Challenge: Osceola School District faced the challenge of managing a high volume of inbound questions, safety concerns, and hot-button issues across a large and diverse district — all with limited staff and systems in place. Solution: To address these challenges, the district implemented Let’s Talk and Let’s Talk Assistant to centralize communication, provide 24/7 customer service, and enable fast, data-driven responses. Results: |
Osceola School District (OSD) needed a better way to handle thousands of inquiries from families, staff, and community members across a large and diverse school system. Leaders recognized that unresolved questions, growing communication needs, and safety concerns required a centralized, responsive approach to build trust and deliver on their strategic commitment to exceptional customer service.
To meet these challenges, the district implemented Let’s Talk by K12 Insight — the only unified service desk purpose-built for K-12. The platform allows Osceola to manage inbound questions and concerns across departments and schools with greater visibility, automation, and responsiveness.
“In Osceola School District, every voice counts,” said Dr. Debra Pace, who was Superintendent, OSD at the time of the interview. “Let’s Talk helps us deliver superior customer experiences easier, faster, and more intentionally across our school district.”
Osceola was also one of the first districts in the nation to adopt Let’s Talk Assistant, an AI-powered chatbot for K-12. This has empowered the district to offer 24/7 support for frequently asked questions, freeing up staff to handle more complex requests.
“Our chatbot allows us to provide always-on customer service,” said Dr. Pace. “Parents can ask common questions 24-7 and it improves our internal efficiency — giving our staff more time to answer more complex questions.”
Since launching in 2018, Osceola has used Let’s Talk to increase productivity and automate communications. The district is now approaching 50,000 dialogues, with an average resolution time of under two days and a lifetime customer experience score of 8.4 out of 10.
Let’s Talk helps Osceola identify trending topics and resolve sensitive issues before they go public. From national debates like book bans and social-emotional learning to local curriculum concerns, the platform enables direct and transparent communication.
“If community members have any concerns about our district’s curriculum, we have an easy-to-use form to request a curriculum review,” said Dana Schafer, Public Information Officer, OSD. “This custom form built by K12 Insight streamlines these requests and gives us the information we need to pass along to our Curriculum Advisory Committee.”
Let’s Talk also helps the district monitor emerging concerns. “There are many times when a hot topic or concern is growing within the community and our first knowledge of it comes from Let’s Talk,” Schafer said.
With thousands of families needing support during the start of the school year, Osceola relies on Let’s Talk to operate a responsive back-to-school hotline, especially for high-volume issues like transportation. “Transportation is our hottest topic with over 2,200 dialogues received so far this year,” Schafer said.
Departments like IT also benefit from Let’s Talk. “We use Let’s Talk to help families experiencing technical difficulties or password issues,” said Martha Mann, Community Relations Specialist. “We’re able to see when the IT department is getting overwhelmed… and jump in to ensure every parent receives a response in a timely manner.”
The Keep Osceola Safe initiative is powered by Let’s Talk, featuring custom-built forms for reporting threats and bullying. Community members can submit tips — anonymously if desired — that help prevent crises and ensure a safe learning environment.
“Let’s Talk really proved its value when we received an anonymous tip that there was a serious safety threat regarding an employee,” Schafer said. “It could have been a devastating situation. We were able to quickly address it and get the person the help they needed.”
With Let’s Talk Critical Alerts, the district receives real-time notifications when a severe threat is reported, enabling a fast, coordinated response. The “Report Bullying” form further supports a safe school culture by allowing students and families to share detailed reports of harmful behavior.
“Sometimes people aren’t comfortable reporting bullying in person,” Schafer said. “Let’s Talk allows them to share the details in a way that is safe and easy — whether they want to be identified or wish to provide an anonymous report.”
“K12 Insight has equipped us with the tools and training to help our district engage with our community through two-way dialogues, identify potential crises, and make data-driven decisions.”
— Dr. Debra Pace
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