- Mail a monthly newsletter to parents, especially at the middle and high school levels.
- Follow up on behavior contacts with parents.
- Instruct those responsible to contact parents when a homework request is ready, rather than waiting until afternoon or the end of the day.
- Rotate grades and classes in presenting at PTO meetings.
- Offer opportunities for parents and community members at times convenient to them.
- Host meals, assemblies, banquets, or other special events to honor parents, grandparents, volunteers, and/or military veterans. Designate a particular group as the school’s guests, with free admittance to special events.
- Welcome, train, and involve volunteer readers. Honor them with a banquet or other appropriate means.
- Invite volunteers to serve as substitute parents or grandparents for students who don’t have such relatives in attendance for special events.
- Host Accelerated Reader Relay Nights. Parents and students read AR books in relays, racing to take an AR test after reading a book, while navigating an obstacle course.
- Host parents in reading nights, but also nights with other themes such as P.E.
- Invite community leaders such as police, merchants, and ministers to share with your students both in the classroom and in simple ways like joining a class for lunch.
- Host a community picnic at the start of the school year with the help of local businesses, if necessary.
- Collaborate with local community churches to post upcoming events and to encourage volunteerism in our schools.
- Set up a feedback box that allows people to make both positive comments and suggestions for improvement easily and anonymously.
What other external policies might your school or school district consider adopting concerning customer service?