Archdiocese of Chicago Catholic Schools’ Developing a Parent Ambassador Program

1. Archdiocese of Chicago Catholic Schools’ Developing a ParentAmbassador Program Juana Sánchez Graber, Associate Director, ACE Consulting Marketing and Enrollment Consultant, Chicago Catholic Schools

2. Our Goal MORE KIDS IN GREAT CATHOLIC SCHOOLS

3. Great Catholic Schools… Catholic Identity

4. 235,719 Baptized Children NOT Enrolled in Religious Education or Catholic Schools!

5. Preliminary Enrollment Results For 3rd Consecutive Year… • 54% elementary schools stable/growing (114) • City of Chicago Growth – 3rd time since 1965 • PreK and K growth (+2.3%)

6. Latino/Hispanic Enrollment Results • Latino/Hispanic target market (elementary) schools • 8%enrollment growth in 27 CSA partner schools • 67%(18) schools with Parent Ambassador programs • Archdiocesan schools • 20.9%total Latino enrollment at elementary and H.S. (up 1%) • 2%total Latino enrollment growth share from 2011-12 • 18%schools with Latino population > 50% • Increased recognition in Spanish media publications including Católico, Oye! and Hoy • Growing partnerships with key Hispanic community organizations: Archdiocesan Office of Hispanic Ministry, New Futuro, Chicago Community Trust Latino Giving Circle, The Resurrection Project, Enlace

7. More Kids…FAST Initiative(Financial Advancement and Strategic Teamwork) Enrollment Management Framework • Value Proposition • Communication Strategy • Parent Ambassadors Marketing New Family Sales Retention Sales i.e., Building interest inenrolling in the schools i.e., Getting newfamilies to enroll i.e., Getting existingfamilies to re-enroll • Customer Service • Admissions Events • Lead-Handling • Re-Registration Procedure • Satisfaction Surveys • Exit Interviews

8. Enrollment Management Team Marketing/Development Staff Principal Pastor Faculty Member(s) Parent(s) Main Office Staff Board/Committee Staff – Marketing/Admissions

9. More Kids… Archdiocesan Marketing Enrollment Network Sharing what works from outside experts and internal success stories

10. DEVELOPING A PARENT AMBASSADOR PROGRAM • Review Chicago’s key initiative for implementing targeted and personalized recruiting efforts • Create a Parent Ambassador Program outline for your school • Take home practical ideas and resources for developing your school’s program Parent Ambassador Training

11. Why a parent ambassador program? A Parent Ambassador Program: • Is proven to help schools with their recruitment effort. • Organizes parents of current students and prepares them to be part of the school’s recruitment team. • Sends them out into the community to invite,connect, and build relationships with parents of prospective students. • Tracks the progress of the parents that Parent Ambassadors touch.

12. 5 minutes – VALUE PROPOSITION • What is your school’s Value Proposition? What is your school’s Brand? • “Why should I spend my (precious) money to send my (precious) child to your school?”

13. Your Program 3 Steps to Develop a Parent Ambassador Program: Communicate Kick Off Session Follow-Up

14. Communicate • Step 1- Communicate • CALL families who will be your “All Stars” • Send letter or flyer to everyone • Consider an “Interest Survey” to gauge parents’ talents and availability • Find the “right” parents • Find Lead Parents

15. 2 minutes – LEAD PARENTS • Which parents can deliver a (positive) concise message for you? • “Right Parents” • Lead Parents

16. Kick Off Session Step 2- Kick Off Your Parent Ambassador Program • Mass presence • Outreach to other parishes • Admissions events ambassador • Religious education outreach • Personal contacts • Office hours • Community canvassing • Mentors

17. Kick Off Session • MASS PRESENCE • Parent Ambassadors can: • Speak at mass • Set up info tables after mass • Host events aimed at parish families with young children • Submit bulletin entries • Collect information from Baptismal lists for outreach • Serve as liaison between school and church

18. Kick Off Session • OUTREACH TO OTHER PARISHES • Here are some step by step instructions for Parish outreach (this same approach can work for Non-Catholic church leaders as well): • Introduce yourself and share some background information about your school. • Ask him if he knows any families with children who might be interested in a Catholic education. • Request permission for Parent Ambassadors to speak at Masses or set up information tables after Mass. • Appoint one parent as your local parish liaison and ask that parent ensure coverage on a regular basis. • Consider hosting an open house for local pastors or stopping by their rectory with breakfast or lunch as an appreciation for their time.

19. Kick Off Session OUTREACH TO OTHER PARISHES St. Colette

20. Kick Off Session • ADMISSIONS EVENTS AMBASSADOR • Parent Ambassadors can: • Create materials • Promote the event • Follow up after the event • Before the event, Parent Ambassadors can: • Invite friends and family • Canvass the neighborhood with posters • Hand out flyers • Post details to their Facebook pages, Twitter

21. Kick Off Session • RELIGIOUS EDUCATION OUTREACH • Parent Ambassadors can: • Call RE families to invite them to upcoming school/parish events • Host events specifically aimed at RE families • Write testimonial letter to be used in RE outreach

22. Kick Off Session RELIGIOUS EDUCATION OUTREACH Queen of the Universe

23. Kick Off Session • PERSONAL CONTACTS • Use own personal networks to identify prospective students and their families (i.e. work, neighborhood, community, church, groups, etc.) and think about: • Where do parents and children gather? • Who has children in grades K-8, who are Catholic or non-Catholic and who attend another school, including transfer students and children in junior high school? • Who has newborns to four year olds and who are Catholic or non-Catholic? • Who has children in religious education classes and who are 3 to 5 years old? • What extracurricular activities do we participate in with children?

24. Kick Off Session • OFFICE SUPPORT • Parent Ambassadors can help behind the scenes: • Assist with mailings • Participate in follow up calls • Give school tours • Answer the phone for prospective families • Prepare marketing materials

25. Kick Off Session • COMMUNITY CANVASSING • Parent Ambassadors can: • Visit several locations in the area that attract families and children where they could access information about the school: parks, libraries, day care centers, community organizations, real estate offices, local businesses (including Starbucks or McDonald’s community boards), etc. • Distribute flyers, brochures, lawn signs, door hangers, etc. • Participate and have a presence in community events (e.g. Fourth of July, Labor Day, educational fairs, etc.)

26. Kick Off Session COMMUNITY CANVASSING St. Odilo

27. Kick Off Session • FROM AMBASSADORS TO…MENTORS • Parents can: • Reach out to new families before the year starts and answer potential questions • Host a new family welcome event at the school • Meet in advance of the school year for children to meet and parents to get acquainted • Serve as communication liaison between school office and families • Function as “parking lot” monitors - if they hear gossip on the parking lot, they can bring it to a school leader • Act as “Room” parents

28. Kick Off Session • Steps to a Successful Session: • Provide an overview of the Parent Ambassador Program. • Be specific in how your Parent Ambassadors can help.   • Instruct parents as to which messages to deliver.   • Invite Parents to share their ideas and suggestions. • Set follow up procedures and the next meeting date. • Have Parent Ambassador binders available for each committed parent with an assignment including relevant materials for outreach – e.g. school marketing materials, school FAQs, admissions and financial aid documents, scripts, etc.

29. Follow-Up • FOLLOW-UP: • Incentives for parents e.g. t-shirts and special paraphernalia • Bulletin board/space for tracking Parent Ambassador success • Parent Ambassador Newsletter • Parent Ambassador appreciation luncheon/dinner • Parent Ambassador Mass • Follow-Up Emails • Discussion Board • Follow-Up Calls to Parent Ambassadors

30. 3 minutes – STRATEGIES • What 3 strategies will you implement to have the most impact? • Would your Parent Ambassadors agree? What would they suggest?

31. 5 minutes - CREATE A TIMELINE • ACTION COMPLETION DATE • Refine communication to parents and • those involved in recruiting ____________________ • Send communication ____________________ • Personally contact active parents and those • with a wide personal network ____________________ • Create materials for training session, using • the information developed in the guide book ____________________ • Coordinate logistics of the training ____________________ • Training ____________________ • Follow-up with Lead Parent ____________________ • Monitoring of Progress, as appropriate ____________________

32. Available Resources • Office of Catholic Schools Resource Portal: http://ocs.archchicago.org/SchoolVitality/MarketingEnrollment • OCS Enrollment Marketing Consultants also available to work with schools

33. Discussion Q and A

34. THANK YOU!