Establish Structures for Two-Way Communication

Before developing an action plan for schoolwide SEL, you’ll want to establish communication structures that will help keep all stakeholders informed, engaged, and excited throughout implementation. Predictable, regular communication will also improve trust between the team and the larger school community and help ensure everyone has a voice in schoolwide SEL.

If you already have established communication structures, reflect on the questions below:

Depending on your responses, you’ll want to develop or refine a communications strategy with three main components:

• Information to be communicated: Broad, recurring communication that ensures all stakeholders are kept abreast of schoolwide SEL implementation and receive information on how they can be involved. As the SEL team learns and does more, a planned cadence of broad communication will help keep all stakeholders informed and engaged.
• Targeted communication with each stakeholder group:  Develop a list of individuals and groups who will be involved in or impacted by schoolwide SEL and/or play a role in sustainability.  Each of these groups will need to know different details to fulfill their roles and responsibilities.
• Inviting perspectives, ideas, and participation: There is a clear structure for soliciting feedback and input. All stakeholders will need to know how to weigh in on key decision points and provide feedback on how SEL implementation is going from their point of view.

You can use the template below as a starting place for mapping out these types of communications for each stakeholder group.