Proper School Management and Prescriptive Measures
Paul S. Finch, MA, serves as the admissions director for the Jerry B. Jenkins Christian Writers Guild, a training organization for freelance writers. He has been involved in Christian and higher education for 15 years. He also teaches composition and literature at the collegiate level.
Jan and Ed stepped into my office to complain about a teacher who had repeatedly “called out” their daughter in class instead of privately pulling her aside. They were exasperated and ready to pull her. I heard them, explained my evaluation policy, and said this would immediately afford me the opportunity to broach the subject with the teacher. They were satisfied for the moment, but their daughter transferred to another school the next semester. This situation made me realize that all areas of school life are connected to reenrollment.
Administrators know that reenrollment is as important as recruiting new families. The idea is to take care of what you have first. But many intangibles affect reenrollment, and reenrollment problems can’t be solved solely by prescriptive tactics—though this article will discuss some tactics.
The means for successful reenrollment are integrated on all levels. In addition to losing families over teacher issues, or perceived teacher issues, I’ve lost families over administrator decisions, the dress code, and the off-campus privileges of senior-high students.
We live in an instant society that subscribes to the “cult of personality.” Does the following statement sound familiar? “If I don’t like someone or something, I can always go to the next option.” Reenrollment, therefore, starts at the beginning of the school year by means of clearly communicated goals regarding school management.
Accountability: Coaches, Teachers, and Administrators Need 360˚ Evaluations
First, parents must know that the school evaluates the front line. Ideally, a school would have teachers and administrators who are supremely gifted for their jobs.
I had an English teacher who couldn’t capture the imagination of her students, and, consequently, her default was a workbook mentality. With that mind-set come piles of homework. Effect? students complain to parents nightly, and administrators hear it not long thereafter. If a school does not handle such situations expeditiously, people leave—not that year, but possibly the next.
In another case, a teacher is a master of the material but a poor communicator with parents. This problem grates on parents only so long, and then they consider other avenues. We have to admit that choice does rule.
What’s the solution? We need to get every level of our schools involved in evaluations, giving constituents opportunity to communicate. Board members, teachers, and parents evaluate the administration. Peers, parents, students, and the administration evaluate teachers. It is a win-win situation because a school can solve many difficulties by allowing constituents to have a voice. We feel better after expressing concerns. Why wouldn’t we afford constituents the same? The 360˚ approach can cultivate educator sanctification.
We need to ensure, however, that surveys contain objectively stated questions. We should give preview copies to teachers and administrators, preferably before the school year.
I have many stories of success and failure in this area. After giving a first-grade teacher high marks for her classroom evaluation, I had to share some concerns that parents had when she rebuffed their criticism of her homework assignments. She appeared open to my correction. Regardless, I lost two families from the kindergarten who homeschooled for a year and then returned for second grade. A parent evaluation helped me discover something about the teacher—though the situation ended in an unfortunate manner. The bottom line is that thorough evaluations improve professionalism, school communications, and overall morale.
Communicate, Communicate, and Communicate Some More
Second, parents must know that they can approach the administration and the teachers and express any apprehensions, particularly those concerning conduct or practices. This statement does not mean that we must take action on all concerns, but it does mean that we must acknowledge censure with humility and openness. One wise reformer said that people must mortify sin in the flesh when their self-love and preservation are concerned.
When I began in administration, I sat under a wise principal who offered informational parent meetings to discuss the state of the school. He waited for two months to give parents and students a feel for the new school year and then offered morning meetings by grade, one week at a time. In addition to listening, parents could ask questions and give suggestions for bettering the school. Some suggestions he took; others he didn’t choose to take or couldn’t take.
Also, we should give parents the privilege of an open door policy, or at least relatively quick entrance if appointments are preferable. Allowing parents that opportunity curtails much—75 percent of the issues end right there. For example, I’ve been able to share information with parents, making them realize that much more is happening than they know. Teachers are people too, dealing with sick children at home (you supply your example here), and they might give an assignment, not fully explaining it as they normally would. If teachers and administrators will open their doors to parents, without preconceived notions, the school can be solutions-oriented and can allay anxieties sooner.
Other Prescriptive Measures
We can also intentionally use parent meetings to address the challenges surrounding transition grades. For example, in one of my schools’ cases, the elementary and secondary campuses were five miles apart. It was vital to assure the sixth-grade parents that they would be sending their children to a safe environment where teachers still nurture and mentor but in their own way. The elementary principal and I set a night when I could share the overall secondary program. I also brought my guidance counselor and athletic director to discuss their programs, and then we offered an extensive Q&A. Parents were delighted, and the secondary program retained a high percentage of those students each year—one year retaining all of them.
It did not occur to me to hold such meetings when I had a K–12 school all under one roof, but in hindsight, I would conduct meetings of this sort. Elementary and secondary teachers obviously think highly of their programs, scopeand-sequence models, and age range of students, and I’ve seen situations in which the faculty separated along those lines. When the business of the school is concerned, there should be no dichotomy.
Once reenrollment begins, we should keep an eye on the families who are not committing. After a time, administrators should take the time to call them. If there’s a solution, the board must give the administration the power to resolve a variety of issues. Finances are number one, but some parents want to hear a clearly stated vision or some answers to practical issues. We should communicate all we can, having the goal of retaining good families.
After leaving a school, I still had parents who would call me for counsel, and one phone conversation highlights this issue well. Deanna said, “Paul, I’ve been part of this school for nine years, but I can’t get any answers to some concerns, and I did not reenroll my son all the way through the summer. Did I hear from anyone? No.” She was clearly hurt that no one cared to follow up. She would have returned had someone just called.
Lastly, we should not think of retaining in the sense of just holding on for dear life to what we have. We need to think in terms of working so diligently with families that they don’t just stay for lack of anywhere else to go. Instead, we need to build those relationships in such a way that we make advocates of the reenrolled. If we use the language of a business model, we can say that we need to consider ways to inculcate a progression toward advocacy. The following depicts a client-relationship life cycle:
•Awareness •Knowledge •Consideration •Select •Satisfaction •Loyalty •Advocacy
Pre-purchase Purchase Post-purchase
Making a community aware of our schools is an ongoing process. Giving people the knowledge to consider our schools is something we’ve learned to do well. We will always have our share of people who select our program for the first time. But moving our present school families from satisfaction to loyalty to advocacy is work.
Denise walked into my office, wanting to know why she should stop homeschooling and enroll her daughter in my school. I gave answers that pleased her, and she enrolled her daughter the next year. Denise excitedly helped in any way possible. She orchestrated competitions and social activities, and she added sports programs, to name only a few of her accomplishments.
Within one year’s time, Denise’s involvement culminated in an activity that not only built more community in the school but brought new families in as well. Denise held teas in her home, and she would ask me to speak in that cozy setting. Over the next five years, several families from her church entered the school, and the cycle continues to this day.
Having this experience and knowledge now, I wonder if Jan and Ed would have remained had I been proactive with some of the ideas mentioned here. Maybe Jan and Ed would have even moved from feeling disgruntled to showing advocacy.
Reenrollment 12.3