Why Equitable Communications Matter: Unveiling 3 Reasons for Your School District

Equitable communications is an essential part of providing an exceptional experience for your school community. It helps ensure every student, family, teacher, and staff member can ask questions, share feedback, and receive information through the channel that best fits their needs.

Historically, school districts are great at sharing information, but communication barriers prevent some families from accessing the information and support they need. Although school districts may share information through multiple channels — such as text messages, phone calls, emails, social media — sometimes the message doesn’t always reach all stakeholders or offer the ability for two-way communication.

Today, effective and equitable school communications requires using the right channels and messaging for the right audience — while being inclusive of every stakeholder’s needs and preferences.

Here are three reasons why it’s important to implement equitable communications and customer service in your school district:

1. Every stakeholder has unique communications needs. 

Parents, students, teachers, and staff all communicate differently. While some communication channels work great for teachers and staff, those same channels may not work for families or community members. A 2020 article published by the Center for American Progress found parents preferred instant communication channels — calls and text messages — while teachers believed scheduled meetings were more effective.

Promote an exceptional customer service experience and equitable communications for all stakeholders by introducing technology like Let’s Talk which streamlines communications through multiple channels and pulls data into one location. Additionally, Let’s Talk provides an equitable, convenient way for stakeholders to ask questions, report concerns, and provide feedback 24-7 from any device.

2. Your stakeholders speak different languages. 

For school districts serving a diverse population, multilingual communication is critical for school districts to ensure all families can access services and information when they need it. 

Providence Public School District in Rhode Island serves a community where students and families hail from 91 countries and speak over 75 different languages. For PPSD, implementing Let’s Talk made it possible for translation between stakeholders and school leaders to be instant, accessible, and simple. Families do not miss out on crucial information about their children, and the district has confidence knowing they’re reaching stakeholders.

3. Equitable communications fosters community and inclusivity.

Schools are hubs for communities, bringing students, families and community members together. Equitable communications is essential for fostering community because it helps ensure stakeholders receive the information they need when they need it, and can ask questions and share feedback. 

With school districts facing an influx of communications and staffing shortages in the past 18 months, it has become even more challenging for districts to keep their communities engaged. However, with the help of a solution like Let’s Talk, school districts can easily provide a platform for two-way communication — ensuring each stakeholder’s voice is heard. This helps districts build engagement, relationships, trust, and ultimately, an equitable customer experience for all stakeholders. 

Want to learn more? Download our white paper to learn how to implement equitable communications in your school district.