What is Good Customer Service ~ in our Public Schools?

Good customer service ~ What does it mean to each of us? What does good customer service in our Public schools mean to us? 


I know for me it means the people that greets me first in a school are friendly and nice. That would be the front office person and the one that picks up and answers the school phone. 


Good customer service in a school means all staff LOOK AT YOU and maybe say "hi" to you, even though they aren't even your child's teacher. When on a school campus and most of the ADULT STAFF 'act' like they don't see you like that you are not even there, that is not good customer service! It has always amazed me how so many adult administration, teachers and staff can all act so stand offish and unfriendly. If this is what you are experiencing at your school...you are not alone. This is becoming the norm in many public schools. 


Good customer service is about treating Parents as Partners in Education. It's about working together as a community and as a collaborative team, to help educate all our children, our future generation! 


When a parent wants to be involved, accept them as partners and give them something to do, especially if they have certain talents for things and they have 'signed up' to be called to volunteer. Allow all kinds of parents into the 'inner circle' of volunteering within our schools. Too many parents are being made to feel they are not wanted on our school campuses anymore. Special Ed Parents especially are being shut out from being on the campus at all sometimes. *Only a special ed parent that has experienced this will agree that this is exactly what is happening more and more....at many schools.


The reason families make decisions to leave the Public School system is because they are being made to feel not welcomed anymore. Parents are not valued as equal partners in our child's education. Parents are tired of the closed doors and the silent treatment from 'site based management' where the principal rules over our schools like a dictatorship. 


I used to see our previous principal, Mr. Cassaw just about each and every time I visited the school to have lunch with my children. He always made it a point to say hello and even sat with us on the outside picnic tables and shared a little friendly chat. Nice man that can come out of their office to greet parents and give them some of his time and be interested enough to even get to know the parents of his students at the school. Thank you Mr. Cassaw for being a respected leader of Stephen Foster. Your leadership is missed by this involved parent. Hope you are enjoying the fishing!


Principals are the ones that set the tone of our schools. If the parents are feeling unhappy due to the 'tone' of the campus then the teachers and staff are unhappy as well! If their is an unspoken 'rule' to not be friendly to the parents or don't talk to them unless you have to ~ those are the attitudes of administration.  Site based management IS THE PROBLEM most of the time! 


I am with heavy heart writing this post, because it is how my wonderful little elementary school; Stephen Foster Elementary school has become lately....many teachers and staff are absolutely the BEST but they are few. For the most part after 11 years at the same school, it is sad to say it has lousy customer service. My daughter's school has become so unfriendly, stand-offish, almost snobbish...a few of the teachers are. Some staff have never had a collaborative conversation with me and they could have and should have in those 11 years. It is sad to know that the school I believed in for so many years has become just another Public school that isn't welcoming parents like they should.  ....all parents....especially the pro-active parents raising a child with Special needs. In conversations with others, I have listened to several parents , parents of a gifted students, parents that speak another language, parents of Special needs child and from my own experiences as well. The common feelings are common that....there is a disconnect and the communication is not there.

~ Partner with Parents and open the doors to the positive possibilities of what any and all the parents can provide to the "family-like-community" within our school. Teachers and staff....be friendly and say hi to us even if you don't have our child in your class. We appreciate all of you and what you do for our children throughout the school year. 


We want our school back!