Creating Information Equity within Your District

Equity is a word we hear all the time in education. It’s important that districts, schools, and educators ensure that all students have access to equal opportunities within a school community. One area where this important topic can be overlooked is in the area of access to information.

How can districts make sure all families have access to important information when they need it? What are some steps you can take to ensure everyone can take advantage of the amazing resources your district and local community has to offer?

Check out 4 things you can start to implement now that will help you move toward creating equity of information within your district.

#1 Communication must reach ALL families.

Throughout the 2021-22 school year, students may be learning in a variety of ways. Students might be meeting in person, remotely, or even in a hybrid model. In each of these cases, students and families deserve to get access to the same valuable information. 

If important announcements are made by sending flyers out during homeroom or given over the morning announcements, then students learning in different situations will lose access to important information. Providing alternative methods of communication is still important as ever as we move beyond the pandemic.

#2 Digital information should be mobile friendly.

According to the National Center for Education Statistics, 95% of children ages 3 to 18 have internet access at home, but 6% rely on their smartphones for their internet connection. It’s important that digital communication is sent in a way that’s mobile friendly so all students—even those without a home computer—can access it.

#3 Messages should be sent with enough time for parents to act.

Based on recent data from the U.S. Census Bureau, 2.4% of parents in the United States are “stay-at-home” parents. While this number rose significantly in 2021 due to the effects of the pandemic, it’s important to note that the majority of students are raised by parents and guardians who work full time.

Because of this, parents are busy juggling work responsibilities, student drop off and pick up, managing their household, and more. Giving parents ample time to read and respond to school requests is an important part of ensuring all students have access to the same resources.

#4 Use Peachjar to streamline your communication.

Over 16,000 schools, 24,000 community organizations, and 11 million parents rely on Peachjar's digital flyer management solution to deliver and receive important information about school and community resources, even when students aren't in the classroom.

Are students in your district learning remotely?  If so, how do paper flyers get home to those parents?  Do all students have access to the same critical information? Peachjar solves this problem for you.

Peachjar streamlines your flyer approval and distribution process, enabling your school staff to save a significant amount of time. With Peachjar, flyers from your district, school, and community are bundled together and emailed to parents daily. Flyers are also automatically posted to each school's web flyerboard and removed on their expiration date. And with Peachjar's customizable flyer templates, staff can send colorful flyers in a snap.

Interested in learning more about implementing Peachjar in your district? Learn more about the process and request more information today.