Bonds behind us, enrollment ahead
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Last Tuesday was a big day for everyone in our country—but especially so in America’s school districts. Whether it was a bond initiative, a new levy, or even just maintaining an existing millage rate, your schools very well may have been on the ballot.
While it may have been stressful out on the campaign trail (and doubly so if your tax vote fell a few votes short), it is important to take a step back and acknowledge what you can carry forward once all the yard signs have been put away.
Election season is time for engaging directly with your community. From speaking with civic groups about the latest bond package or answering parent questions in a campus cafeteria, you no doubt heard a lot of different perspectives over the past few months.
Don’t let those conversations go to waste—regardless of the results, now is the time to show your stakeholders that you were listening and will continue to involve them in what comes next.
Elections are also barometers of trust. It can feel pretty rough when voters reject a proposal, and it’s certainly understandable to take that personally. But this moment, too, can be positive in the long run.
A lost campaign can indicate where you have room to grow in your district communication. Maybe there are communications channels or even whole neighborhoods that aren’t getting regular updates on the work your teachers are doing and what your district’s needs are. Now is the time to address those shortcomings—with benefits lasting longer than just the next election cycle.
We recently hosted a webinar highlighting best practices for school leaders after a bond election, regardless of the result. You can find the recording here.
Elections are a stressful—while sometimes invigorating—time for everyone. But the hard work you put into your bond or millage campaign can live on long after the polls are closed. Your entire community is thinking about your schools—how can you stay top of mind year-round?
One question for you
1. What input do you need from your community after last week's election?
Email us at [email protected] or book a time on our calendar and let us know.
Two resources to help
1. Enrollment marketing has a lot of moving parts, but it all makes sense under a framework private sector marketers have spent years defining—the customer journey. Join Apptegy’s Senior Growth Marketing Manager Heather Palacios and Principal Alycia Burns of Twin Peaks Classical Academy for a webinar exploring how to tell the story of enrollment through the eyes of your families on Wednesday, November 20th at 10 am CT / 11 am ET. — Register for this free webinar here
2. For many families, the majority of their experiences start and remain online. In the latest episode of SchoolCEO Podcast, we dig into how to optimize your online communities to make sure that they’re just as incredible as your schools are in real life. — Listen to Episode 6 of The Complete Guide to School Marketing: What is Digital Experience?
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Three ideas to ponder
1. “Building an enrollment marketing plan is a marathon, not a sprint. And while no single tip is likely to change the ways families in your school district approach enrollment, know that every touchpoint counts.” —Read Apptegy’s new guide, Top 8 Enrollment Marketing Strategies for 2025
2. “That’s what keeps me up at night. Are we reaching the people we need to reach? Are we using the right language, the right platforms? Are we making sure our community knows about the opportunities we offer?” — Katherine Crnkovich, APR, CPRC , Communications Officer for Florida's Seminole County Public Schools and the winner of the 2024 SchoolCEO Excellence in School Marketing Award
3. “While we may have to work harder in some respects to make sure we’re being strategic and strong with our messaging, our profession has learned a lot when it comes to developing a message that will resonate with our individual communities. But at the end of the day, a good bond campaign is still a good bond campaign.”— Christopher Payne, APR, Fellow PRSA of Union Public Schools in Oklahoma in What's New with School Bonds: How passing a school bond has changed over the past decade