AESA PSESD Comm

CommunicationsLeadershipCreating a Regional Voiceon Issues that Matter

December 2, 2016AESA Conference

Share Who We Are

Basic background information, what we do, who we serve, our approach and what we offer to our districts.

What is working in Regional Communications

There has been a shift in our approach to communication services, and its having a positive impact on the region.

What we will do

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About Puget Sound ESD PSESD is…

•1 of 9 regional educational agencies serving school districts and state-approved private schools in Washington. •governed by a nine-member educational service district board, elected by local school directors•committed to becoming an Antiracist, Multicultural Organization

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We Serve…

• 35 school districts

• 200+ private schools

• 421,131 students or 39% of WA’s K-12 public school students

Our Funding…• Less than 1% of our funding comes from a state allocation.

• Our programs are funded primarily by entrepreneurial means.

1%

11%

10%

28%

50%

State Allocation

Cooperatives

Local Sources

State Grants

Federal Grants

Com

mun

icat

ions

Rol

e at

PSE

SD

Times are changing….A Shift in Services

Before the success in regional communications came a shift in our approach to communications in general.

Gone were the days of communication and marketing of old, no more faxed press releases and free websites and agency controlled Facebook accounts.

We made a planned and intentional shift to an agency model: Communication Coordinators as account managers, communications and marketing generalists for internal programs. Senior Communications Coordinators account managers, communications and marketing generalists for internal programs and external districts, and Communications Manager as project manager and supervisor.

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Needs are changing… • Most notably a need for regional Communications to contribute to the development and delivery of creative and strategic media and communications work to support educational objectives at county, regional and state levels

PSESD Regional CommunicationsJuly 2013

August 2014

PSESD Literacy and Communications Funded by Gates for Growing a Community of Learners: Supporting Implementation of the Instructional Shifts in LiteracyAt the heart of this work was communications partnering with LTFS staff to teach teachers how to blog and use twitter to amplify teacher voice.

Districts Unified in Rejecting the Label “Failing” to Describe Local Schools30 Districts participate in letter, press conference, article and we get positive media coverage.

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PSESD Regional Communications

January 2015

May 2015

Puget Sound ESD Smarter Balanced Assessment Communication Plan A seven month comprehensive, strategic communications plan written by PSESD Communications Manager share with District PIOs in partnership with ReadyWAin preparation of the first SBA score releases.

Puget Sound College and Career Network (PSCCN) is launched The goal is to increase PSCCN’s capacity and effectiveness to provide students and families with resources to prepare for college, enroll in college, and earn postsecondary credentials.

What we are learning from families/community…Priorities• Paying for College: Scholarships / WASFA / FAFSA / Loans• College Entrance requirements• Importance of College• What to take / Picking the right high school classes

What Is Working for PSCCN:

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How we are communicating with families/community…• Counselor • Events • Email • Text • Personal phone call • Flyers / Handouts • Advisory Class

Style we are communicating families/community…• Written like a normal conversation• Personalized• Pathway or way to track progress/map progress• Simple / Colorful / Bold Text with website for more

information with printable handouts• Use standard paper size• Font not too small• Avoid childish graphics• Calendar of events

“College”Means All Pathways: T-2-4

•Technical & Apprenticeship - Technical programs prepare you for specific trades and career. An apprenticeship includes on-the-job training in a highly skilled career.

•2-Year College - Offer associate degrees and certificates, which are usually completed in two years of full study, preparing students for careers or transfer to a 4-year college. Some 2-year colleges also have 4-year degree options.

•4-Year College - These schools offer bachelor's degrees, usually completed in four years of full-time study.


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Financial Aid: Why?•Students who complete financial aid are 2X as likely to attend•Required for all federal aid, many scholarships, and loans•All students graduate ready, able to make choice•Regional priority & opportunity to leverage resources •Big changes this year-‐ opened earlier, earlier priority deadlines •Undocumented students have access to funds in WA: WASFA


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What is Working?• In-‐class activities• Individual tracking of students completion status• After school financial aid event(s)• Discussing financial aid at family meetings/Student

Led Conferences• Integrating financial aid information into family

nights• Home mailings (printed/email)• Training bilingual staff/interpreters/family liaisons

on financial aid

Promising Strategies • Build the team: Include bilingual staff, family

liaisons, advisory teachers, partners • Integrate in school day & existing activities

(advisory, course requirement, family nights, athletics, school-‐based incentives (dance discount)

• Message to students & families early & often (visual & spoken reminders), integrate into an overall long-‐term family engagement strategy

• Data Analysis: Portal, student-‐level tracking, identify trends, track progress, understand who is missing and design specific strategies

PSESD Regional Communications

November 2015

June 2016

Puget Sound ESD & Partnership for Learning receive 2-year grant to take CORElaboratestatewide! What makes this program unique, beyond the social media aspect of amplifying teacher voice, is the continued commitment to keep teachers at the center of the work.

Attendance Awareness Communications Toolkit is Published Launched first at the Early Warning Systems convening the Attendance Awareness Communications Toolkit has over

Story -> Awareness -> Intervention • National Research on Chronic Absence

• PSESD Regional Impact and Intervention

Implications

• Toolkit and Actionable Steps

Attendance Awareness Toolkit

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Key Learnings• Communication Leadership is Adaptive

• The need for agreement, cooperation, and participation at many levels is at the heart of any plan.

• Organizational and professional silos, including our own in communications, are killing us and threatening our profession.

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Key Learnings• Communications is an intentional strategy. Communications drives relationships and all relationships are different.

• Regional Communications work best when you first establish a deep understanding of why there is a need for shared message, and then build a related framework for a story that resonates with all key internal and external stakeholders

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Thank you!

Melissa Laramie, MA COML, Interim Director of Communications & Public Relations, @MelissaJLaramie

Kelly Goodsell, Ed.D. Executive Director Learning, Teaching & Family Support

AESA PSESD Comm

Documents

Transcript of AESA PSESD Comm