| Challenge: The School District of Philadelphia struggled with managing high volumes of inbound communication across multiple entry points, leading to confusion for families and added burden on staff. Solution: By implementing Let’s Talk, the district centralized customer service and communication into a single platform, enabling faster responses, real-time data tracking, and more transparent engagement with families and staff. Results: |
With nearly 200,000 students and hundreds of staff across 249 campuses, the School District of Philadelphia faced a growing challenge: managing high volumes of inbound communication across multiple departments and entry points. Families often didn’t know where to turn for answers—30% reported confusion about where to go with questions—and 1 in 12 were actively considering other educational options. The district needed a way to centralize communication, reduce staff burden, and ensure that no inquiry went unanswered.
The School District of Philadelphia launched Let’s Talk as a single platform to streamline communication and modernize customer service districtwide. They began by consolidating help lines, department emails, and group inboxes into one centralized portal, with a long-term goal of removing all public-facing email addresses.
“Let’s Talk has totally changed how we respond to incoming questions. We’re so excited about Let’s Talk!”
— Alexandra Coppadge, Chief of Communications and Customer Service SDP
The platform allows the district to track hot topics, monitor unanswered inquiries, and ensure consistent, transparent communication with families and staff. Importantly, it also supports the district’s broader goals around community engagement and student achievement.
“Partnering with parents and families is critical as we Accelerate Philly, and Let’s Talk serves as the essential platform for providing families timely, accurate, and accessible information. More engaged parents, guardians and community members can promote student achievement, so we are pleased about the work we are doing with Let’s Talk to improve communication and customer service.”
In their first year, the district responded to more than 10,500 inquiries with an average three-day response time and a strong 8/10 Customer Experience (Cx) score. Let’s Talk has also helped district leaders build board meeting agendas based on real-time community trends, update school webpages with timely information, and ensure families feel heard and supported. With every message tracked and measured, the School District of Philadelphia is leading the way in using customer service to build trust and strengthen connections.
Read more about the background to the School District of Philadelphia’s story on their website.
By modernizing its approach to customer service, the School District of Philadelphia not only improved response times and satisfaction—it transformed community engagement and built trust.
The district’s success is part of a growing trend among public school districts nationwide using Let’s Talk to:
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