Looking Back: What We Learned from the Pandemic
By Todd Drafall
Asst. Superintendent for Business
Downers Grove SD 58
“Horror Vacui.” - Aristotle
Nature abhors a vacuum. This concept is regarding physics; but in our case this past year, the concept applies to communication. Keeping stakeholders up to date and often, even when there might not be a change in status, is important. Families trapped at home with their children need updates and communication. Districts that did so fared better than those who did not.
We learned that continual two-way communication was vital to keeping everyone on the same page. We learned the importance of listening to needs and communicating our plans, and when plans change, communicating the change in every possible format to reach our community. Of course, we could not meet everyone’s needs and or wants, but ensuring the opportunity to be heard was important. Which leads to the second thing we learned…