Post Election To-Dos
Alright, you made it, two grueling election cycles are in the rearview mirror. Washington’s school districts and schools have recently gone to voters to seek support for their teachers, staff, and students with various requests. Now is a great time to keep your community outreach going! Here are three tips for ways to continue communicating with your community.
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Continue to communicate about funding measures: It’s vital to maintain transparency and consistency in your communication. Your community is engaged and in the habit of seeing this information from you if you ran in April or February. Build on this momentum and continue to update your community by:
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Thanking the community for their support of levy-funded programs and incorporating a hashtag for funding.
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Sharing updates about ongoing and completed facility improvements funded by levies and bonds.
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Providing regular progress reports on the implementation of levy and bond-funded projects. We’ve seen and supported the creation of annual community reports, neighborhood postcards, and press releases in local media.
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Utilize paid digital media ads: Leveraging digital media ads is a cost-effective strategy to engage a broader audience beyond your current followers. These ads should be a component of every district’s communications strategy. We recommend highlighting:
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Enrollment opportunities and deadlines
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Hiring and recruiting
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Good news stories and programs like CTE, which continue to be a top priority for many residents.
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Consider launching a community survey or public opinion poll: You are never more connected to your community than after an election. Take this opportunity to learn about your community:
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Do they understand school funding?
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Do they understand what levies and bonds fund?
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If the measure didn’t pass, what information might have been useful to them?
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The goal is to keep the support and engagement going throughout the year and continuing to educate and acknowledge the community about the impact of their investment.
School District Shoutout
We love the use of the hashtag #CPSDPride by the Clover Park School District. These are great examples of sharing with your community the great things students and educators are doing. Here are our favorite posts:
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Celebrating the great work of a teacher and a student at one of their schools and the support that have made them successful.
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A media story about a teacher making a difference in the lives of students.
News from Strategies 360
We’re excited to introduce a new member of our research team! David Kornahrens, brings an impressive breadth of experience spanning 10+ years in qualitative and quantitative research, advising on messaging and strategy in a diversity of industries, locations, and topics.
Whether it’s through public opinion polls or focus groups, we help you gain a deeper understanding of your community’s priorities and perceptions.
In case you missed it, last summer, we completed and presented a statewide poll about the state of education in Washington.
You can expect an invite from David and the Education Team in late May to a webinar on education research trends and tools to tell your story.
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Learn more about the S360 Education Team and how we support school districts to build connections with their community by sending us an email at edteam@strategies360.com.