Why Schools Must Tell Their Stories
No one understands your mission, values, or vision unless you share.
“We’ve never done anything fun.”
“They don’t care about the arts at that school.”
“I’ve heard it’s a scary place. Bullying is out of control there.”
Ouch.
They’re the kinds of rumors, hearsay, and negative messages that suck the life out of hardworking educators, destroy community morale, and damage school brands.
How could you be so sure that your wonderful class or school community was X … only to hear that others view it as Y?
Simple. You’re doing lots of great things within your own walls. But you’re doing a really bad job of telling your story.
Assume nothing: no one knows you love their child.
As classroom teachers and school leaders, we make a lot of assumptions about the perceptions of our parent communities. A LOT of assumptions.
We assume that school parents (and by extension, friends and relatives) know that …
- We love their child dearly
- We believe their child is capable of success
- We are working hard to help their child succeed
