Maren Smagala, the communications officer for Hunterdon Central Regional High as well as the president of the New Jersey School Public Relations Association, was a recent guest on “Education Matters,” a podcast hosted by Ray Pinney, the chief membership engagement officer at the New Jersey School Boards Association.
Before joining the regional high school earlier this year, Smagala was the district communications coordinator at North Hunterdon-Voorhees Regional High School District for 17 years.
Asked by Pinney how the pandemic changed school communications, Smagala observed that it “really showed schools whether or not they were good communicators.” Some districts realized they needed to do a better job communicating with non-English speaking families or about other issues, such as student meals or transportation.
As for her philosophy on school communications, Smagala said, “Consistent communication throughout the school year is key – it’s not just when you are in a crisis.”
She shared an array of strategies on keeping the public informed and excited about its schools. Moreover, she highlighted the importance of looking at internal communications as well as monitoring whether your communications strategy is working.
On the program, she also shared some best practices in maintaining a district website.
You want to keep your website clean, easy to navigate and updated, she said. “Your website is really your first impression of your district,” she said, noting that if it includes photos of students who graduated several years ago, it’s time to give it another look. “Keep it fresh,” she said.
Other topics included how to develop a communications plan, designing a communications survey, social media best practices and more.
Glean more insights by watching the full podcast.
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