The Flagler County school district is learning how to use salesmanship to its advantage as a result of a new state law that forces it to promote school choice, including vouchers, homeschooling, and virtual learning, against its own interests. The district is promoting the idea that it is the best option and that it must be included in the mix if there is to be true choice.
The district plans to hire a new school choice specialist in order to support the strategy. It is successfully road-testing its dual allegiances in the interim.
A parent who had been navigating the relatively new and frequently complex school choice landscape sent an email to the Flagler County school district administration in late June. The parent expressed gratitude. The local district supported her even though she was choosing a different path for her child, as Superintendent LaShakia Moore explained, which implied that the parent was withdrawing the child from public school, as hundreds of thousands of parents throughout the state have been doing.
Superintendent LaShakia Moore stated that the parent wrote, “Thank you for creating another partner with me, that I can go to and ask questions related to my children.” Even if families leave the district, she wants to hear that message. I want our families to know that when they make the right decision for their kids, we’re not angry with them. All we want is to be able to perform our duties effectively and ensure that we are able to respond to their inquiries.
However, responding to those inquiries also allows the district to present its own argument, which District Communications Coordinator Don Foley claims is the most effective Flagler communications strategy we’ve been doing for school choice issues.
State law now values choice, or the ability of any student from any socioeconomic background to attend any school of his or her or their family’s choosing, including and particularly private and parochial schools. These are the two sides of the school choice sword that Foley and Moore discuss. For families who want to educate their children at home or send them to a private school, the state offers $8,000 annually per pupil.
Additionally, the state is pushing districts to make that as simple as possible for families. This effectively means that districts are being forced to assist empty their classes of students and, as a result, their district’s funds, as districts receive less funding the fewer pupils they have. In Flagler County, that has been the situation.
Since enrollment has been stagnant for 17 years, it has suddenly started to clearly decline, placing Moore and her district in what appears to be an untenable situation. The district intends to meet the state’s requirements in order to buck that trend. With choice, it will be the state’s ally. However, it will also be the district’s top priority to convince parents that Flagler schools might be the best option.
We see a need for someone who is committed to making sure our families and students can get fast, helpful, and clear counsel when they are navigating all of their educational options in Flagler County. The associate superintendent for the district, Angela O. Brien, stated. As they navigate these conventional and non-traditional educational pathways, we want to make sure that this individual can offer those kids and families individualized help in the way that best suits their requirements.
The district is establishing a new role called “school choice specialist” in order to achieve this. The individual will serve as a guide for parents who are struggling with decision-making.
There was little doubt that the specialist would also be letting parents know that Flagler schools might have what they’re searching for when Moore explained the role to the School Board in late June. During a preview of the district’s new approach in a separate interview with FlaglerLive, Moore stated as much. (See: Supervisor LaShakia Moore Is Taking on School Choice on Her Own Terms: Put an End to Vouchers’ Disadvantageous Competition.)
Members of school boards are following suit. We must be the greatest option for Flagler students, and I think we are headed in that direction. Board member Derek Barrs stated, “I believe we’re on track for that, regardless of whether it’s hybrid, this, or that, whatever those situations are.”
According to board chair Will Furry, the individual is an oracle who knows all the answers and, when necessary, nudges the district in the right direction. “So, when it’s in the student’s best interest, we can try to recapture those dollars,” he said. I really think that there are things that we can offer that either we haven’t yet made public or parents aren’t even aware exist, and they would probably accept them if we could make them seem simple.
Having someone who can provide them appropriate advise on: You have your choices is important when a parent comes in and wants to do a hybrid, Moore said, or they want to go in a different way that may or may not include us. This is how it seems.
It becomes complicated because of students who might be enrolled in both homeschool and a nearby college, students on vouchers who might wish to enroll in one or two district courses, and families who must be billed for any courses they enroll in so that we can make sure we’re getting paid for the classes they’re taking with us, Moore said. Families would pay the district their portion using the voucher funds they were given by the state. The new employee would be in charge of the coordination.
It’s a novel skill, founded on an almost wholly new statute that is subject to annual amendments by the legislature, as it did only a few weeks ago. Although district officials did not go so far as to draw the comparison (at least not publicly; some officials have spoken incredulously about the legislature’s recent machinations with vouchers), the role will necessitate the kind of person who will have to learn the system from scratch and keep up with it as it changes, much like a corporate lawyer keeping up with rapid changes in tax laws and loopholes.
Thus, it will be difficult for the district to find the right candidate for the job—someone who can advocate for parents objectively while promoting the district’s offerings, stay on top of legalities, communications, and records, and, last but not least, possess some subtle sales skills (the job posting, which was written in a different language, reads: Serve as liaison between the school, region, district, and community regarding school choice programs and enrollment opportunities). The 20 performance tasks on the list are intimidating.
According to John Fanelli, the district’s director of student services, we do need to locate someone with that degree of education, experience, and understanding of the educational system. Every year, it changes and grows. We put a lot of effort into keeping up with any new legislation developments and information. Our families are affected by us in many ways, and occasionally they make decisions without fully understanding the potential consequences. Due to the decisions made, individuals might not be able to receive a traditional high school graduation in various ways. Therefore, I believe it is crucial that we have someone who can properly explain all of those questions and guide them through the blended learning model, home education, school choice, and virtual learning.
Fanelli will receive reports from the school choice consultant.
According to Moore, the individual might be a teacher, either current or former, someone who has experience creating and disseminating information from a district’s communications department, or someone who has worked with college-level registration and enrollment systems that generate a-la-carte enrollment, she said. Therefore, I do think that the individual does exist, but I also think that we need to make it available to those who might not be pursuing school through regular channels if we want to truly get the best applicant.
Furthermore, even if the post is crucial, the district ought to have had it sooner because, when families leave, there is no one there to follow up and determine whether the decision was the right one. Moore reiterated, “We’re not angry with you for your decision, but we want to make sure that we’re here as a partner and support system to let you know if there’s anything we can do to help you as you’re educating your child in a different way.”
Reminding families that Flagler schools are still an option once they move out would be one way to do that.
