Email, Interview, or Press Release?

When an issue comes up in a school community, the first instinct is usually to figure out what to say. But just as important—and often overlooked—is deciding how to say it. The way a message is delivered can either calm a situation down or unintentionally make it worse.

School leaders have a few main communication tools they rely on: email, interviews, and press releases. Each one does something different, and using the wrong one at the wrong time can create confusion or frustration, even when the message itself is solid.