Marion County Schools in Florida recently captured a Golden Achivement Award from the National School Public Relations Association (NSPRA) for its implementation of the “Be There” parent and community engagement campaign. This is the third district to capture the award, which requires adherence to strict pubilc relations criteria. From their billboard to their best practices, national award winning Marion County is using the “Be There” program to its full potential.

Parents received “Be There” reminder messages via every district-launched ALERTnow phone call, school newsletters, class registrations and billboards posted along major roadways throughout the community.  The following is a small sample of how “Be There” branding is now featured throughout the district:

• district letterhead
• every media release
• every month’s “on hold” phone message
• every Classroom Connection TV episode
• all new elementary student registrations (via printed parent invitation)
• full-color posters at every grade level
• branded pens, pencils and notepads
• videos available for check-out at the public library
• television spots air on the Marion Education Channel 40-50 times each week in various forms (30- and 60-second PSAs and 4-minute mini-mercials in both English and Spanish)
• dozens of billboards throughout the community.

Results from a parent survey taken in March 2012 gauging public reaction to “Be There” show:

• 81% of parents are aware of the “Be There” campaign
• 84% say “Be There” messages are easy to understand
• 78% say “Be There” reminders regularly appear in school newsletters, on-hold announcements, telephone messages, and other places
• 76% say “Be There” reminds them to connect daily with their children
• 76% say “Be There” influences them to become or stay involved in their children’s education

The district also attributes the impact of “Be There” as a contributing factor to its higher graduation rate, lower dropout rate, higher percentage of “A” and “B” graded schools, and a lower student absentee rate.

The National School Public Relations Association recently presented Golden Achievement Awards to two school districts for the Be There campaign. You can't win without positive evaluation results. After two years of conducting the Be There campaign in Gwinnett County, Ga, (just north of Atlanta), 92% of staff and parents surveyed support continuing the campaign, a true indication of positive impact.  In Title 1 schools, 99% of respondents recognize the Be There brand and understand the message...a true indication of a clear, concise and visible message. In Muscogee County, Ga., (Columbus), a local TV station plays the PSA repeatedly and vows to do a news story on a "Be There Moment" for all 56 schools...a true indication of the campaign's ability to generate strong media support.  These two districts received their awards at the NSPRA Seminar in San Antonio, TX.  

Armed with research on the impact of parent involvement on student achievement, the Virginia School Boards Association today announced it will join the Virginia Association of School Superintendents in supporting “Be There,” a multimedia campaign that inspires families to become more involved in their children’s education.

“As school board members, one of our priorities is to build bridges between the school and community,” said Barbara Coyle, Executive Director of VSBA.  “Our VSBA boards understand the importance of family involvement and this campaign gives us a low-cost vehicle to increase it.”  VASS endorsed the campaign last year.

According to research compiled by the Parent Institute (parentinstitute.com), numerous studies conclude that students with involved parents are more likely to:

•   earn higher grades and test scores;

•   attend school regularly;

•   have better social skills and good behavior;

•   adapt well to school;

•   graduate and go on to further education.

While many school-based programs focus on bringing parents into the schools, “Be There” inspires families to become more involved in their child’s education during the everyday moments of life, whether it’s at the grocery store, the ATM or driving in your car.

The “Be There” campaign is patterned after the highly successful “friends don’t let friends drive drunk” campaign, where messages are repeated everywhere and success is measurable. Inspirational reminders and ideas will be delivered to families on posters, TV and radio public service announcements, billboards, brochures, emails, short story video vignettes and school presentations. All marketing materials lead parents to the bethere.org web site, where they can view videos, participate in parent conversations and find additional resources.

“Be There” is available to school districts, education associations and non-profit organizations. All the materials are localized with logos and slogans. It's not a program or curriculum. It's a media campaign and the creators, Voss & Associates, do all the production work. School districts distribute the materials and champion the cause.

For more information on how to bring “Be There” to your community, visit vsba.org, bethere.org or call the numbers above.

Students Star in 3 New TV Spots

The latest television commercials feature three students -- one in elementary, one middle and one in high school.  Click on the arrows above to view them. Produced by i.d.e.a.s. of Orlando, these spots are designed to give families the child's perspective on the benefits of turning ordinary moments into something extraordinary. Earlier versions of the TV commercials show parents demonstrating how easy it is to "be there" for kids. Once a district signs up for the campaign, local tag lines with district contact information are added and the spots are delivered electronically to local TV stations. Parents, educators and TV stations may preview all of the Be There Public Service Announcements spots by clicking here.