Family engagement starts now

As the school year heads into its final stretch, community connections matter more than ever. 

Whether you’re planning year-end celebrations or laying the foundation for fall, engaging families, students, and organizations now sets the tone for effective relationships going forward. 

Stick with us as we spotlight strategies to deepen those connections + highlight resources to help you communicate with purpose, celebrate with intention, and stay visible always. 

Finally, learn why CONNECT member Amy Tracy of Aurora Academy is as curious as she is committed.

⏩ CONNECT Lunch & Learn: 
Digging Deep — PRA's 15-Year Journey to Cultivate Community Engagement
May  8   |   12:00-1:00 PM   |   Virtual
Join us for the final lunch and learn of the 2024-25 school year as we CONNECT with Patty Kelly, Community Operations Director at Prospect Ridge Academy (PRA). Patty will share how her school has built—and sustained—a thriving, engaged community over the past 15 years. From volunteer involvement and local partnerships to outreach strategies and reputation building, this session will be packed with takeaways you can bring to your own school. Add to your calendar. 

⏩ NCSW 2025: May 11-17
National Charter Schools Week (NCSW) takes place May 11–17 with a theme that recognizes 30 years of the Charter Schools Program (CSP). Since its inception, CSP funding has supported the growth of high-quality charter schools across 42 states, D.C., Puerto Rico, and Guam—highlighting a lasting, bipartisan commitment to student-centered innovation. Plan your school’s celebration.

⏪ CONNECT Lunch & Learn: Summer Strategies for Ongoing Success
Apr.  10   |   Virtual
In our April 10 CONNECT Lunch & Learn, Jeff Fulton of Vertex Education shared practical and creative strategies to help school communicators make the most of summer. From refreshing brand assets and refining digital presence to re-engaging families and managing online reputation, Jeff emphasized the importance of marketing with empathy and “keeping current families sticky.” Access the recording + slides in our CONNECT Community. 

⚽  Colorado SKIES Academy Middle School Drone Soccer Team Takes Flight on the Global Stage
Newark Life   |   April 17
Colorado SKIES Academy (CSA), an aviation-focused middle school based in Englewood, Colorado, is flying high after an incredible season for its drone soccer team. 

🏆 Colorado Military Academy Earns Award
KRDO   |   April 11 
The CSI authorized Colorado Military Academy in Colorado Springs was one of 27 schools to receive the designation which recognizes school communities for their work to support military-connected students and their families. 

🤖 Flagstaff Academy Robotics Team Shines
Flagstaff Academy   |   April 8
The Flagstaff Academy Charter School girls’ fourth-grade robotics team — known as the Dragon Bots — is making waves across the country with their impressive performance in VEX IQ Competitive Robotics tournaments.

Have any tips or resources you’d like to share? We’d love to hear from you! Email us. 

Amy Tracy, Principal, Aurora Academy

Meet Amy Tracy, Principal at Aurora Academy and someone who manages to juggle leadership, curiosity, and just a touch of chaos — all while (sometimes) being both a night owl and an early bird. (That’s what happens when you skip sleep and just power through to morning, right?) With a knack for solving problems and a brain wired for curiosity, Amy’s childhood hobbies included casually dismantling the family computer. (Sorry, Dad. She swears she learned something.)

While her 14-year-old keeps the fridge free of expired mysteries, Amy is still pondering how to shrink every animal into pocket-size. Because how do you choose just one when you love them all? Her spirit animal might just be a drummer in a rock band — because yes, she'd be on the drums, and yes, the band would be loud. As for her celebrity crush? Jude Law. Classic.

Terrified of volcanoes but fascinated by Krakatoa (go figure), Amy also dreams of visiting fictional realms like Shadow and Bone or Yumi and the Nightmare Painter. In the real world, she hasn’t made it to Europe yet — but she’s got teleportation pegged as her ideal superpower, so it’s only a matter of time. Fluent in compassion and curiosity, Amy wishes she could instantly speak every language — and gives major props to her multilingual learners and their families for doing just that.

Connect with Amy in our CONNECT community or on LinkedIn.

🗣️ Communicating with Busy Parents
Let’s face it—life for today’s parents is like juggling flaming torches while riding a unicycle. That’s why schools need smart, streamlined strategies to connect with families in ways that are clear, relevant, and respectful of their time.

🏀 Winning the Communication Game: Connecting Parents to School Sports
Here’s your playbook for acing athletics updates while turning your school’s sports 
program into a marketing MVP.

🎯 Building Effective School-Community Partnerships for Enhanced Learning Outcomes
Cultivating effective school-community partnerships is becoming increasingly important for schools as the traditional boundaries of education are expanding. Let’s explore the intricacies of developing and nurturing effective school-community partnerships, focusing on their impact on student learning outcomes.

🏫 3 Great Ways to Engage Families in Your School Community
By implementing easy-to-use tools, engagement can be simple, more personal, and have lasting impacts for the success of all. Here are 3 great ways to start engaging every family in your community. 

☑️ Six Areas to Measure When Conducting an Annual New Parent Survey
Conducting an annual new parent survey can provide invaluable insights that help refine your enrollment and marketing strategies. Incorporating this survey into your yearly plans is beneficial and essential. See six areas to measure in your new parent survey.

📝 Parent Experience Audits
While most schools collect parent satisfaction data through regular surveys, these surveys often fall short of capturing the full picture. Parent experience audits represent a deeper, more holistic assessment of the touchpoints and interactions that shape family sentiment about your school over time.

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