1. Communication: Parents and Employees of the 21st Century Tami Strege & Craig Mussi June 21, 2011

2. Forms of Communication What are the forms of communication? How do you prefer your communication? How do you communicate with others?

4. Different Generations Veterans/Seniors: Pre-1945 Baby Boomers: 1946-1964 Generation X: 1965-1982 Generation Y (Millennials): 1983-2001 Generation Z (Internet): 2002-Present

5. Seniors/Veterans: Pre-1945 Prefer direct communication & believe what they see. Users of traditional media including Newspapers Radio Television Some are suspicious of technology. Communication style with seniors must be clear and straight-forward.

6. Baby Boomers: 1946-1964 Open-minded and rebellious in their teens and twenties, many boomers are now rather conservative. Boomers appreciate direct mail over email. Voice mail preferred to text messaging Many have embraced the internet and mobile phones. Still use land lines. Print is usually required to reinforce communication. Some boomers have not kept up with technology updates.

7. Generation X: 1965-1982 Well-educated and qualified, skeptical of authority and have a focus on outcomes and skills. Good researchers, using the internet extensively Enjoy interactive communication. High use of search engines Television watchers for information Most challenging to reach – “information overload”

8. Generation Y (Millennials): 1983-2001 Generally optimistic, highly social and rather moralistic Overly ambitious and impatient - “special & sometimes selfish” Use of multiple media outlets including Email Cellphones – no land line iPods Internet sources for information (websites) Facebook and other social networking Speed of communication – texting and tweeting Multi-tasking comes naturally

9. Generation Z: 2002-Present Impact of media and technology changing exponentially Using multiple media sources Less print used

10. How Do We Communicate in Education? What forms of communication are used? Do we communicate differently with parents than with staff and students? What are the best forms of communication to reach our constituents?

15. Best Forms of Communication - Parents Websites Blogs Facebook and social networking Electronic and print newsletters and articles Text messaging for immediate information Emails Phone messaging – cell phones

16. Parent Interaction with the School Website hits at my school – over 1,000/day Less than 20% prefer mail copy of report cards About 25% receive a hard copy of newsletter Over 90% of parents list an email address More parents have one phone contact number Email contact more frequent than phone calls Depends on timeliness of need

17. School Communication Robo-caller Newsletters Emails Post cards Phone calls Website updates periodically Online access to student records

18. Best Forms of Communication - Employees Emails – information or instructions IM Video conferencing Office phone call – requires interaction Cell phone call – requires interaction Text messaging – interaction not as in-depth Meetings – training and/or discussion

19. Best Forms of Communication - Students Websites Blogs IM Pod-casting Text/Tweet Email – send attachments

20. Relationships A connectedness between teachers, students, administrators, and parents which leads to a substantial personal investment in learning

21. Questions Tami Strege, Curriculum Coordinator Glendale Union High School District 623-435-6289 Tami.Strege@guhsdaz.org Craig Mussi, Principal Moon Valley High School 623-915-8008 Craig.Mussi@guhsdaz.org