6 Things We've Learned from Social Media Mashups

We've been doing a lot of work in this area with a number of universities at this point, and we've learned a lot. The funny part is that none of what we've learned has to do with how a mashup is managed, designed or created. It all has to do with how it provides VALUE to the university. These 6 things are the biggest factors that affect the success of your mashup.

1. You have to promote them. Like any other page on your university website, if you don't help people get there, they won't. A SMASHUP is no different. You can't create this wonderful interactive page, and not promote it in your website. It just doesn't work that way. You have to TELL people how to get there. Create a cool image like YSU did, and put it in your university website footer. You'll easily promote it from EVERY page!

2. You have to have quality content. Do you care about content that isn't relevant to you? You can't expect students to care either. This kind of goes without saying, so I'll move on to the next one.

3. You have to have a lot of content. It's ok to start small. Maybe you just have a couple official university-wide accounts that are done really well. That's great. But, it can't and won't last forever. Showing that you have a lot of active accounts that provide a lot of content shows that your university is dedicated to social media in a big way. People want and like to see that.

4. You have to have frequent updates. Don't you love Twitter accounts that have a last update of 265 days ago? Me neither. If you're going to do it, do it right and keep those suckers updated. Show how you interact with students. Give away a t-shirt from the department every now and then. Keep people engaged, otherwise, you're doing it wrong.

5. You have to have a plan. Are you going to incorporate more location based social media and have students check in on campus? Are you going to have a Twitter contest? Have an idea of what content works where. For example, maybe for all student organization events, you're going to create the event on Facebook, then use Facebook and Twitter to promote it. But all content does not work in all media. Save the long editorials for blogs. Use photos on Facebook. Use Twitter for quick updates, alerts and reminders. The worst is when schools connect all accounts together, then none are original. Imagine a mashup with a Facebook feed and a Twitter feed on the same page, and all the recent updates are the exact same content. If this is you, you're doing it wrong.

6. You have to have standards. Ever heard of a social media policy? You should have one, especially if your university is one of those that is constantly discovering new rogue accounts from different departments and entities across campus. Some of the schools we work with require all accounts to follow a set of standards before they can be featured on the social media mashup. It's a good way to just set a baseline for acceptable conduct and make sure everyone is on the same page.

What are some of the things you've learned through your social media mashup or just working with social media at the university level in general?

The 7 Most Important Elements in Selecting a K-12 Curriculum Management System (Part 2)

{by Gail Tolbert}

Here are the last three of the most Important Elements in Selecting a K-12 Curriculum Management System (See the first four here.)


5. Look For a System That You Will Never Outgrow

It’s true, leading edge technology means you are provided with a tool that you will never outgrow; as your district and curriculum continues to grow and change, so will the system. Today, many school districts are looking for a new curriculum tool because they have outgrown their current one. Purchasing a system that only handles the needs of today means that at some point, districts will have to go through the process of researching the next generation of software.

6. Can the Software be Customized?

Because no two districts operate exactly the same, it is important to understand the depth of customization that a leading edge company can offer. When assessing curriculum software, some companies will claim that their product is customizable. Often, their definition of “custom” is having the ability to change a title, a font or some other layout or design option. Although, these claims are technically correct the reality often forces school districts to conform to the limitations of the software rather than the software conforming to the district’s strengths. Leading edge technology means the software will customization to meet a districts internal language, process, forms, environment, and the hierarchy of the district curriculum.

7. Chose a Partner, Not a Vendor

Partnerships are not developed by vendors selling or reselling cookie-cutter software. Successful K-12 curriculum implementation comes from understanding a district’s needs, strengths and limitations. Leading edge technology companies take the time to learn the needs of their K-12 school partners and work with them to develop meaningful strategies that meet the demands of the ever changing K-12 school district curriculum. Through those partnerships curriculum systems evolve into a more meaningful tool for teachers and ultimately their students.

Since leading edge technology meets the needs of the 21st Century Educator don’t let the flashy sales, glitzy advertisements and the promise of uniformity lure you into selecting a system that is not good for your district.

Remember, the most important thing is “what’s under the hood”.

ANNOUNCING: The 2011 SchoolE Awards. Nominations Begin Next Month!

I am oh-so-excited about this upcoming year's SchoolE Awards contest to find the best school district website, I couldn't wait until November to start talking about it!

RECAP FROM 2010:

The inaugural year was a giant success. There were more than 1,600 nominations made from across the U.S., and we received more than 26,000 votes during the last two weeks of the contest. We are so thankful for all of the comments and feedback that members of these passionate districts left and we are using that to make this year's contest even better! Congratulations again to HEB, Clear Creek and Friendswood ISD for coming out on top last year.

Here's a video that recaps the highlights of last year's SchoolE Awards:

WHAT'S NEW FOR 2011?

Where do I start?

• Categories based on student enrollment to make the nomination and voting processes more fair. The top fifteen districts, based on nominations, for EACH category (Whew - that's 45 total!) will be judged, and based on the judges' scores, the Top Seven for each category will move on to the voting phase. That means we'll have THREE top-place winners, and THREE runners-up!
  
• Bigger and Broader Judging Panel - This year's judges have backgrounds in everything from K-12 instructional technology to higher education web design to graphic design expertise.
  
• More ways to nominate and vote - Including by e-mail address, Facebook and Twitter! You'll be able to spread the word to your friends and the community SO much quicker - and easier!
  
• Longer time to vote giving districts more time to get the word out.
  
• Even more recognition for districts.

The SchoolE Awards contest is not just about a good design. It's about districts with websites that the community can get excited about and join together to support deserve to be recognized as well. That's what defines a SchoolE Award winner. A great website and great support.
_________________________________________________________________

To check out the SchoolE Awards 2011 contest, you can check out the awesome NEW site here: http://schoole.allofe.com.

Stay tuned for more details! We'll be announcing our 2011 judging panel members and more details about this year's nomination process very soon!

Social Media sites get organized with SMASHUP

by Meagan Smith

Social networking has become increasingly important throughout the 21st century. Social media web pages, known as social sites, have been getting more and more attention universally for their ability to help users gain recognition for individual talents, build important relationships whether for their career or personal life, and help them gain valuable networking resources.

For universities, social media has quickly become the focus for marketing and recruiting purposes and can allow students following their university stream to keep up on recent events, news, and announcements happening around their university. Universities can use social sites like Facebook and YouTube as a free source for marketing themselves and increasing their brand recognition to potential students or employees. For instance, instead of having to go through the expensive process of purchasing and burning DVDs to get your school marketing campaigns out, you can simply upload your videos onto YouTube!

University twitter accounts allow students and employees to find people who are key influential members in their community and follow their tweets. If you or someone from your university is an active member in the community you can get your word out to students who are interested in what you have to say. A university blog can help university members find out what their students are thinking about recent happenings around campus which could be a crucial step in your decision making processes. These are just a few examples of the many types of social media sites that can be beneficial to universities. Needless to say, social media has become a vital tool that should be utilized by universities everywhere and ContentM makes it easy to do just that.

If you are a current user of multiple social media sites then you know first-hand how many separate links and web pages must be opened to view them all simultaneously. Not only does having that many browsers open slow down your system, but it can quickly become an end-users nightmare trying to figure out which web browser belongs to which social media site. AllofE’s ContentM system is built around web 2.0 functionality and makes it simple to store all of your social media needs on one convenient page using our RSS feed panels. ContentM has prebuilt social networking panels that allow you to simply paste your social site link or username in the allotted area, hit submit, and view your content in one clean, organized location. ContentM allows you to have your Facebook fan page, Twitter feed, Blogger feed, Flickr pictures, and much more all neatly organized on one convenient page which allows viewers to spend less time searching for your social sites and more time actually viewing them!

Having a social media initiative isn’t good enough unless it’s organized and easy to get to. Being a beginner with social media sites myself, I know how frustrating it can be when you want people to check out your social pages but can’t find the right link to it or having your web pages be so disorganized that you don’t know which browser houses which social site. Since I’ve started using ContentM for our social media needs I have just one link to share with everyone and they get our most recent blog postings and twitter feeds. It’s just that simple! Check out a couple of our example pages listed below if you’re interested in what ContentM can do for you.

Click Here to See Example Site #1

Click Here to See Example Site #2

Wordless Wednesday: Schoole Awards Winners!

A special thanks to our top two districts for sending me these great pictures with their checks! Here are pictures from the top two Schoole Award-winning districts.

First Place: HEB ISD

Second Place: Clear Creek ISD

For more information about the Schoole Awards, please go to http://schoole.allofe.com.

Reflections on the 2010 Schoole Awards

by Katie Brosious

As the craziness of the past few weeks for the Schoole Awards subsides, I find that it's important to reflect on the past few months that were the Inaugural Schoole Awards.

In January, we started accepting nominations for the best school district websites. We received more than 1,600 total nominations. Districts began to get more and more excited about the contest, and we started receiving questions, suggestions, and excited messages from people making nominations. 30 districts with the most nominations moved on to selection.

In March, our Industry Expert Panel chose the top 15 school districts that would represent the Schoole Awards finalists. Ken, Steven, Tom and Shelly offered some great feedback about the sites, and were able to identify the district sites that represented best practices for district websites.

The last two weeks of the contest were quite a whirlwind! More than 26,000 votes poured in from across the country over a two-week span, and comments crowded the contest website. People left suggestions, questions, motivational messages and it was clear how much passion people shared for their school districts, regardless of vote count.

In the end, Hurst-Euless-Bedford ISD came out on top, with Clear Creek ISD in a close second place. Friendswood ISD rounded out the top three. Districts have been receiving a ton of recognition, as the top three and the rest of the 15 finalists have received a badge to display proudly on their district website, and news sources like eSchoolNews and Education Week have featured stories about the Schoole Awards.


Some of the biggest and most common feedback points we can give to the semi-finalists is that use of Web 2.0 (and social media) along with great design and organization can really bring a site closer to its full potential. Design, organization, and interaction with the audience makes it easier for the audience to navigate the site and engages their attention throughout.

Some of the biggest questions and suggestions people had to improve the Schoole Awards was that student count should be considered. We listened to comments, answered questions, and are taking into consideration everything that happened this year in planning for next year's Schoole Awards. For example, we realize the need for categories based on student count, which will be one change made in next year's awards.

I'd personally like to thank everyone involved in the awards. All of your involvement, support, questions, comments, suggestions--you name it!--is what really made this year's contest a success. I look forward to all of your involvement in next year's awards, and beyond!

School-e Voting Opens, Finalists Announced

LAWRENCE, Kan.— Fifteen finalists for the School-e Awards contest for the best school district Web site were announced today. Finalists were chosen based on the amount of nominations each district received and the design, content, and overall quality of the district Web site.

The School-e Awards, hosted by AllofE Solutions, showcases the best K-12 district Web site design and strategy. Anyone with a valid e-mail address can now vote for a school district site by going to http://schoolevoting.allofe.com.

The contest began accepting nominations for the best district Web sites in January to identify districts where constituents such as district teachers, staff, students and community members care enormously about the district and its Web site. Of more than 1,600 total nominations, the top 30 most-nominated district Web sites were then evaluated by experts in education and the web on a broad set of criteria to identify the sites that follow best practices.

After judging the sites based on design, content and overall look and functionality, the panel was able to narrow down the top 15 district Web sites for the public to vote on.

District employees, students, and community members should go to http://schoole.allofe.com to vote starting April 5 and to find out more information about the contest. Winners will be announced on the School-e Awards Web site on April 19th, 2010.

The list of School-e Awards finalists is as follows in alphabetical order:

1. Beaufort County Schools
http://www.beaufort.k12.sc.us

2. Brownsville ISD
http://www.bisd.us

3. Clear Creek ISD
http://www2.ccisd.net

4. Friendswood ISD
http://www.fisdk12.net

5. Godfrey-Lee Public Schools
http://godfrey.mi.schoolwebpages.com/

6. Hurst-Euless-Bedford ISD
http://www.hebisd.edu

7. Leavenworth USD
http://www.usd453.org/

8. New Castle County Vo-Tech School District
http://www.nccvotech.com

9. Orange Schools
http://www.orangeschools.org

10. Polk County School District
http://www.polk-fl.net

11. Southwest ISD
http://www.swisd.net

12. Spearfish School District
http://spearfish.k12.sd.us/

13. University Academy
http://www.universityacademy.org/

14. Van Meter Community Schools
http://www.vanmeter.k12.ia.us

15. West Fargo Public Schools
http://www.west-fargo.k12.nd.us

School-e Awards Semi-Finalists Announced

Thirty school district Web sites were selected as School-e Awards semi-finalists today, based on the number of nominations they received. The School-e Awards contest, hosted by AllofE Solutions, showcases the best K-12 district Web site design and strategy.

“Nominations were gathered to identify districts where district stakeholders care enormously about the district and its Web site,” said AllofE K-12 product manager Stacy Schwind.

Semi-finalists’ sites are now being evaluated by an industry expert panel comprised of educational technology experts Ken Royal, Shelly Terrell, Tom Whitby and Steven Anderson. The panel will evaluate the sites using a broad set of criteria to identify the top 15 district Web site finalists that follow best practices for web design and content, Schwind said.

The 15 finalists will move on to the voting phase. This final phase will elicit the feedback of the general web audience. Anyone with a valid e-mail address will be able to vote for a school district site starting April 5 by going to the contest Web site.

District employees, students, and community members should go to http://schoole.allofe.com to vote and find out more information about the contest.

1.Beaufort County School District 2.Blue Springs School District 3.Brownsville Independent School District 4.Carrollton-Farmers Branch Independent School District 5. Center School District 6.Clear Creek Independent School District 7.Easton Area School District 8.Fayetteville-Manlius Schools 9.Fergus Falls Public Schools 10.Frenship Independent School District 11.Friendswood Independent School District 12.Godfrey-Lee Public Schools 13.Hurst-Euless Bedford Independent School District 14.Keller Independent School District 15.Leavenworth Unified School District

16. New Castle County Vocational Technical School District 17.New Milford Schools 18.Orange Schools 19.Paris Independent School District 20.Penncrest School District 21.Pine Tree Independent School District 22.Pleasanton Independent School District 23.Polk County School District 24.Southwest Independent School District 25.Spearfish School District 26. University Academy Charter School 27.Van Meter Community Schools 28.Wakulla County School District 29.West Fargo Public Schools 30.Zachary Community School District

Why a Great CMS Helps Build Your School District's Brand

by Katie Brosious

In response to both Eric Sheninger's post about the importance of branding in education, and Trish Rubin's blog, EdVentures in a New York Minute, about branding in education, I started to think about how, with a CMS, schools can use their district Web site to establish a brand.

The Importance of a Brand in Education

Although I will leave this part mostly to the experts (Thanks Eric and Trish!), I will say a few words about the importance of a brand in education. Education is a service. Education is just like any other service in that it must exude value in the business that it is in, in order to attract new students. In education, school districts must show academic value. Bad or good; clear or not, everything--person, place, or thing--has some sort of brand attached to it. It's what others think and feel about what you have to offer.

Why doesn't education take advantage of this? Especially K-12 school districts! Universities have come a long way, and seem to be working on establishing their own individual brand. However, many school districts do not put their best foot forward...To network, to evolve, to improve, and to show the world what they are accomplishing.

But how would they spread their message? It's not like school districts have the advertising budgets of McDonald's or Coca Cola. They have the label of 'school,' which implies education, but it's extremely obvious that no two schools are the same. Its important for schools to build their brand because school districts, more than any other educational institution, need to stay updated and in the know. Today's K-12 students are tomorrow's leaders. It is essential for schools to have a cohesive mission, a set of values, and a sense of pride within the district, which can be done by establishing a brand.

Branding on the Web

More and more, school districts are using social networking sites like Twitter to extend and enhance their brand. Some Twitter accounts are for the whole district, some just for a school, and some are from teachers, staff or administrators from the district. Each Twitter account is another point of contact for that district. It improves community outreach, makes the district more personable and personal, and helps to spread the district message. Social media sites like Twitter are great. And they're an extension of the district brand. But they just aren't enough. Even if a district has a great media presence, consistency throughout the district all-inclusive WEB presence is key.

Aside from social media, the school district Web site is often the most important point of contact for the school district. If community members want to know what time the football game is on Friday, the district site is the first source of information. The district Web site is like the Encyclopedia for that district. Students, parents and community members expect to have all of their questions answered simply by clicking over to the district Web site. It must support a cohesive brand and mission along with all other point of contacts for that district on the web.

Using ContentM K-12 to Brand your District

The best and easiest way to build a school district Web site is with a CMS like ContentM K-12. Not only will you be able to design and implement your school district Web site with ease, you (or anyone else) will be able to maintain it with a few clicks. You will be able to update your Web site in seconds when you need to (i.e., for snow day cancellations or delays). You can spread the word about your district's overall academic accomplishments. You can show your students' accomplishments. The best Web sites are dynamic and fluid; they are always changing as new things happen. School district Web sites should be no different.

Aside from being able to update and maintain the district site easily, you can use a CMS like ContentM K-12 at any level of your district, including individual school sites, individual classroom/teacher sites, Web sites for the PTA or Athletics, etc., extending your brand through all sectors of your district by keeping the theme and message fluid throughout each site. There's an eSchool News article about a school district that got it right. Recognizing the need "to leverage our entire digital environment, to bring in tools for all our teachers, principals, and staff to communicate with all our stakeholders, and to provide a way for our stakeholders to engage in communications with us," this California school district implemented a CMS to improve its communications with parents and the community.

After establishing a branding network for your district, you can use all those Web 2.0 goodies that will make your district look great and that students will love to view and create, building their exposure to technology as well as your own.

YouTube, Twitter, and Blogs, Oh My!

These tools are really underutilized and overflowing with potential. Our CMS offers these tools as part of our panel-based technology, so you can easily upload your Twitter feed or a YouTube video you posted. Kids love the Web 2.0 stuff because it's a break from the norm, and so do teachers and administrators, like the ones that I meet every day on Twitter. Instead of having students write a paper, why not create a blog discussion about it? Teamwork is a key skill, and blogs and comments promote it in a fun way. With a CMS, teachers can easily post the blog on their Web site and have their students contribute.

As another example of using Web 2.0 in the classroom, take a video camera on a field trip and interview the kids about their opinions on where they are. If you take them to a museum, what was their favorite part? And why? Better yet, let the kids ask the questions! Putting these videos up on your classroom site is a great way to get students involved in using technology and reaping the benefits, and parents will love it so they can see what their kids do all day.

All of these ideas will show your audience (students, parents and community) that you and your school district have a dedication and commitment to using technology. Even if you only posted these on your own classroom site, a classroom site is simply an extension of the district brand.

Why Build a Brand?

When my family moved from New York to Texas, my mom had to figure out where to send my brother, sister and I to school. However, just by looking at a few Web sites she easily chose a school district for us to attend, because she couldn't get a feel for what some district Web sites were trying to say, couldn't sift through the clutter, or just really couldn't get a feel for the school's goals or values. How else would you choose a school district from 1,000 miles away other than calling the school? I wouldn't want to be the school district to get overlooked based on a poorly designed Web site with no purpose. District Web sites mean more than some may think.

A brand sets you a part. It differentiates your school district from the next. It's an experience. Why not be the best? Your school district works hard to fulfill its potential. Don't fall short because your Web site doesn't perform, become a "Brand-Ed" school district.

eSchool News Feature

School-e Awards Contest Accepting Nominations to Honor Best School District Web sites

Schoole Awards Update!

We have decided to open up the nominations for the Schoole Awards ahead of schedule!

Due to such great feedback over the past week, we wanted to have nominations open long enough so that every school district gets as many nominations as possible! So nominate away and e-mail me if you have any questions or problems - kbrosious@allofe.com.

Voting will still open on April 2, 2010.

Go to http://schoole.allofe.com and click on the red button, "Nominate your district," and fill out the form to make you nominations!

Schoole Awards Contest for Best District Web site

Recently, we launched a Splash page to promote a contest for the best school district Web sites, aka, The Schoole Awards. You can view all of the details about the contest at http://schoole.allofe.com. Here's a quick run-down of the contest:

What is it?

• The Schoole Awards will give us a chance to recognize school districts that deserve to be recognized for the best Web site practices.
• We want to show how technology can be used to enhance information sharing and communication.
  
• We want to show how design plays in the role of building an effective Web site.
  
• We want to provide a place where districts can show off their Web sites, and get rewarded for them.
  
• We want to showcase school districts that are using technology to the best of their abilities to the benefit of those who need it most: students.

How will it work?
The contest is comprised of three phases, beginning in mid-March.

• Phase 1 will be the nomination phase, where anyone can nominate a district for the best district Web site. Districts may be public, private or charter. Only one nomination per valid e-mail address will be allowed.
• Phase 2 is the selection phase, where our panel of industry experts will select the top 15 school district Web sites. Using a rubric, the district sites will be ranked, so that the top 15 go to the next phase.
• Phase 3 is the voting phase. Only one vote per valid e-mail address. The school district site with the most votes is the winner!
  

Why should I nominate or vote for my district?

• The top two winning districts will receive donations for the department responsible for managing the district site, along with plaques commemorating the achievement for the top three districts.
• The top three winning districts will also receive exposure through key media outlets, including social networking sites, feature stories and press releases on AllofE.com, and more.
  

Have questions?

• Follow us for updates on Twitter @allofek12
• View the contest site at http://schoole.allofe.com
• Or send any questions to Katie at kbrosious@allofe.com

Best Practices for Collegiate Web Sites

Each week (usually Fridays) Bob, from Bob Johnson Consulting, does a blog pertaining to the topic of college and university marketing, where he will add a link to what he feels is a superior collegiate Web site. For the year's overall best he chose The University of Maine, for its unprecedented approach to increasing enrollment totals. According to him, this Web site screams “APPLY!” and after viewing it, I would even take it a step further. Not only does it scream apply, it shouts “ATTEND!” College Web sites are currently the top recruiting tool at the higher education level, and if you have honed in on the best practices for designing and creating your site, then you will undoubtedly become a force to be reckoned with.

One important key to creating a solid collegiate site is highlight your primary goal. In other words, make sure your page is targeting who you want. Is your top goal boosting admissions? Then give admissions top place on your site.UMaine did EXACTLY this. They wanted to boost enrollment totals and therefore set their admissions box at the top of the page next to an attractive picture slide show with an enticing description of the university and a link clearly marked “Apply Now!” right beneath it. I am only a semester away from completing my four year degree and even I was tempted to apply; I can only imagine how an excited high school senior would feel. Beneath this the page stretches on, but for a brief moment in time, it’s just you and the admissions box, alone and in love.

There are several criteria for best practices in university Web sites, and the UMaine site does a great job with a lot of them including: getting students involved, social media strategy, and promoting special events. However, its the dawn of a new decade and technology is constantly seeing new trends and phases. Does UMaine have the greatest collegiate site of 2009? Maybe. But it's 2010 and anyone can take over. Take advantage of the technology that is out there and allows users to create revolutionary new Web sites so amazing that you easily could be the next 'top' name on Bob's list.