Community Communications Toolkit

This work is the result of a collaborative endeavor involving interest holders from across multiple sectors. The team included Miami University faculty members Michael Evans and Joel Malin, who served as co-facilitators for the project. Dr. Dana Mitra, Professor of Education Policy Studies at Penn State, served as a research consultant, and the team drew inspiration from her work, “Pennsylvania’s Best Investment: The Social and Economic Benefits of Public Education.” Dr. Paul Imhoff, Director of Governmental Relations for the Buckeye Association of School Administrators, and Dr. Guy Parmigian, former superintendent at Benton-Carroll-Salem School District and current Miami University faculty member, offered perspectives based on their experiences as district administrators. Jennifer Sudhoff, Director for Shared Services Alliance (ESCNEO) and current OASBO board member, brought extensive experience working in public school finance as a Treasurer and Business Manager. Chris Kline, Chief Deputy Auditor in Lawrence County, generously shared county- and state-level insights on property tax law and pending legislative reforms in Columbus. Dr. Sarah Stitzlein, a University of Cincinnati faculty member and public education advocate, shared insights as a philosopher of education and lifelong Ohio resident. Amaya Lipps, a graduate of Tipp City Schools and current undergraduate at Miami University, brought the perspective of a recent public school student and aspiring teacher. Professional designers Reed Novak and Annemarie Hylton collaborated with the team during all aspects of the Co-Design process and created the layout of the Communication Toolkit.

This work was supported both financially and intellectually by the CREATEd initiative of the Center for Research Use in Education, University of Delaware. In particular, we are grateful for the support of Carolyn Hammerschmidt, who served as our team’s Co-Design coach. To learn more about the co-design process utilized by the team, please visit CREATEd’s Co-Design Toolkit.