COMMUNITY INVOLVEMENT
This chapter examines the community involvement efforts of the Eagle Pass Independent School District (EPISD) in following areas:
Providing accurate, timely information to the public is an important function of public institutions. The efficient delivery of this service fosters trust and enables citizens to draw conclusions and take action based on information, as opposed to rumor and gossip. The manner in which school districts perform this function has an impact on how the district is viewed by the public.
The most effective community involvement programs are inclusive, take advantage of the variety of media outlets that exist in every community, and disseminate information in a timely manner.
BACKGROUND
Among Texas school districts, there is wide variation in the manner in which community involvement is performed. Some school districts have departments that are dedicated to it. Larger districts can spread individual community relations functions among several people. However, smaller districts like EPISD must rely upon staffs of three or fewer people, with each staff member performing a variety of community-relations functions.
Boards of trustees can also play an important role in community involvement by being accessible and sensitive to community concerns.
Districts also vary widely in how they involve the community in and inform it of district activities. Newsletters, town hall meetings, cable television programs, Internet Web sites, school calendars, brochures and inserts in news media published by other entities are some of the methods that districts use to communicate with parents and other citizens.