How to Market Your District
By Tom Jackson, APR
Public Relations Officer
East Aurora School District 131
Faced with teacher shortages, maintaining student-to-teacher ratios, broadening curriculum offerings - not to mention the need for high quality support staff - school districts are challenged like never before to market themselves in order to find and keep high quality employees.
What does it mean to market your district as an employer?
Begin with researchPublic relations professionals always recommend beginning with research. Resist the urge to quickly implement a flurry of tactics, and instead take time to discover more about your district and be intentional about who you want to recruit.
Research does not have to be complicated. You can gather data by surveying current employees and asking them to share thoughts and feelings on your district culture and what brought them in and keeps them there. HR departments can review data from past recruitment efforts. Look for data points such as:
- Over two years, how many applications were completed each month?
- What percentage were qualified, interview-
worthy candidates?
- Track and review referral sources (how they learned about the position), as well as retention rate, especially from key departments.
A less common, but valuable, data collection method is the exit interview. Look for points such as:
- What are the top reasons employees leave your district?
- What recommendations do they have?
Being aware of this information can help determine how to make your district more marketable.
Armed with data, identify goals for your HR efforts.
Goals Might Include:
- Increase number of applicants by X percentage.
- Decrease percentage of turnover.
- Fill all positions within a key category of employee.
Identify Your CandidatesNext, identify and prioritize your target candidates. Determine if your district is looking for new graduates, retirees, stay-at-home parents or grandparents or maybe even professionals from other industries. Your target market will shape the messages and strategies you use to recruit.
Behavioral marketing segmentation can further define your targeted audience. Simply put, it divides people into groups based on patterns. For example, by knowing the types of content your ideal candidates are likely to consume, the types of websites they visit, the groups they participate in, or other behaviors, you can further customize the messaging to your target audience.
Start by tapping your best employees. Ask them to share their favorite forums, discussion groups and online networking venues. Then, begin to develop appropriate ways to network within these sources. Candidates have been recruited based on professional blogs they read, newsletters or associations they belong to, and even the sections they frequent at a bookstore.
The Power of CultureLast month a recent graduate told me about his career goals, saying most of all he wanted to work for an organization that demonstrated a commitment to diversity and inclusion. For him, culture was more important than title, commute or even salary. With this in mind, culture needs to be a significant factor in marketing your district.
Culture is the environment your district creates for employees. It can greatly influence an employees’ satisfaction with their work, their relationships and their growth. Your recipe for district culture includes your leadership, values, traditions, behaviors and attitudes.
Your goal is to create and promote a culture so attractive that your employees become natural ambassadors for your district. The power of culture can inspire your employees to instinctively tell others that your district is a great place to work. This is ideal because it offers candidates a truly authentic voice, one that is more easily believed than the HR section of your website.
Measure culture annually by surveying new and seasoned employees. Once again, ask about their favorite aspects of working for your district – the research never stops. Not only will you learn what your employees love about working in your district, you may also discover areas that need improvement.
Speak their LanguageThis year at East Aurora School District 131, we jumped boldly into the waters of dual language by launching a district-wide dual language program. In 2020-21, almost 1,000 kindergarteners were placed in a dual language class. We plan to grow the program by one grade level each year, until the entire district is dual language.
Naturally a focus was to increase the number of dual language teachers and staff. Throughout the recruitment phase, Dr. Rita Guzman, our executive director of language acquisition & early learning, had very purposeful discussions with candidates, ensuring that they knew how much our district values language. Candidates discovered that dual language wasn’t merely an ancillary department, but a guiding principle of the district that would impact the education of all students.
Discussions resonate further when including like-minded perks. Whether you provide a high-quality mentorship program to new teachers, financial assistance to those pursuing an ESL or bilingual endorsement or best-in-class professional development, the purposeful discussions you have with your target candidates make a difference in attracting and keeping high-quality employees.
Unique Employee BenefitsEmployee-focused organizations look for ways to offer unique benefits to employees. Quarterly luncheons, raffles and giveaways, prime parking spots – sometimes the little things matter a lot.
According to their employee benefits guide, the financial services company Charles Schwab offers a remarkable benefit: “After five years, eligible employees can apply for a 28-day paid sabbatical, which can be used for relaxing and pursuing personal or professional development, such as community service, education or reflecting on their career and life.”
Maybe you are not offering month-long sabbaticals, but how can your district creatively upgrade benefits for a wide spectrum of employees, from teachers to administrators to support staff? Think about offering summer hours or extended parental leave or additional considerations for employees who become new parents, move into a new home or grieve the loss of a parent. Let’s not forget unique recognition programs! We can never recognize and thank employees enough.
Grow the PipelineYour district should continuously engage in networking. An HR department has the power to build and grow relationships with potential employees before opportunities exist. Two key groups include interns and student teachers. Are you pitching your district’s culture and benefits to these groups? Consider holding a breakfast or invite them to face time with leaders. Share a video that communicates why your district is a great place to work.
Online networking
Work with your communications team to develop your district LinkedIn page and regularly promote opportunities. Encourage followers to share with their networks. Your followers are connected to thousands of potential candidates. You will benefit from the networks of education-minded friends and associates. Plus, be sure to post opportunities on job-related professional association websites and include local chapter websites when available.
Employee referrals
Sounds like a no-brainer, but share new opportunities with employees and encourage them to recruit from their networks. In the corporate world, employee referrals, especially for hard-to-fill positions, sometimes include cash bonuses. While your district may not be offering bonuses, consider ways to incentivize employee referrals.
Marketing Your District to MillennialsAmong school PR professionals at the forefront of recruitment marketing is Jason A. Wheeler, marketing coordinator for the Carrollton-Farmers Branch Independent School District in Texas.
Wheeler presents to national audiences on the importance of taking a custom approach to recruiting millennials. He defines millennials not only by birthdates, but also through lifetime experiences, such as 9/11, the Columbine shooting, the rise of social media and global terrorism. All these have helped shape their perceptions of what they want from their career.
“In the next five years, the Millennial workforce population will make up 75% of the entire US workforce,” says Wheeler. “It should be a top priority for districts to understand this generation and develop a specific plan to reach this dynamic talent pool.”
According to Wheeler, millennials look at five factors in determining where to work:
A Job with a Purpose
Millennials stand up for what they believe is right. They fight for causes close to them. The more your district conveys a sense of purpose, the more millennials will connect with you. Highlighting ways you make a difference or impact students’ lives is critical in attracting millennials.
Opportunity for Growth
How do you grow your teachers to become leaders in your district? Millennials want to be future leaders and make a difference. Concentrate on growing your teachers, and then communicate that to candidates.
Interest in the Work
Many millennials saw their parents lose one, two or even three jobs in one year. They saw their parents work for a company for 25 years, only to be cast away during an economic downturn. Layoffs during the 2000’s have made them shy to pursue a career for the long-haul. They want to be happy with what they do, because too many times they saw their parents go to work unhappy. How do you make working in your district enjoyable and fun?
A Great Company & Community Culture
In The Millennials by Thom S. Rainer & Jess W. Rainer, they state that when millennials have the choice between jobs, they will likely take the one they perceive to be fun. Millennials believe life is too short not to have fun. Culture and community can play a significant role in creating a perception of pleasure.
Financial Stability
This notion goes back to seeing their parents lose their job and lives’ savings in the blink of an eye. Being financially stable is a significant factor in where millennials choose to work. Offer incentives, such as finance or retirement workshops for young teachers. Partner with health clubs or landlords to offer employee discounts.
Jason Wheeler’s workbook, Recruiting Teachers in the Age of the Millennial is available online Find it at:
www.iasbo.tools/recruitingmillennials