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Communication subcommittee plans annual PTSO visits, social-media amplification and forum planning
Summary
The Regional School District 05 Communication Subcommittee voted to amend its agenda to discuss a plan for outreach to PTSOs: members proposed brief in-person visits once a year, coordinated social-media reposts, a shared email list for newsletters and targeting a January–March window for visits.
The Communication Subcommittee of the Regional School District 05 Board of Education amended its agenda and spent most of the Sept. meeting sketching a plan to reconnect with parent–teacher organizations across the district.
A committee member said the subcommittee wants to build on spring outreach, when PTO leaders told board representatives they welcomed regular updates. Jen (committee member) said the groups “would be willing to have us attend like one meeting a year” and recommended keeping outreach brief and focused on questions parents have.
Dana (committee member) argued face-to-face visits matter for keeping feeder families aware of middle- and high-school programs, saying a “face in-person meeting gives a little bit of life to the high school and the middle school” and can influence families weighing school choices.
Members discussed workload and logistics: with five committee members and roughly six-to-eight elementary PTSOs, they suggested dividing visits so no single member bears the burden. The subcommittee agreed to create a short, consistent agenda to use at each PTSO meeting and to ask PTSOs to repost district newsletters and other social posts to extend reach.
The group debated timing and agreed to avoid November–December because of holiday scheduling; several members recommended a broader January–March window to ensure there is substantive content to report (fall sports, school plays, school-climate data and early budget ideas).
On communication channels, members favored a mix of brief in-person visits, a quarterly or event-driven email digest that repurposes the board chair newsletter, and purposeful social-media posts to be shared by PTSOs. One member offered to draft a letter outlining goals and to request updated contact information for PTSO presidents in early September.
The subcommittee also discussed the district’s community forums. Members plan to begin planning a November forum at the next meeting and to include a short “what’s great about AMD” segment in future forums to surface positive stories and student perspectives. Staff representatives described existing recruitment-focused eighth-grade information nights and suggested how those events could dovetail with community outreach.
Procedural votes taken during the meeting included approval of the April 8 minutes, a voice vote to amend the agenda to add PTSO outreach, and a motion to adjourn at 6:14 p.m. No formal board policy or binding action was adopted at this meeting; the discussion centered on outreach strategy and scheduling.
Next steps: a committee member will draft a recruitment/introductory letter to PTSO presidents, the subcommittee will assemble a short, consistent talking list for visits, and the group will revisit forum planning at the October meeting.
