Colchester communications director urges narrow bill language so schools can use social media and notification tools

Megan Ball, director of communications for the Colchester School District, told a legislative committee that the district uses targeted digital tools to reach employees, families and students and that proposed broad restrictions on school use of social media could hamper classroom and career‑education opportunities.

Ball said Colchester adopted the mass‑notification platform ParentSquare about three years ago and uses it alongside the district student information system, PowerSchool, to email and text newsletters and to provide a secure, archived messaging channel for coaches and advisers. "We took that on about 3 years ago," Ball said, describing ParentSquare as a platform that allows the district to message students and families without exchanging phone numbers.

Why it matters: Lawmakers are considering language that would limit school use of social media and direct communication with students. Ball said that, if drafted too broadly, the bill could block educator‑approved, instructional uses — such as a yearbook or journalism class producing content, internships with district communications and guided student content creation — that prepare students for careers in media, design and digital analytics.

Ball described the district—s audience strategy: employees are the internal top priority; families and caregivers require accessible communications that translate and work on phones; and students beginning in grade 6 receive district newsletters in school email. By grade 9 students may opt to provide cell numbers in PowerSchool so the district can text them directly. Ball said the district schedules student messages to go after the school bell — "our bell is at 2:20 p.m. That will go out at 2:25 p.m." — to avoid interrupting instruction.

Ball also described privacy protections the district uses: annual media opt‑outs and photo permissions that parents may change at any time, and archived messaging that a limited number of district staff can review. She said coaches who are stipend employees can be given access to group messaging inside ParentSquare so coaches can communicate with teams without exchanging private phone numbers.

Several lawmakers pressed Ball on practical effects. Representative Brady asked whether the classroom and extracurricular uses she described would be possible without students having phones at school; Ball said districts can use teacher‑mediated platforms such as Class Intercom to collect, edit and post student content so students need not post directly from a personal device. Representative Harpold asked whether there is an age threshold for direct student communication; Ball said such practices are typically reserved for high school and that middle school would generally be excluded.

Ball said the district treats social media as a supplemental channel to highlight student voice and celebrate achievements, not as the primary channel for time‑sensitive or official notices. "Social media is not a trend," she said. "It is just a bedrock at this point of our society."

The discussion touched on bill drafting: lawmakers and Ball referred to a newer draft (page 7) and the original bill language; Ball warned that overly broad prohibitions could unintentionally block educator‑approved projects and career pathways. She recommended exceptions for supervised instructional uses and systems that let teachers or advisers authorize student content.

No formal vote or committee action was recorded during the exchange.

The committee continued to question Ball about message timing and analytics; she said Colchester tracks open rates and other data to avoid overusing robocalls and to keep phone calls reserved for emergencies or live staff contact. Ball also noted a survey result she cited for the district: about 92% of families access school information on a phone, which informed the district—s mobile‑first approach to newsletters and web design.

Sources: testimony by Megan Ball, director of communications, Colchester School District; questions from Representative Brady and Representative Harpold.

Ball closed urging that safety goals in any bill be balanced with the district—s ability to use supervised social media and digital tools for instruction, student voice and community engagement.