MARTINSVILLE, Va. – It’s one of the most important tools a school district can have, and its readiness for “back to school” can mean the difference between success and failure for students, parents and faculty alike. We’re talking about a school district’s website. It’s a crucial communication link between schools and families that keeps everything running smoothly.
The Martinsville City Schools website clearly understood the assignment. They were recently honored by the National School Public Relations Association with the 2024 Award of Excellence for the website. Communications and Community Outreach coordinator Callie Hietala revamped the site since coming aboard a few years ago. Callie said the award underscores the commitment to communication with the community and explained that it is the first impression or ‘first window’ into the school district for families, which is just one of the reasons it is so important.
“One of those things that we really wanted to emphasize was clear, concise, easy-to-access communication. Particularly right now for our ‘back-to-school’ page, is that there is a layout that makes sense. No piece of information is more than three clicks away at any point. We’ve got these really wonderful bright pictures of our students smiling and having fun during the school day. They are huge on the page. As soon as you click and open any page, it just shows who we are, what our district means to us, why you should come work here, why you should feel comfortable sending your child here and why you should be proud to be a bulldog,” Hietala said.
The district also received an ‘Award of Excellence’ in writing as well. Martinsville City Public Schools also has an app that you can download to your phone. You can access all the information on their site as well from the palm of your hand.