an d p ubl ic rel ation s con s ul tan t s in ce his retiremen t
from the Mon tgomery Coun ty (Maryl an d) Publ ic
School s
in
Jun e 1990, after a 33-year career in
p ubl ic education .
He has work ed as afin an cial
an dp ubl ic rel ation s con s ul tan t for the Nation al School
Publ ic
Rel ation s
As s ociation s in ce Jan uary 1992. He was p res iden t ofNSPRAin 1974-75.
Ken
began
his
education career in the Bal timore (Maryl an d) City Publ ic School s in
1957 as a
bus in es s
education teacher. After s ecurin g more graduate train in g,
he became a high s chool
coun s el or.
In
1966,
he became director of in formation for
theMon tgomery Coun ty Publ ic School s an d
con tin ued in that p os t un til 1985 . Atthat p oin t he headed
a
n ew
Dep artmen t of
Lon g-ran ge
Pl an n in g
.
In 1988, that was con s ol idated
in to the
n ew
Dep artmen t ofMan agemen t, Budget an d
Pl an n in g, where Ken became s up ervis or
of man agemen t an d
p l an n in g
s ervices .
Ken 's bachel or's degree, in
accoun tin g an deducation , was earn ed at An tioch Col l ege. His M. Ed.
Degree is from the Un ivers ity
ofMaryl an d, an dEd. D. from George Was hin gton Un ivers ity. He is
accredited in p ubl ic
rel ation s (APR), earn in g that dis tin ction in 1978 .
Nation al School
Publ ic Rel ation s As s ociation " 15948
Darwood Road " Rock vil l e MO
20855 " (301)519-0496 " FAX(301) 519-0494 "
www. n op ra. org
Communication
Checklist for
_L
School
Principals
Baltimore County Public Schools
Please note:
This quick-to-complete checklist is a tool being used to help complete a communication audit for
your school system. Once you complete it, please forward it to
by
office/person
to
Please check one response for each question.
1 .
Aschool
newspaper is sent to parents on aregular basis.
2.
Prior
to parent/teacher conferences,
inservice training
programs are conducted for.
All teachers
New teachers
7.
YES 93
NO 62
ambassadors .
. .
- . .
m
Do you have programs
to involve non-parents in
school activities? YES
Would you like assistance in
developing a PRplan for your
school?
Two-way
communication with support
staff
is achieved through:
Meetings 44
Memos 150
Newsletters
School-based
management
Other
14.
14
Have you
held
a
staff meeting or workshop on home/school
communications this year?
YES
NO
10
96
YES
NO
`83
Would you like to offer an
inservice training program in communication
or public relations for
your
staff? YES
E]
NO
NO
What could
your district administration do
that would be most helpful
to you
in
planning and carry
ing out your
communication
efforts?
National School
Public Relations
Association, 15948 Derwood
Rd
. , Rockville, MD20855 301/5I9-0496,
FAX301/519-0494
4. Other:
Conferences/conference
with teacher and/or administration
( 7 )
Direct
communications with administration/principal
( 6)
Phone calls to staff ( 7 )
Teachers
Newsletter
Letters
( 2)
Athletic
events
AFG
process
Workshops/workshop nights
( 2)
Community meetings in
their community-
quarterly
Surveys/evaluations
( 7 )
Action
teams
Team meetings
SIT
Principal/AP
Sports
boosters/alumni association
Voice mail
Board of Directors
Team levels
IEP teams
meetings ( 3 )
Informal
visits/channels ( 3 )
Open
door
E-mail ( 2)
5. Other:
College/university students ( 8 )
Student graduates
High school students
( 12)
Middle
school students
Students
from other
schools ( 2)
Mentors
Sports/band
boosters
Advisory boards
Other family
members
Grandparents
Staff
Service learning
Parents of
ESOL children
Baltimore
County Public Schools
Communication Checklist
for School Principals
Comments
11 . Other:
Informal conversations
(5)
Open-door policy (2 )
E-mail (18)
Individual/one-to-one conferences (15)
Face-to-face
Phone system
Leadership council
Chairmen (2 )
Grade
level chairperson
(2 )
School messenger service
Grade level meetings (9 )
Department
meetings
Teams/team meetings
(2 )
Meetings with administration
Faculty meetings
Faculty council (4 )
Workgroups/grade level teams
Orally
Dialogue
Announcements (3 )
Voice mail (2 )
Individual/person
contacts (2 )
Stafflprofessional development (2 )
Staff/faculty bulletin (4 )
Classroom newsletters
Department
memos
Mail
MBWA
SIT
12 . Other:
Informal conversations (5)
Open-door
policy (2 )
E-mail (15)
Department meetings
Team leaders
School messenger
service
Face-to-face
Individual/one-to-one conferences (12 )
Voice
mail
Bulletin (3 )
Department memos
Grade level meetings
Special education meetings
Cafeteria
meetings
Special area meetings
Tutor
monthly meetings
12 . Other: (continued)
Support
s ta f f meetings
Announcements
Prof es s iona l development
Dia logue
School publica tions
Ma il
Gra de cha irpers on
Individua l da ily conta ct
Through other s ta f f
School vis its
Fa culty
council
21 .
Comments :
"
Upda te our
technology (we're outda ted) ; conduct
initia l dia logue with
potentia l
bus ines s pa rtners hips .
Provide ba ckground
inf orma tion a nd res ources f or the
a bove.
Compile wa y s s chools
communica te tha t pa rents
f ind mos t helpf ul .
Include in
genera l s urvey s o
we ca n res pond to pa rents '
needs .
My executive
director receives our
news letters a nd a lwa y s
ca lls f or
cla rif ica tion a nd to of f er
s upport/res ources . Continuing
thes e ef f orts certa inly
s upports my
ef f orts .
Continue
s upporting/promoting
the "Pa rent Mobile" a nd the
"Pa rent
Res ources
Of f ice. " They
ha ve been helpf ul in
genera ting idea s f or opening
lines of communica tion .
Provide inf orma tion
pa cket tha t
includes templa tes f or
overhea ds a nd
works heets
.
As s is t a s a lia is on between
bus ines s es a nd the s chool
. As s is t in s etting up
pa rtners hips by
providing s chools with
inf orma tion a bout
bus ines s es willing
to
ta ke on
pa rtners hips .
They
ha ve been very
helpf ul . (2)
"
Provide
curricul um/system-wide "drop-in" a rticl es for
newsl etters; more
visits from the "Pa rent Mobil e. "
Asa n a spiring principa l ca ndida te, this is how I
woul d respond if I ha d a
school .
We do grea t things a t Mil brook. However,
wedon't ma rket it very wel l . Hel p
me l ea rn how to promote the positive!
" N/A
"
El ementa ry
office providing informa tion on new curricul um, i . e. ,
Houghton
Mittl in a nd Open CourtRea ding Series
. Communica tion with pa rents is
a ccompl ished through school newsl etter, individua l tea cher
newsl etters, PTA
newsl etter a nd SI T newsl etter.
"
Continue
to provide support for school -ba sed decisions whenpa rents ca l l
the
a rea office.
"
Attend certa in
in-school meetings.
"
I nservice training
for staff and administration.
Mak e available mobile communication units
lik e the "Parent Mobile. "
Keep us better informed on
issues so wedon't have to get our
information
from The Sunpaper.
Teachers
need computers to have e-mail
access to parents and businesses.
"
Connecting businesses
directly to us to eliminate the need to
campaign
ourselves.
Upgrading
technology so that each teacher
can access I nternet from their own
computer
; helping to evaluate and plan
for alternative methods
(other than
newsletter) for communicating
with parents.
"
Provide an
inservice pre-pack aged
presentation for
faculty/ staff .
Answer the phone when
wecall. I hate
that voice mail!
Open
up discussion at an
area meeting to discover
what other schools
in the
area are
doing to promote PR.
Purchase the hardware
for voice mail,
homework hotline and
calling system.
Web site
development. Alert
parents to events. Call for
absentees.
I ncrease
communication
between parents and
teachers.
21 . Comments: (continued)
"
See th a t wereceive
recognition/press covera ge for student a nd sta ff
a ccomplish ments.
"
Upgra de voice ma il .
"
Sta ff development.
"
Resource
a ssista nce.
"
Rema in supportive
a nd responsive.
"
Always
-Parents like it to be meaningful .
"
Always -
bi-weekly
Question #3 :
"
Always -ASAP
"
Frequently -principal
"
Parent/teacher organization
-n/a (2)
Question #5 :
"
Occasionally -
veteran staff as needed/requested
"
Occasionally -
through PTA and administration
Question #10:
"
Occasionally -ongoing
"
We don't have
a business partner.
Question 411 :
"
E-mail - limited
"
E-mail - beginning
"
Voice-mail -
limited
"
Voice-mail - working on
"
Cable
T. V.
- I t is being completed
.
"
Website - 1 teacher
"
Website - coming
"
Website - beginning
"
Website - ( PTA)
"
Website - planned
"
Local papers
Question #14:
"
E-mail - coming
"
E-mail
-
as soon as technology is av ailable
"
E-mail - limited
"
Cable T. V - in house
" Fax
"
Yes -p a r tia l
meetings
"
Yes -
r ep or t ca r d meetings
"
Yes -
I t wa s a p a r t of sev er a l
meetings .
"
Yes -gr a d e
l ev el meetings (2)
"
Yes -b ut
not a s a sep a r a te top ic
"
No -b ut "yes" to
ind iv id ua l office sta ff onl y
"
No -a p a r ent
wor kshop
"
Pa r t
of meetings
Question #17:
"
Yes -a t
Meet the Pr incip a l s
Night
"
Yes -infor ma l
-PTSAJSI T
"
Yes -
coming
"
Yes -
I MAP
"
Yes
-
end of l a st yea r , not
this yea r
"
No -not yet
"
No -
howev er , p a r ent feed b a ck a t PTA
Executiv e Boa r d ,
SI T a nd inter na l
conta cts
"
No -not yet
this yea r (2)
"
No
-
p l a nned for this yea r
"
No -infor ma l l y
onl y a t PTA meeting
"
No -in
Ja nua r y
"
No -b eing p l a nned
thr ough school imp r ov ement
tea m
"
Committee is
d esigning one a s p a r t of
SI T Action Tea m
"
Wil l this
yea r
"
Onl y infor ma l l y
. Officia l sur v ey is
cond ucted l a ter in the
yea r .
Question #18:
"
Yes -
tutor s for r ea d ing
"
Yes -PTA
"
Yes -
Science F a ir , Ca r eer
F a ir
"
Yes -
high school mentor
p r ogr a m with ev ent
"
Yes -
gr a nd p a r ents, Pea ce Cor p . ,
v ol unteer s, etc .
"
Yes
-
But
I don't think they would attend . Teachers believe they are excellent
communicators, and they're not .
"
No -good
idea but not at
this
time,
next
year
"
Yes
-
I f it
is
not cumbersome .
"
No
-
We
are
currently working with the Office of Professional Development .
"