Remember

This past Friday marked the 25th anniversary of the massive terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington, DC. While there were those who went about their normal routines, there were many occasions where people stopped what they were doing, viewed Facebook images, and prayed for peace while they remembered, honoring those that lost their lives in this tragic event, as well as those who risk their lives every day to secure peace in our world.

We can also remember that we have been given the special mission to form children in our schools. Let’s remember that in Catholic and Christians schools, our actions as teachers and administrators are examples to them, so that by our instruction, they may be able to be the hands and face of Christ to others when their time to lead comes.

And that time may come sooner than we expect, since Scripture tells us, “And a child will lead them.” (Is 11:6)

For today’s Marketing Matter, we need to remember what good things our children are doing in our schools, and convey that recognition to their parents. If a call from the principals’ office usually means that bad things are happening, let’s turn that around by looking for and praising positive actions exhibited by our children. If your school has 240 children, 3 phone calls a day to parents to let them know what their children are doing well will allow you to contact parents 4 times during the school year…and doing so will do wonders to build your school community and strengthen your retention efforts!

THIS is personalized service in action.

About twenty years ago, I wrote that students were not going to get that kind of attention in the majority of public schools. However, I’m sure you’ll agree that times have changed in the past twenty years, and REALLY changed over the past six years! Administrators and teachers in public schools have realized they also must create outstanding educational environments since public tax dollars for education may be taken away from the local public school district and used to fund state-approved charter schools.

In schools with new principals, visiting this link will provide some insights when it comes to developing relationships. These ideas can be modified to introduce new students in the classroom, and can work for new teacher introductions as well. My daughter’s first year of teaching was at a public high school in North Carolina. As an English teacher, she wanted to showcase how far her students had come in their work, and published a book (a real book) of their work, obtaining a copy for each of the students to take home to their parents at the end of the school year. Do you think her students were glad when she returned for year #2 this year? Do you think these students’ parents were thrilled with the educational environment their school was creating?

As we remember the past, we also have to remember what we have to do to shape a better future for today’s students. That means not only thinking outside the box, but “doing” outside the box, too.