For many districts facing enrollment challenges, retention has become a large part of their strategy. Here’s a stat more common in the business world, but it's an important takeaway nonetheless — increasing customer retention by just five percent can increase profits from 25-95%.

Keeping a family is much easier than finding new one, and retaining a student means sustained relationships, academic progress, and community involvement. That benefits students, families, and your district.

So, for the districts across the country that continue to struggle with declining enrollment, paired with enrollment projections through 2031, retention can’t be an afterthought. Schools need to be proactive about building trust, engaging their parents, and keeping the families schools have worked so hard to enroll.

 

Communication and Parent Satisfaction

Parent satisfaction is often shaped by how engaged and connected they feel to a district, and while districts may use various strategies to keep families enrolled and connected, there’s always room for improvement, especially in communication.

A recent GreatSchools survey engaged more than 700 parents to understand their preferences and goals for their children’s education and what families expect from their district.

It isn’t too surprising that parents often feel overwhelmed by the volume of communication from their child’s school, especially when messages don’t directly relate to their own child.

Many parents reported waiting days to open emails or choosing to unsubscribe from certain types of updates because school-level updates can feel so excessive.

Communication from teachers about their own child’s progress, however, is valued.

Most parents want more frequent, relevant updates focused on their child’s experience, like notes about progress, grades, and upcoming curriculum topics, especially if they believe it benefits their child directly. Parents generally consider district-level messages the least relevant, and they’re more likely to engage when communications are personalized and specific to their child.

It’s not a stretch to say that retention, then, hinges on effective communication that helps parents feel involved in their child’s education.

So whether it’s updates on academic progress through a parent portal, the latest new shared through a mobile app, or personalized updates, every timely, relevant, and personalized touchpoint reassures parents they’ve made the right choice for their child’s education.

How to Improve Student Retention with School Communications

Districts can use communication tools to help parents feel informed and appreciated, and when families feel connected and valued. They’re less likely to look elsewhere, which helps stabilize your district’s enrollment numbers and turn your school into a place where students actually want to attend every day and return each year.

Mass Notifications: Keeping Parents Informed

Mass notifications are a valuable tool for districts to keep families updated on essential events, school closures, safety information, and more. These notifications work well for time-sensitive updates that families rely on, and when used thoughtfully, they provide a layer of transparency that parents appreciate.

By integrating mass notifications into a broader communication strategy, your district can families in the loop, and rather than bombard parents with every update, prioritize the most relevant information to make sure families know that your district respects their time.

Mobile Apps: Offering Convenience on the Go

With easy access to news, school calendars, directories, and more, a branded, district mobile app makes staying informed easy and convenient — a one-stop solution for parents to access information about their child’s school.

Using a mobile app, districts can offer personalized updates and direct messaging features that make busy parents feel more connected. An app can also highlight events, achievements, and news, celebrating students and staff while also strengthening your district’s brand. When families see how accessible and responsive your district is, it deepens their commitment to staying enrolled.

27J Schools can easily engage families with its mobile app, putting calendars, directions, notifications, and the latest news within just a few clicks for parents and staff members.

Parent Portals: Encouraging Involvement in Student Progress

Parent portals are an impressive tool for ongoing engagement and giving families direct access to their child’s academic progress, attendance, and other key resources to help them stay connected.

Students, staff, and families are more likely to stay with a district that keeps them informed and engaged, and a well-maintained parent portal, updated regularly with relevant information, provides transparency and positions your district as an active partner.

Keep Reading: Two Districts’ Strategies to Improve Public School Enrollment & Attendance

Chat for Schools: Keeping the Conversations Going

Parents want direct and immediate ways to stay in touch. One-on-one, group, and one-way chats provide flexible, accessible communication that strengthens parent engagement and connection with real-time conversations, targeted updates, and direct access to teachers, administrators, and coaches. That kind of connectivity creates a more responsive and inclusive environment for families.

Parents can ask questions, receive updates on their child’s progress, or discuss any specific concerns they may have, and group messaging, like class or team-specific chats, offers parents a way to stay connected with the broader community. Coaches can share practice schedules, teachers can send reminders about assignments, and administrators can communicate class-wide updates.

For quick updates that don’t require a response, one-way notifications are perfect. Schools can send reminders about upcoming events, weather alerts, or schedule changes directly to parents.

It’s these personalized, real-time communication options that make it easier for parents to feel connected to their child’s education, which in turn helps your district retain its commitment year after year.

How a Proactive Communications Strategy is a Proactive Retention Strategy

A communication strategy that focuses on timely, relevant, and personalized information is one of the most effective ways to improve school district enrollment. If your district shows its families that it values their involvement and wants them to feel informed every step of the way, you’re strengthening the connections that can make it easier to say “yes” every year.

• Timeliness: By communicating news as it happens, families can know about important events, changes, and opportunities without delay. That reduces frustration and helps families make plans or adjustments as needed.
   
• Relevance: Parents are more engaged when the information they receive matched their needs and interests. A comms strategy needs to consider the value of relevance, like personalizing emails or segmenting notifications, so families feel like they’re receiving information that matters to them.
   
• Consistency: Consistent updates about student success and the student experience build trust, and there's nothing more important to a family than that.

Consistent, relevant, and timely communication reinforces your district’s commitment to serving its families, and families that know they’ll hear from your district regularly are more likely to remain engaged.

Key Takeaway

For districts facing enrollment challenges, retaining students is just as important as recruiting new ones. Consistent, thoughtful communication can improve retention but also strengthen the overall school experience for families, and that supports the idea of your district as a place where parents feel valued, informed, and fully invested.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Connor has spent the last decade within the field of marketing and communications, working with independent schools and colleges throughout New England. At Finalsite, Connor plans and executes marketing strategies and digital content across the web. A former photojournalist, he has a passion for digital media, storytelling, coffee, and creating content that connects.