Social media apps can help districts relay their message, brand

“What makes social media social is the fact that you can interact with people. Ask questions. Use hashtags,” said Marlys Weaver, Administrator of Communications with Mesa Unified School District. Attendees gathered to learn more about apps as well as four major social media platforms, Facebook, Twitter, Snapchat and Instagram. The session was led through interactive timed discussions, where each table represented a social platform. Concerns from attendees included how to deal with negative comments or reviews on social media and how to better connect and gather feedback from their audiences.

While Heidi Hurst, Supervisor of District Communications with Mesa USD discussed Facebook set-up tutorials with additional template design resources at her table, Adriana Parsons, Director at MET Professional Academy discussed the relevance and learning curve of the Snapchat interface. Zachery Fountain of Dysart USD described apps as a means to make your work stand out on a budget and the importance of making a connection, “not just to parents and students, but to the wider community.”