Talking budget? Honest caution the best advice

Two of the states where we do a lot of work received some interesting news from their friendly state governments recently.

In Kansas, the core message from the new governor was that he wouldn’t be fiddling with the state’s financing of K-12 – at least not right now.

On the surface, that gave him a positive talking point: “Governor pledges not to cut school budget!” However, the rest of the story is that when the Federal Stimulus Dollars dry up, the state won’t be replacing them. So, the net result is fewer dollars, no matter who or what is to blame.

In Missouri, the Governor announced he is “releasing” $7.5 million in funds to help fund transportation. But, that was from $70 million in such funds that were withheld last year to help with the state’s budget woes. Once again, an encouraging headline does not tell the entire story.

Chances are good that no matter where you may be reading this, your district’s budget challenges will be even greater this coming budget cycle than they were this year. Your patrons have a right to know what you – and they – are facing, of course. But, as you work to make your situation known, make certain you have clear, concise and easily repeatable messages before you send out your first news tip on the coming budget.

Provide a quick refresher on the recent budget downturn, and its impact on your district so far. Mention the current budget projections, making it clear that you recognize that the budget is still working its way through the legislature and that it may change as a result. Hit the high points on what effects might be felt at various levels of funding cuts, but do so matter-of-factly.

Above all, put the word out and keep it out there until the final numbers are in. Doing so makes patrons your partners in this process, and makes it easier to break bad news to them if – and when – that become necessary.

Today’s class: Public Meeting 101

Public meetings have devolved into public theater, as the goal of actually gathering meaningful input from a cross-section of community members has been hijacked by the boisterous few whose objective is not to solve problems, but to create them and, in doing so, slow down the process of making important decisions.

The so-called “Health Care Town Halls” were a shining example of this de-evolution in action. Rather than ask questions, offer ideas, or share meaningful concerns, the objective for most who raised their voices was to do just that – raise their voices. Those with legitimate ideas to offer were drowned out by the finger-pointing, sign-waving crowd.

School districts who hold such public events as difficult decisions are being made often find the same dynamic in place, often spiced up with patrons trotting their children up to the microphone with them, so that the patron can point to said child and say, “Do you mean to tell me you are going to make Sally (or Sam) go to school X? She came out of the womb planning on going to School Y!”

How to avoid that? Don’t have a microphone for public comment.

Instead, position school board members, boundary committee members, and administration members in the corners of the public meeting room. Welcome the guests from the podium, describe the draft proposal, and then send them to the corners to share their input. Have someone on duty in each corner to record everything, and make that activity visible. Report the findings in the media in a summary form.

If the objective is to truly secure input, it’s the only way you’ll be certain to hear from everyone in the room. And, better still, you create an environment that’s constructive, rather than destructive.

Want living proof that this is the way to go? Check with the superintendents at Salina (Kansas) USD 305, and Warrensburg R-VI in Missouri about how well this approach worked in their districts.

Balancing academic and athletic messages

With high school football practice about to kick off (no pun intended), if it hasn’t already, it’s worth bringing up a sometimes dicey subject: Patron perceptions about the school district’s balance of spending on athletics, academics (and, in some districts, the arts).

It’s a question we often ask in research assignments for school districts, because those districts want to know if it’s a loud few folks who think the spending is out of whack, or if it is a commonly held opinion.

When we ask, it’s highly unusual to find a patron population that is apathetic about the topic. In other words, they either give their school district a big gold star in this area, or they have a significant concern about how funds are allocated. And, you can probably guess that there’s no one complaining that the district doesn’t spend enough on athletics.

So, what’s a district to do when it wants to generate school spirit by talking about athletic endeavors, while also being mindful that many patrons see athletics as costly and unnecessary interruptions to a school’s academic purpose?

The answer is simply to keep an eye on the balance of the messages you are disseminating, and tilt it heavily toward academic accomplishments. Those patrons who want to know details about athletics can certainly find them (on your Web site, for example), and won ‘t feel slighted. But, just let those who want to find out about the high school debate team’s performance go wanting – while wading through screaming headlines about the football team’s exploits – and this perception of imbalance can become an obsession.

Social media is here, like it or not

We have a bet around the office as to when social media sites (Facebook, Twitter, et al) will become as important a source of school district news as the district’s own website.

You see, five years ago, somewhere between 2% and 5% of typical patrons told us that they “frequently” consulted the district’s website for news and information. That number is now routinely above 10%, and often as high as 25%.

That’s where social media stands right now – about 2-5% utilization for school district news. We expect it won’t take five years to get to where district websites are right now.

There is a significant, strategic difference between your website and social media. You control your website, but you don’t control what patrons are saying on their Facebook pages and Twitter feeds. And, of course, you can’t control who might start up a niche Facebook page to either champion a cause or raise a ruckus.

So, if you can’t control what others are saying via their social media channels, what’s a district to do? Fight fire with fire. Create a robust Facebook page that provides you another outlet to channel news and information. Start a Twitter feed, but for goodness sake make certain that you put meaningful information on there. (Current estimates are that upwards of 70% of Twitter messages are akin to “I hate it when it rains” and “Great ham sandwich at lunch today.”)

And don’t worry if your “fan” and “follower” numbers are modest for a while. Your community may not be an early adopter of such channels but, as our experience with website traffic suggests, they’ll eventually get there. It’s up to you to be there with something meaningful once they arrive.