Communications Overview
The Elmbrook Schools seeks to communicate effectively in order to develop and deepen our relationships with our students, parents, staff and community. Specifically, we strive to:
- Inform, listen to, and engage stakeholders in order to celebrate, support, and share the mission of the district
- Establish consistent practices for the use of communication tools across the district
- Continuously improve our key processes based on reflection, revision and feedback
Inform
Web Site Content
Phone calls Focus: Critical issues that impact the majority of recipients such as school closings, security threats, or a significant change in process that effects all families
Emails
Focus: Critical issues, timely reminders of academic and school events, unexcused absences, and important, but not critical
- Target distribution list whenever possible by grade/bus route, etc
- Use sparingly for reminders of significant school events such as parent conferences, field trips, upcoming grade reports, major PTO events, etc.
Facebook
New in 2013, each school’s Facebook page will aggregate school news and twitter feed content. Families on Facebook are encouraged to “follow” their school to keep abreast of news and celebrations.
Twitter
Also new in 2013, the District is beginning to leverage social media to communicate with stakeholders. Each school will have a twitter account used to celebrate success and provide timely information or reminders.
Listen
Each school and the district listens to its student, staff, and family stakeholders through regular Principal and Superintendent chats, as well as an annual survey. More informally, stakeholders are encouraged to reach out to staff with concerns, celebrations, or questions. Many schools have established climate and culture goals to address opportunities for improvement identified through the listening process.
Engage
Several tactics are deployed to engage students, family members and the community in our schools and the district. They include:
- Students are encouraged to engage beyond the classroom through school leadership roles (student council), co-curricular activities, school board presentations, and community service.
- Principal chats are at least once a quarter at each school. This is an informal opportunity for parents to provide feedback on key issues or concerns. The Principal may also share timely updates with an interested parent population.
- Parent-teacher conferences are held twice each year, are very well attended, and provide an opportunity to discuss student academic and behavior performance. In addition, most schools offer both a back-to-school “meet and greet” or open house, as well as a Parent Information Night that introduces families to the classroom teachers and communicates expectations at the start of the year.
- Volunteer – each school offers a number of opportunities to volunteer at the classroom, school or district level. These can be formal (PTO, Booster Club, Fine Arts groups) or informal (event-driven).
- Alumni Network - Elmbrook's Alumni Network serves as a way for our graduates to keep in touch with each other and engage with the District and their alma mater. In addition to various engagement opportunities, alums registered on the site receive a quarterly update newsletter from the Network filled with school and District news, upcoming events and reunions, and opportunities to engage and give-back to the school community.
District opportunities for engagement are organized under the Elmbrook Family University. Offering a variety of events to educate, inform, and equip families, the University includes the Parent Network and Leadership Council, Elmbrook Education Foundation, and Special Education Engagement Network and Gifted & Talented Parent Advisory Groups.