How to fight back against devastating budget cuts


At least 34 states are making yet another wave of cuts to K-12 education.

With 34 states making yet another wave of budget cuts in K-12 education, school children and their families are increasingly vulnerable as the Great Recession leaves the social safety net in tatters.

Soon, even more public school employees will likely join the ranks of the unemployed. According to the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities, 44 states plus the District of Columbia are eliminating, freezing, or cutting their workforces.

States and school districts are also mandating time off without pay, increasing insurance co-pays, and enacting a host of other stringent cost-cutting measures.

Sadly, some elected officials are using state budget crises as political cover to push agendas that have little or nothing to do with educating children well, particularly schools that serve higher percentages of students who are poor, disabled, or English language learners.

In North Carolina, for example, the state legislature is expected to adopt Senate Bill 8, which shifts funding from public to charter schools for services like transportation and child nutrition that charter schools aren’t required by law to provide.

Read other recent columns from Nora Carr:

Recognizing the warning signs for teen bullying, suicide

Can eBooks help bridge achievement gaps?

Demographic shifts require changes in school communication

How to avoid committing social media gaffes

How to tailor your school site for mobile web users

Tying layoff notices to passage of a bill gutting teacher tenure laws, Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker has ignited massive protests and a national debate regarding the efficacy of teacher unions and public employees’ collective bargaining rights.

Increasingly, teachers and other public employees are being blamed for every social ill, from poor student health to massive state budget deficits. Meanwhile, films like the pro-charter school Waiting for Superman paint all educators with the broad brush of incompetence and indifference.

When 70 percent of American voters no longer have school-aged children, educators no longer can rely on happy parents and thriving students to spread the word about the great things happening in their classrooms and schools.

Unfortunately, the information vacuum created by changing demographics and a radically altered media landscape has been filled by naysayers and critics. As a result, many educators don’t recognize their own experiences when public schools are discussed in the media and online, or portrayed in film.

Regardless of where they fall on the political spectrum, this much is clear: Educators need to tell their stories and make their voices heard over the pundit-driven media din.

Social media networks like Facebook, YouTube, Twitter, and LinkedIn are a good place to start. Free and easy to use, with micro blogs typically limited to 140-character messages, social media networks can be updated on the go from smart phones, iPads, and other mobile devices.

While social media networks won’t replace grassroots advocacy, the blogosphere is a powerful tool for informing and mobilizing constituents.

From President Obama’s success in galvanizing the youth vote to the recent toppling of a 40-year dictatorship in Egypt, social media networks have become the new public square. To make sure their voices are heard, educators need to learn how to negotiate this new medium successfully.

According to a 2010 study of social media use, 23 percent of corporations listed on the Fortune 500 have blogs, 60 percent have Twitter accounts, and 56 percent have Facebook sites geared toward public consumption. These efforts are characterized by frequent postings, quick replies to consumer questions, online discussions, and subscription options via eMail or RSS feeds.

“These large and leading companies drive the American economy and, to a large extent, the world economy,” writes Nora Ganim Barnes, the study’s author. “Their willingness to interact more transparently via these new technologies with stakeholders is clear. It will be interesting to watch as they expand their adoption of social media [networks] and connect with their constituents in dramatically new ways.”

Read other recent columns from Nora Carr:

Recognizing the warning signs for teen bullying, suicide

Can eBooks help bridge achievement gaps?

Demographic shifts require changes in school communication

How to avoid committing social media gaffes

How to tailor your school site for mobile web users

Few industries shape the future more than public schools, yet unlike their corporate brethren, school leaders have largely been slow to adopt these new tools.

If educators are going to win back the hearts and minds of the public in support of public schools, they need to learn how to engage social media networks successfully.

Eric Sheninger, principal of New Milford High School in New Milford, N.J., is using social media networks extensively to keep teachers, parents, and students informed and build pride in the school.

From emergency weather alerts and athletic score updates to news about student honors, staff accomplishments, and school events, Sheninger posts information daily.

“Many people in education are reluctant to get involved with social media. I know, because I was one of them,” says Sheninger, citing frequent postings and transparency as social media fundamentals. “However, using social media to communicate has made me more efficient and effective as a high school principal.”

Sheninger might be on to something. NorthSocial, which offers a customized Facebook application, estimates the value of every “fan” at $137, while Syncapse, a social media management firm, pegs it at $136. For a comprehensive school like New Milford, 500 fans would represent roughly $68,000—a pretty healthy rate of return on a minimal investment of time.

For a school district like North Carolina’s Guilford County Schools, which—with more than 4,100 fans—has outpaced the local daily newspaper’s blog, the value rises to nearly $570,000.

More importantly, according to Syncapse research, 28 percent of consumers are more likely to use a product or service if the company has a Facebook site, and 68 percent of fans are very likely to give a favorable recommendation. Fans are also more likely to feel connected to a brand, as compared to only 39 percent of non-fans.

As massive state budget cuts loom, social media networks can help make sure parents, elected officials, reporters, and other stakeholders understand the possible impact on local schools.

Consider uploading budget documents and videos on Facebook, or using RSS feeds and tweets to apprise parents about important votes in the state legislature. LinkedIn makes it easy to upload PowerPoint presentations, extending the audience for face-to-face sessions at PTA nights or faculty meetings.

The key is to focus on news of interest to the end user and provide solid information in a more personal, conversational manner. Stuffy memos written in bureaucratic jargon will fall flat in the informal and highly interactive world of social media.

Rather than inundate stakeholders with budget facts and figures, use social media networks to show stacks of outdated and worn-out textbooks that schools can’t afford to replace, or highlight stories about award-winning teachers who donate their time and dollars to tutor students on weekends or purchase clothing, lunches, and school supplies for young people who otherwise would do without.

Read other recent columns from Nora Carr:

Recognizing the warning signs for teen bullying, suicide

Can eBooks help bridge achievement gaps?

Demographic shifts require changes in school communication

How to avoid committing social media gaffes

How to tailor your school site for mobile web users

Interview cafeteria workers, custodians, and school bus drivers, and upload the audio or video files online to put faces on position cuts. Invite student journalists and the media into schools to see teachers and students working in overcrowded classrooms with inadequate supplies and materials.

When it comes to public opinion and shaping public policy, if educators don’t tell their story, someone else will—and the end result likely won’t benefit the nation’s school children, at least not those served in public schools.

Award-winning eSchool News columnist Nora Carr is the chief of staff for North Carolina’s Guilford County Schools.

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