Last Friday (Dec. 3, 2016) In Greenville, Mississippi, the superintendent was fired. The problems began with how he managed communication regarding a teacher who was accused of abusing a student. Because of a lack of trust and effective leadership habits, the poor relationship between the board and the superintendent has created a mess!

Trying to figure out how to spend your marketing dollars to maximize enrollment for 2016-17? If not you, you'll want to soon. Marketing is far less random and much more scientific than it once was. School growth is achieved by staying ahead of the marketing curve--here are seven easy marketing strategies your schools should implement ASAP!

1. Focus on Who You Are

One of the biggest mistakes you can make is trying to compete based on the strengths and/or strategies of other schools in your market. Focus on who you are and the value proposition that you offer. Discovering what your target market wants is important, but you can also go out of business listening to parents and students. Your mission and authentic brand is your greatest asset--seek to build stronger relationships with those families who believe what your believe.

It's probably never happened to your board, but sometimes school board members can lose their minds and get a little crazy.

Boards Gone Wild is the School Growth Tuesday Webinar series for June 2015 and centers around board leadership impact. How can you overcome the distractions and chaos when school board members go off the reservation in violation of good governance practice, creating heartache, hardship, and chaos?

Word-of-mouth marketing is the number one source of leads for enrollment and fundraising for every school. Expanding your network of influence is the most powerful way for you to accelerate and sustain growth. Below are a few ways to accomplish this goal.

Yesterday's School Growth Webinar focused on one of the toughest challenges for school leaders: Strategic Planning. Over the last ten days we received coaching requests from at least four schools that are trying to figure out whether they will be able to survive the upcoming school year. Changes in their local economy/market and a variety of other school design issues have put the leaders of these schools in a very difficult situation. As we've worked with schools across the globe, those that are not growing consistently exhibit similar traits.

The Downside of Social Media? Speed and Permanence.

Speed and Permanence

Disrupted Lives

How would a visionary design a school if starting today? Clean slate. No limits from tradition or the past.

What attracts students to your school is shifting from curriculum and safety to connection and relevance. Schools have used viewbooks, brochures, websites, and social media pages to market their "Excellence in Education," but what people seem to be emphasizing in their search for a school is the experience.

Effective communication is crucial at every level of the organization, especially within and from the board. It promotes better understanding, reduces unnecessary conflict, and helps build healthy relationships. High levels of emotional intelligence and self-awareness are common among good communicators.

What do teachers want to know from their chief administrator?

We received some very insightful answers to this question from people around the world. Below are a few examples of this great feedback: