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ETHS communications team unveils redesigned website, sees Instagram growth and launches Wildcat Weekly
Summary
District communications leaders reported a redesigned website, separate athletics and staff sites, significant Instagram growth to nearly 9,000 followers, a 60% newsletter open rate, a Parent University series and a student-centered attendance campaign at the Sept. 8 board meeting.
The Evanston Township High School District 202 communications office reported on Sept. 8 that it has launched a redesigned primary website (eths202.org), separate athletics and staff hub sites, and new communications initiatives aimed at strengthening engagement with students, families and the broader community.
Rain Hannah, director of communications, joined by Michael Jacobson (assistant director and FOIA officer) and Alexia Herrera (family and community engagement coordinator), told the board the new site launched about two weeks earlier with a focus on plain language, clear navigation and the district's strategic priorities.
Michael Jacobson said the redesign prioritizes student and family needs and integrates the district's strategic priorities into the site structure. "We at the Communications Office launched this new redesigned ETHS website almost 2 weeks ago with a deliberate focus on our primary audiences which are our students and our families," Jacobson said.
The communications team also reported a separate athletics site and an internal staff hub. The office said its social-media strategy has grown substantially: Instagram followers doubled from about 3,775 a year ago to nearly 9,000, and the team reported more than 1,200,000 views of Instagram content in August alone. The team presented a new weekly newsletter, Wildcat Weekly, and said its open rate is approximately 60 percent.
Other initiatives include a monthly Parent University workshop series (topics: academic strategies, SEL, college and career readiness), a board brief format to summarize board actions for families, visual-storytelling investments (professional photography and video), and a student-centered attendance campaign called "Be Here, Be Great." The team said Parent University has drawn as many as about 100 attendees to its largest event.
Board members praised the work in questions and comments after the presentation; several board members called the visual and social-media content "pro-level" and lauded the staff for outreach to Latino families and for centering equity in communications.
What the board heard The board learned the communications office plans continue to center equity, expand outreach to Latino community partners and iterate the website and communications tools based on analytics and community feedback.
Sources: Rain Hannah, Michael Jacobson and Alexia Herrera presentation to the board, Sept. 8, 2025.
