#SchoolPR Insights
Commentary on school communications, marketing, public relations, referendum planning
and crisis communications from the team at the Donovan Group.
Communicating Before an Iowa PPEL Vote
The concept of a voted Physical Plant and Equipment Levy (PPEL) is unique to Iowa education. It allows school districts to raise the local levy to fund project and improvements related to facilities, buildings and grounds. In most other states, districts may need to...
A School Communications Checklist for the Start of the School Year
The weeks leading up to a new school year tend to be incredibly busy for school leaders. There's a never-ending list of items to check off to ensure the start of classes is as seamless and successful as possible for your students, staff and families. It's also a time...
Ensuring Board-District Alignment in Your School District Communications Planning
Among the reminders we continually provide to school communications professionals, superintendents and principals is the need to ensure alignment in their communications efforts. While being proactive is certainly important, ensuring that everyone is communicating the...
Getting Started with a School District Rebranding Effort
In an era of open enrollment and charter, voucher, virtual and private schools, public schools and districts must have a distinct brand if they hope to compete among the wide variety of options available to families and students. This makes school district rebranding...
Effective School Referendum Planning is About More Than Pass or Fail
When we think about what it means to have a successful school referendum planning process, our goal is to do much more than ensure 51 percent of community members vote in favor of the question on the ballot. Instead, we consider a well-executed referendum effort to be...