Content Source: School ‘Key Communicator’ Networks
by Matt on Sep 12, 2008 in Content
As a hyperlocal blogger, you know that one of your primary jobs is keeping up with (and sharing) local news and information that interests your readers. But how do you know what interests your readers? If your hometown is like mine, you may have a combination of scientists, stay-at-home moms, engineers, business people, farmers, and so forth reading your blogs — a real hodge-podge slice of local life.
Well, no matter how diverse your readership is, there’s a good chance many of them have some connection to your local school system. They may have children going to school, or nephews/nieces, or live near a teacher, or even live near a school. There’s a good chance a lot of your readership is interested in local school news.
That’s where a new trend in education comes into play:
School District “Key Communicator” Networks
Many school districts across the country are forming what they call “Key Communicator” networks. Their goal is to do a better job informing the public what’s going on with schools, the district, education programs, and so forth. The Oregon School Boards Association has a very detailed explanation of these networks and why school districts should create them. Look how they describe who “key communicators” are:
Key communicators are adults and students who talk to and are believed by many people in the community. They may or may not be in positions of authority or officially recognized leaders.
They may be barbers, beauticians and bartenders. They are frequently dentists, gas station owners, firefighters, post office clerks and news agency owners.
They may as well say “They are hyperlocal bloggers,” right? That’s almost a perfect description of local bloggers.
What This Means to Hyperlocal Bloggers
This is a new concept in the education system. From a Google search for ["key communicator" school district], I see a lot of districts that are starting these networks — but obviously there are many not doing it, too.
I recently signed up for the Key Communicator network at the school district where we live. So far I’ve received two emails, both of which seemed more like a newsletter telling me the latest district news, recapping the school board meeting, etc. There’s been no one-to-one communication and no efforts to “get the pulse” of the community (as suggested by the Oregon School Boards Assn. page linked above). But it’s new, and maybe those things will come later.
For now, being part of the network has
- helped me follow school district news, and
- given me some ideas for blog content.
As a hyperlocal blogger, I consider both of those to be Good Things. So …
Your “To Do” Item
Visit the web site(s) of your local school district(s) and poke around for information about a Key Communicator Network. It might be in the NEWS section, or maybe in the ABOUT section of their site. If you can’t find anything, look for contact information (many districts have a Communications Director) and send an email (or make a call) asking if they have such a network. If they don’t know what you’re talking about, give them that Oregon School Boards link above!
Do that for each district in the area that your local blog covers. If you can find and join these networks, you should find that you’ve discovered a good, new source of hyperlocal content.
Your Turn: Let me know if your local district(s) has one of these networks, and have you found them beneficial to your local blogging?
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What a valuable tip, Matt. And a perfect opportunity for parents who want to hyperlocal blog and have children in the public schools.
I think they need to change the Key Communicator Networks name. That’s not very exciting sounding.
They need a Flickr or a Reddit style name (but they should probably spell it correctly, being that it’s a school thing and all)
Neat ideas!
Miriam
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Funnily enough, in the relatively small town where we live here in Australia it’s the real estate agents who have the pulse of the community … if only you can get them to stop with the hype and just give you the important information