School board members are often in the hot seat these days, and not just during formal meetings. In this two-hour session, we'll cover communication skills and strategies tailored specifically to help you grow your capacity and confidence as a school director.

We'll explore personal communication and leadership skills as well as organizational / process-related strategies that set your board up for positive, productive meetings. In particular, we will focus on strategies that support your ability to navigate conflict with dignity, efficiency, and civility.

When most of us think about leadership communications, we usually focus on what’s being said. But listening effectively is a critical component of a leader's ability to build and/or rebuild trust. Taking it one step further, a good leader must also reflect back what they’ve heard, specifically noting how constituent priorities have helped influence their thinking. THAT is the secret in the sauce that elevates your listening from informative to truly strategic and trust-building.

You know that effective communication is vital for leaders to achieve any of your organizational goals. Developing a communication plan is an important first step, but it can feel overwhelming and time-consuming. The truth is that communication plans do not need to be large, complex documents. In fact, in organizations without a public relations professional on staff, a simple plan is more likely to be actually used.