Communication and Advocacy Across

Settings

Promoting the Role of School Psychology

National Association of School Psychologists,

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Goals for This Presentation

• Expand communications planning and message development skills

• Understand key messages important to advocacy for school psychologists

• Learn methods for enhancing communications planning with colleagues/staff

• Practice communications message development. (Activity)

• Learn about NASP communications and advocacy resources.

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Good communication is responsive to emerging

situations and the knowledge needs of key

audiences.

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Communication: the basics

Communication is …• transmitting• exchanging • sharing• conveying ...knowledge, information, feelings,

or a specific message.

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Advocacy: the basicsAdvocacy is …• to plead• to defend• to support• to summon...a cause or a proposal.The act or process of advocating is

advocacy.

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NASP Communications

Priorities• Resilience: Building Strength for Life• School-based mental health• RTI (academic and behavior)• Prevention and Responsiveness

(anticipating/recognizing need and acting on it)

• Professional standards and participation

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Communications Opportunities

• Focus on improved outcomes and accountability (SPs grounded in evidence-based practice and evaluation)

• Softening of lines between special education and general educations (More audiences may interact with SP services)

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• New assessment options (RTI) under IDEA 2004 (SPs can help shape process/ decisions)

• Reauthorization of NCLB and potential to improve links with IDEA (RTI, PBIS, early intervening services, school-based mental health services)

Communications Opportunities

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Failure to communicate can result in negative

outcomes and missed opportunities.

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We need to make the case for our services. No one else will do it

for us.

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Risks to a “Stealth” Profession

• Lopsided emphasis on curriculum/ testing (RTI not applied to behavior; academics and behavior not linked

• Reduced or stagnant level of SP positions (Community providers/other school employees serve SP functions)

• Ineffective use of SP skills and training• Increased job frustration/stress• Negative impact on individual students

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Effective CommunicationPlanning and

Implementation

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Three Types of Strategic

Communications

•“Calling Card” •“Action Request”•“Crisis Management”

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Or …. in Audience-Friendly Terms:

Calling Card

Action Request

Crisis Management

Intensive

Targeted

Universal

Most strategic communications

involve “Calling Card” and “Action Request” processes but should

anticipate crisis communications needs.

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“Calling Card” Goals• Increase your visibility• Raise awareness and comfort level on an

issue• Get more involved• Improve collaboration• Disseminate useful information• Create environment for stakeholder “buy-in”• Change behavior

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“Calling Card” Goals: Value of School Psychologists

• Educate stakeholders on – broad role of school psychologists– the need for school psychological services– the positive impact that these services have

on the mission and purpose of schools– Limitations to performing this role as

intended (large case loads, shortages, lack of understanding about the role, etc.)

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“Calling Card” Goals: Value of School Psychologists

• Raise awareness among key stakeholders of how your skills support positive academic outcomes for students

• Emphasize your extensive training and availability as a “specialist” in schools

• Focus on our desire to collaborate with others for the benefit of students

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“Calling Card” Tactics• Provide helpful information (on a relevant topic

and SP services)• Newsletter articles (parents, teachers)• “Good to Know” communications with

policymakers, administrators (provide data)• Parent handouts• Info for website• In-service training• Brown-bag discussions (teachers, parents)

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“Action Request” Goals• Increased funding• Support for expanded programming

(school MH services, RTI, etc.)• Improved professional to student ratios• Improved collaboration and coordination

of services• Stakeholder “buy-in”• Specific requests for changes in role,

duties, responsibilities, etc.• Building bridges between general and

special education

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“Action Request” Tactics

• Meetings with decision makers• School board/legislature presentations• Conduct school-wide assessment (provide data)• Coalition/relationship building with allied

professionals• Multi-pronged outreach with integrated

message• In-service training• Media outreach

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“Crisis Management” Goals

• Legislative crisis (change in Medicaid rules excluding SPs from billing)

• Dissention among allied professions (APA Model Licensure Act revision)

• Public relations crisis (bad press coverage, editorial).

• Crisis involving school or district (school shooting, suicide, etc.).

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“Crisis Management” Tactics

• Coordinated/integrated part of response effort

• Rapid (but thoughtful) response.• Direct regular communications with

“home base”• Designated spokesperson (appropriate

level)• Media (proactive, provide experts,

materials, Op-Eds)

Communications Planning Process

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Planning Process

• Assess situation• Identify target audiences• Craft messages• Select strategies/Implementation• Evaluation/follow-up

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Planning Process

Craft Messages

Identify Target Audiences

Effective Communicatio

ns Planning

Assess Situation

Select Strategies/Implementation

Evaluation/Follow-up

DesiredImprovedOutcomes

Stakeholder

Buy-In

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Assess Situation• How are school psychologists

currently utilized in your district?• Which stakeholder groups know what

you do and appreciate it?• What is a reasonable objective?• What are potential opportunities for

change/improvement?• What are the obstacles?• What is your timeframe?• What are your available resources?

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Define Your Objective• Build support for specific policy/

resource needs• Raise awareness of your role/value

to students/adults• Raise awareness of a specific issue• Increase your

involvement/effectiveness on an issue

• Encourage others to act

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Possible Opportunities• Pending legislation• Collaboration activities with allies

(i.e., Senate briefing)• Budget process• Issue confronting district/state• Media coverage• Release of research/reports• Grants/research

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Possible Obstacles

•Misperceptions of decision makers

•Tight funding •Competing interests•Strong opposition•Complex issue

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Identify Target Audiences

• Decision makers (administrators, school-boards, legislators)

• Consumers (parents, students, teachers, administrators)

• Potential partners (school-mental health professionals, instruction support staff)

• Who are your allies? • Who are your opponents?

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Know Audience(s)’

• Level of knowledge/awareness• Primary concerns/expectations • Perspective • Possible barriers to

understanding• Ability/likelihood to take action

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Know Opponent(s)’

• Objectives• Primary concerns/expectations • Perspective • Barriers to understanding• Allies• Resources• Level of determination

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Research Can Be Useful

• Focus groups• Individual interviews• Survey (not great for message

development)• Talk to people outside your

perspective

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Message Development

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Effective Message Structure

•Problem statement•Action/solution•Benefits

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Or, In Audience-Friendly Terms

Action

Problem

Benefit

EffectiveMessageStructure

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Define Problem• Student behaviors/issues (disruptive

behavior, high rate of absenteeism) • Effects/outcomes (lower test scores, low

morale)• Causes (poor school climate, poor

adult/student connection, factious student body)

• Reasons (no coordinated student outreach, no mental health/behavioral supports)

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Be Relevant• Understand the context.• Highlight an important issue

(reading, bullying, testing, suicide).• Link objective to stakeholder

priorities.• Articulate impact on

student/school (link to outcomes).• Explain what audience can do.• Describe benefits.

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Resonate

• Appeal to experience as well as intellect

• Use “social math,” not just statistics• Invoke visual images/analogies, not

just explanations• Tell stories, not just facts• Put a “face” on issue; invited

impacted people to share their stories

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Get to the Real Point

• Why do people care?• What is in it for them?• What role do they play?• How does the solution meet their

needs?• This may vary between

audiences.

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Statistics Versus ...Youth Risk Behavior SurveillancePercentage of students responding regarding behavior during 12

monthspreceding survey: YRBSS Middle School 2003* Survey 2003**

1. Seriously considered attempting suicide 16.9 20.6

2. Made a specific plan 16.5 13.4

3. Made an attempt 8.5 9.7

4. Made an attempt requiring medical attention 2.9 —

Lieberman, Poland & Cassel, In Press

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… “Social Math”

• For every 100-200 youth that attempt suicide, one child succeeds.

• For every three youths who attempt suicide, one goes to the hospital and two go to school.

Lieberman, Poland & Cassel, In Press

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Definitions Versus …

“Population-based services meet the mentalhealth needs of all children by promoting positive mental health attributes and preventing/identifying mental health problems.”

Adapted from Doll & Cummings, In Press

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… Analogies and Images

Adapted from Doll & Cummings, In Press

The wise forester maintains the vitality of the whole forest and, in so doing, is able to recognize and respond to the needs ofindividual trees at risk.

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Facts Versus ...

Children who are bullied or ostracized can

suffer serious emotional and academic

difficulties.

… Personal Stories“Consider the young man who asked me a couple of years ago, “Do you know what it is like to feel that you are hated by everyone the first day you enter kindergarten?” This young man had composed a journal filled with his personal reflections on life. It was a dark and sad reflection. The last page contained one phrase, written repeatedly until it filled that page; “I decide who lives and who dies.” However, there is good news with this young man. Through significant emotional support and alternative strategies for education, he was able to graduate last year. He hugged me on graduation day, thanking me for believing in him. He told me that his greatest joy was not in graduating, but in the fact that his mother hugged him, telling him how proud she felt.”

--John Kelly, U.S. Senate Briefing Testimony, 2006

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Be Concise/Clear• Use audience appropriate language.• Avoid acronyms/technical language.• Use active tense.• Use bullets to the extent possible.• Ask colleague(s) to review.• Proof read your work (or ask

someone else to)!

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Recipe for Success• Step 1: Pick your main message. State it at the

outset.– Example: “School psychologists help lower

barriers to learning and promote children’s success in school and life.”

• Step 2: Back it up with 2-3 key messages and how the issue creates a barrier to learning.

• Step 3: Provide personal examples to put a “face on the message”.

• Step 4: Offer specific “solution” suggestions.

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Key Messages-Mental Health• Mental health matters.

– Good mental health is essential to success in school and life.

– Schools are a natural place to meet children’s mental health needs.

– Children who receive mental health support are happier and do better in school.

– School-based mental health services are a wise investment.

• School psychologists provide a continuum of mental health services in school.

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Media Outreach

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Media Outreach Options

• Submit brief articles/columns to local paper (helpful information for readers)

• Submit letters-to-the-editor or op-eds (articulating a position)

• Offer to be a media spokesperson/“local expert”

• Clear media activities with your supervisor/district communications office

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Writing for the Media• Press releases: What, who, why, where

(sometimes when); be brief, use quotes• Columns: Concise, bulleted, clear useful

information • Letters-to-the-Editor: 150-250 words; response

something in paper; very targeted message• Op-eds: 350-800 words; relevance, clarity,

brevity, voice, opinion; read for style• Follow-up

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Speaking as an “Expert”

• Plan what you are going to say • Practice your main messages (no more

than three)• Stay on message • Don’t hesitate to repeat important points• Research/know your facts• Avoid controversial local issues unless

you have direction from communications office

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Speaking as an “Expert”

• Focus on “best practice” comments• Feel free to say “I do not know”• Avoid commenting on the specifics of

issues w/which you are not involved• Redirect questions about specifics to

general practice knowledge• “I am not familiar with the specifics

of this case but generally adolescents…”

Imagine everything you say

will appear on the front page of The New York

Times(and that your mother, kids and boss will read

it)! 

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Effective communications

supports effective advocacy

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School Psychology Awareness Week

• Opportunity to highlight the profession, your role, value of services

• Focus on recognizing colleagues who build resilience in students

• Downloadable certificates, e-postcards, and NASP note cards available online

• Adaptable topical resources online• Poster and bookmarks

This slide presentation may be adapted by the user to reflect specifics in your

district/schools. Content or “best practice” information may not be changed without approval from NASP. The NASP logo and

any specific author credits mustremain. State and local school psychology

associations may add their logo and contact information to the presentation. This slide may be removed before giving

a presentation.

©2007, National Association of School Psychologists, 4340 East West Highway, Suite 402, Bethesda, MD, 20814,

(301) 657-0270

www.nasponline.org