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District 62 reviews year of outreach, accessibility and a new chatbot
Summary
Director of community relations Jennifer Tanaslova outlined District 62’s 2025–26 communications work: ADA website accessibility audits, rollout of 12 new school logos, expanded community partnerships and a new chatbot that logged roughly 2,000 sessions and answered about 3,000 questions during its pilot period.
Jennifer Tanaslova, the district’s director of community relations, presented the department’s year-end monitoring report to the CCSD 62 Board of Education on June 15. She said the office focused on targeted newsletters, social media content and video to support construction-impacted schools and to ‘‘be our own storytellers’’ about district programs.
Tanaslova outlined several accomplishments from the 2025–26 school year, including the rollout of 12 new school logos and website updates to reflect the changes. She said the district worked closely with principals, IT staff and an outside reviewer to begin an Americans with Disabilities Act website accessibility audit in early 2026 and has added closed captions and alternative text for images as part of that work.
Tanaslova described partnership efforts with local groups and agencies. The district continued collaboration with the Des Plaines Police Department on National Night Out and expanded support for food-pantry and backpack projects that provide supplies to families. She also noted community arts initiatives such as Gallery 62.
On digital services, Tanaslova said the district launched an "Ask AI" chatbot and ran a soft pilot before broad public release. ‘‘Between October and June, our chatbot engaged in just under 2,000 chat sessions and answered just over 3,000 questions,’’ she said. Board members asked whether staff monitor the chatbot’s accuracy and whether it directs users to contact district offices when needed; Tanaslova said principals and some board members tested the tool and staff will continue to review logs and refine answers.
The director framed these efforts as part of a larger strategy to communicate during periods of change, such as construction at Iroquois Central and North, and to maintain direct, accessible channels for families. She closed by thanking staff and board members for support and noting that July will mark her 10th year in the district.
The board did not take formal action on the communications report; Tanaslova said staff will continue refining accessibility work and chatbot performance and will report back as those efforts progress.
