Parents have more choices than ever when it comes to choosing a school for their children. That’s why it is more important than ever for schools to establish strong relationships with their parents. This partnership between a school and its parents plays a crucial role in a child’s education and overall development and can serve as a great source of free marketing when it comes time for other parents to find a school.
However, creating this deeper relationship requires effort, especially at larger schools. In this blog, we’ll examine a few of the keys to building a tighter community and closer relationship with parents.
How to Build a Stronger Relationship With Your Students’ Parents
Enhance Communication Channels
One of the key ways to build stronger relationships between schools and parents is by enhancing communication channels. Traditional methods such as parent-teacher conferences and report cards are important, but they’re not sufficient on their own. That’s why we recommend schools embrace technology, such as email newsletters, school websites, and social media, to provide regular updates, important announcements, and ongoing progress reports.
If you want to take it a step further, consider implementing communication tools that allow for real-time interaction between parents and teachers, such as messaging apps or virtual meeting platforms, like Remind, SchoolMessenger, and ClassTag.
This will enable parents to quickly reach out to teachers with any concerns or questions. Though this may seem like a small step to take, it can help parents feel confident in your school’s responsiveness and dedication to taking care of their child.
Encourage Parent Involvement
Another effective strategy for building stronger relationships is encouraging parent involvement in school activities. You can organize events such as parent workshops, volunteer opportunities, and parent-teacher associations that give parents an opportunity to actively participate in their child’s education and interact with teachers and other parents.
You can also include programs that specifically involve parents in curriculum development and decision-making processes. This not only allows parents to have a say in their child’s education but also fosters a sense of investment in the school community. This feeling of being valued and respected can even end up turning into donor opportunities.
Establish Trust and Collaboration
If you’re not on board with programs that include parents in the decision-making processes, you need to at least be transparent and inclusive when making said decisions. This looks like seeking input from parents on important matters, involving them in school committees, and at least regularly seeking feedback through surveys.
When parents feel heard, valued, and respected, they are more likely to actively engage. And, of course, while we do think you should go above and beyond a parent-teacher conference, it is vital to keep those kinds of events going regularly to ensure both teachers and parents are feeling heard about a child’s progress.
Deliver Photos & Videos from School Events
Parents entrust their children with a school’s teachers and coaches for most of their waking hours, and they crave a peek into the school events they can’t attend. Platforms like Waldo Photos, which provide schools with AI-powered photo and video management and automated delivery of photos to parents of all the photos their child is found in, can really increase a parent’s connection with your school.
Even better, Waldo automatically applies the school’s branding to photos such that as they are shared on social, it naturally serves as powerful marketing to families in the market for a new school.
Final Thoughts
At the end of the day, building stronger relationships between schools and parents is crucial for the development of students. It also pays huge dividends for your school. Engaged parents serve as ambassadors for your school and are much less likely to change schools.
They will also be more likely to donate when they feel a close association with their school and have a clear view of everything their child is gaining from their experience at your school, whether it is with their money or their time. Investments in community building and parent involvement should be a top priority for any school looking to improve its performance and grow.
