If you are like most of our clients, you are shouting, “hip hip hooray” the 2020/2021 school year is in the books.
You are probably chomping at the bit to get back to a more normal routine and education delivery system.
We are, too. And none of us wants another crazy year like this past one.
But we are wondering just how “normal” getting back to normal is going to be.
COVID-19 and its ramifications shook our nation to its roots. People are still in shock about 600,000 American deaths. BLM also has had a profound effect on our culture, as has the aftermath of the 2020 presidential election. Add in the sizable minority of Americans who are not vaccinated – and you have a recipe for even more volatility.
For the average school district, these are the ingredients for a perfect storm. So, what is a superintendent to do?
We recommend the following:
- Remain transparent in all things. Suspicion is the new national pastime, and the best way to head it off at the pass is to make sure everything you do is an open book.
- Overcommunicate. More than ever before, now is the time to keep all communication channels wide open. Pick a handful of central themes and hammer them, until the staff members feel they have heard them a million times. That’s when your patrons will just be getting around to reading them for the first time.
- Start a Citizens Advisory Committee (CAC). Make sure to include the positive and negative voices. Have a good structure to your CAC and keep them busy working on key issues.
- Monitor social media. Facebook is the early warning system for patron unrest. Make sure you are following it diligently. Either assign multiple staff members to monitor your social media or consider working with us to create a Sentiment Analysis dashboard.
We are hopeful normal will return soon and will slowly start to resemble what we had in the past.
