District Administration - February 2010 - (Page 41)

Social Media Tweeting Your Own Horn Districts are using social networking Web sites like Twitter and Facebook to tout their accomplishments and communicate with the public. By KevIn ButLer users are 35 to 55 years old, according to recent research by InsideFacebook.com. And adults are increasingly using Facebook to connect with friends and share information, says graphic design specialist delaina Beirnstein. “Facebook is my personal newspaper,” she says. Community Notifications The salt Lake City school district began using twitter and Facebook last April in response to public interest. “Many organizations, businesses and everything else have been moving in that direction, so our parents were expecting the same sort of response, the same notification process that they get from other places,” says Jason olsen, the district’s communications officer. The salt Lake district has posted on twitter and Facebook the same information it has shared on its regular district Web site, such as announcements of school awards and events, says olsen, adding that he believes the services will boost traffic to the district Web site. The district also links to articles or television news stories concerning its schools and has recently started publicizing its Facebook and twitter presence on its Web site as well as in school newsletters. In addition to informing users of upcoming school events and showing pictures from school activities, the district’s Facebook site has links to local news stories about teachers, students and programs. It has provided links to the utah Gov. Gary Herbert’s budget recommendations and editorials arguing against cuts to education. The district recently saw the value of social media services to communicate with parents during an emergency. In november, salt Lake district officials used Facebook to notify parents that an elementary school was in lockdown as police investigated reports of shots fired off campus, olsen says. It turned out that the incident was not connected with the school and no one was hurt. Last december, the district used the same site to alert parents of a bomb threat at a high school and to let them know that students had been safely evacuated, olsen says. About 15 minutes later, another Facebook message went out explaining that no bomb had been found and that students were back in class. In another example in december, Facebook was used to notify parents of February 2010 41 H ouston Independent school district superintendent terry Grier recently pointed out a troubling fact: About 2,800 sixth-, seventh- and eighth-graders were two or more years older than their classmates. “BIG problem,” he posted via twitter, a Web site that allows him to post text messages and share them with “followers”—other users of the service who are interested in receiving the messages. Grier uses twitter to give updates on his meetings with staff and media interviews, link to interesting education news, and share important issues and facts about the district. “It’s not only that I enjoy using it as a social networking piece,” Grier says. “I like to use this to help communicate what I’m about as an instructional leader or administrative leader.” He’s not alone among district officials, and many business people, in embracing social networking Web sites like twitter and Facebook to get their messages across to hundreds of others within seconds. Although Facebook began primarily serving college students, the social media site has become increasingly popular with adults. Thirty-one percent of Facebook www.DistrictAdministration.com http://www.InsideFacebook.com http://www.DistrictAdministration.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of District Administration - February 2010

District Administration - February 2010
Contents
Advertiser Index
News Update
Facilities Update
District Profile
Administrator Profile
New Books
Problem/ Solution
Pursuing Peace in Chicago
English Language Learner Charter Schools
Tweeting Your Own Horn
Tech Disruptions
Professional Opinion
Research Center
New Products
Product Focus

District Administration - February 2010