Implementation Description
Summit Creek Academy (SCA) located in Greensboro, NC strives to reach every corner of their community through a multifaceted marketing and recruitment plan. Their plan consists of three primary branches - Community Partners, Parents, and Students. SCA is a part of the National Heritage Academies (NHA) network of charter schools, so they worked with a team of NHA experts to develop a digital and physical marketing strategy designed to reach families across their diverse community. SCA utilized NC ACCESS funding to purchase market materials and to hire a Principal early in the planning process who created a calendar of intentional outreach events.
The school began their targeted marketing approach by establishing partnerships with community organizations such as coffee shops, daycares, the local housing authority, a local high school, and The Greensboro Chamber of Commerce. Research has shown that community partnerships between schools and businesses benefit the organization as well as students and their families (Little, N.d.) Each community partner shared information about the school through their newsletters or bulletin boards and provided meeting spaces for school leaders to meet with potential families and conduct Q&A sessions. School representatives connected with potential families at local daycare centers during drop-off or pick-up times. They initiated conversations and provided giveaway bags containing school information, pencils, face masks, and other small items. The use of door hangers and flyers posted in community centers proved to be an effective recruitment approach in local housing communities. Finally, a partnership with Piedmont Classical High School created an opportunity to expose families to another option for SCA students after they leave the 8th grade.
The second branch of SCA’s marketing and recruitment plan was offering direct support to families through the creation of Parent Academy as a two-way communication tool between school and home. This began as a virtual offering, with plans to add face-to-face opportunities in the future. Parent Academy is designed to share information with families that will help them support their child(ren) and be more effectively engaged in their education. Studies have shown that family involvement increases student involvement and “academic achievement” (Bogenschneider & Johnson, 2004). Parent Academy is one way to ensure engagement and open communication with families. Additional parent outreach strategies included erecting two strategically placed billboards in Greensboro and implementing a Nurture Track for visitors to their social media accounts. Nurture Tracks can be an effective digital marketing tool to keep prospective clients engaged with a particular company (Leider, 2018). SCA utilized Nurture Tracks to grow relationships with prospective parents with the goal of eventually ensuring enrollment. School leaders did this by creating standardized emails which informed prospective families of upcoming events or other topics of interest such as tips for learning over the summer. Over time, these regular emails would be sent to families who had provided their contact information while interacting with SCA’s website, Facebook page, or had even applied for admission.
The third branch of their marketing and recruitment plan targeted students. All registered kindergarteners and first graders were assessed prior to the first day of school in order to determine each individual's academic strengths and needs. During this screening process, each student received a free SCA T-shirt, and a children’s book. Meanwhile, parents participated in an informational session. In order to ensure that all students have every opportunity to excel academically, the school is also facilitating two day-camps in summer 2021, which will be held at Piedmont High School, one of SCA’s community partners. Their “Grow with Us” camp is intended to target learning deficits in kindergartners, and their “Leadership” camp aims to instill responsibility and team-building skills in 5th grade students. Many schools are expanding their offering of summer learning opportunities in an effort to alleviate learning loss between academic years, especially those due to COVID-19 (Hollingsworth, 2021).
Results
As a result of their recruitment efforts, Summit Creek had a total of 1,800 student applications for their first year of operation, exceeding their building capacity of 772 occupants. They were able to accept 530 students, and they currently have a large waitlist for kindergarten. Their projected enrollment for 2021-22 is quite diverse with 65.1% of their students considered to be educationally disadvantaged.
Challenges
As more families returned to work in the aftermath of COVID-19, their availability to speak with school leaders during normal business hours decreased. The school has continued offering flexible communication options, such as virtual events, in consideration of families’ changing schedules.
Future Modifications
SCA plans to continue offering a mixture of virtual and in-person marketing campaigns and events, including their summer camp programs for kindergarten and 5th grade students. They also intend to build on their existing community partnerships by reading to students at local daycare centers and inviting them to take a field trip to visit SCA classrooms and engage with students.
In order to ensure equity in the recruitment process, the school plans to implement a weighted lottery in 2021-22
Critical Components
Getting Started
SCA found that it was critical to hire a principal as early as possible during the planning year, who could provide a school-wide strategy for recruitment.
It was important to develop a targeted marketing and outreach plan. Once this plan was in place, it was essential to create a calendar of events aligned with this plan, so that staff and families could plan accordingly.
Ongoing Supports
It was also beneficial to reflect after each marketing event to determine what was successful and what changes needed to be made for future events.
Equity Connections
Studies have shown that continuous school engagement within the community, such as SCA’s partnerships with local daycares and the housing authority, increases the community’s awareness of what a school has to offer and can yield positive results in the recruitment of a diverse student population (U.S. Department of Education, 2017).
Research
1.) Bogenschneider, K. & Johnson, C. (February, 2004). “Family Involvement in Education: How Important Is It? What Can Legislators Do?”. University of Wisconsin-Madison
2.) University Extension. Policy Institute for Family Impact Seminars. P. 1. Accessed on June 1, 2021. Retrieved from https://www.purdue.edu/hhs/hdfs/fii/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/fia_brchapter_20c02.pdf
3.) Hollingsworth, H. (March 18, 2021). “US schools prepare summer of learning to help kids catch up”. ABC News. Accessed on June 1, 2021. Retrieved from https://abcnews.go.com/Health/wireStory/us-schools-prepare-summer-learning-kids-catch-76534431
4.) Little, P. (N.d.). “School-Community Learning Partnerships: Essential to Expanded Learning Success.” Accessed on June 1, 2021. Retrieved from https://www.expandinglearning.org/expandingminds/article/school-community-learning-partnerships-essential-expanded-learning-success
5.) U.S. Department of Education. (January 19, 2017). “Improving Outcomes for All Students: Strategies and Considerations to Increase Student Diversity.” Accessed on May 28, 2021. Retrieved from https://www2.ed.gov/about/offices/list/oese/oss/technicalassistance/finaldiversitybriefjanuary2017.pdf
6.) United States Census Bureau, Quick Facts North Carolina, Retrieved from https://www.census.gov/quickfacts/fact/table/NC/PST045219
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