By Patrick Tepoorten

The North Branch school board began the long and sometimes painful process of learning to communicate better with district residents. To that end, the board was questioned at length last Thursday night by representatives of Springsted Inc., a public relations firm hired by the district earlier this year to poll residents regarding support for an additional operating levy.

To give the board a better understanding of some of the challenges facing the district and the board, Springsted public relations specialist Barb Nicol gave the board an overview of weaknesses and threats facing the district. She referred to increasing property taxes as a ìhuge concernî in the district, and pointed out that, per the study conducted earlier this year, district residents rate the districtís financial management ìaverageî or ìpoorî for the most part.

That statistic drew remarks of concern from board members, given the efforts the board has gone to keep the books balanced despite stagnant state funding, and board chairperson Kim Salo said, ìit frustrates us as board membersî that residents have that view.

Nicol told the board that a general tone of dissatisfaction with financial management is ìnot unusualî and that, when citizens donít understand the complexities of something, like a district budget, the knee-jerk reaction can be one of mistrust. But she added that the district, like many others, could do a better job explaining financial matters to its residents. ìWhat the school thinks is simple terms isnít always simple to the community,î she added.

Other challenges Nicol sees the district facing are a high level of commuters, which allows for less time for residents to be involved in school issues, and the ìtug of war between a desire to ëruralí vs., desire to be ësuburban,íî which could impact residents attitudes toward how much the district should prepare for growth.

Working in favor of the boardís effort, said Nicol, are numerous opportunities for community partnerships with civic, athletic, and religious organizations. She also highlighted strong classroom participation from parents, high levels of support from community education participants, and the fact that two-thirds of the districtís non-administrative staff live in the district. ìEmployees are your best ambassadors,î she noted.

With that, Nicol addressed the goal of the district, which is for district residents to be ìaware of, supportive of, and involved inî the district and itís future. She warned though, that building those relationships could take time.

ìLove me suddenly doesnít work,î she said.

In order to start the district down the right path, Nicol suggested the district canít wait for participation. ìRather than trying to get them to come here,î she stated, ìYou have to go to them.î Doing so, she continued, has the affect of creating a sense of ownership in the community and allows the board to convey information to residents in a forum in which they feel comfortable.

Carrie Smith, a communications consultant, was also present at the meeting and described some avenues for the board to follow. She advised that participants in the effort, from the board and the community at large, represent a cross-section of the community and have the ability to compromise. She also stressed that the board have an open mind.

ìThe school board needs to take a step back from themselves and ask, ëWhat do they (residents) want out of this and how can I provide it.íî

Furthermore, she stated how important it is for the board to not approach improved communication by forcing values and ideals on the community.

ìA true process doesnít have a pre-determined end,î Smith concluded. She also prepared the board for a long commitment.

With the particulars of the process out of the way, Smith and Nicol asked board members to list some of their hopes and fears for the process.

Some of the hopes included: that the community truly trusts the board and administration, that the community and district can move forward and feel like a team, that people will spend time with the board, a strengthened community, an improved understanding of the boardís role in the district, and that operating levy prospects will improve.

Some of the fears included: people will conclude it is just another attempt to get more money, that things will not change at the district, that some will use the opportunity mostly as a ìgripe sessionî leading to mostly negative feedback, and that residents will be concerned only with taxes.

Board members also compiled a lengthy list of community organizations from which to draw support and engage in an ongoing conversation to improve communication. Those organizations, along with other answers and concerns provided by board members, will now be analyzed by Springsted, which is expected to return with an outline to begin the process.

Smith and Nicol also apprised the board of some district demographics to ponder. For instance:

ï 50 percent of district households are in North Branch.

ï District residents are younger than the county at large and the state average, with a third of the population under 18 years of age and half of households with children under 18.

ï There is a smaller population over age 65 than in the county and the state.

ï Vast majorities of households are owner-occupied.

ï Enrollment projections have called for growth but the district experienced declines in both 2004 and 2005.