Marketing plan OK’d to draw new students

Despite objections from parents, Novato Unified School District trustees agreed this week to spend $32,480 on marketing the district to prospective new students in the fall.

Trustees voted 7 to 0 Tuesday in favor of a four-month contract with Target River Marketing to produce print and online ads and videos to distribute to families who are deciding this spring on schools for their children.

“Our goal is to build trust, to retain existing students, to reacquire students who may have left and to attract new students,” said Brian Epperson, CEO of Target River.

Parents at Tuesday’s board meeting objected to the expense, saying the district needed to focus instead on getting all students back to in-person school full time, five days a week.

“There’s no use spending money on marketing a program that you don’t have open yet,” parent Ross Ingels said.

Several said they were in the process of transferring their kids to private schools that are already operating in person because they are tired of waiting for public schools in Novato to reopen fully.

“Parents are furious that our district would spend money on marketing to prevent more students from leaving the district while we are begging them to let our kids back in — at least for extended hybrid hours if not full time,” parent Katie Stafford said in an email.

Superintendent Kris Cosca said the Target River contract would be worth it if the district is able to attract as few as three new students. Two past contracts with the firm had positive results in that area, he said.

“If it brings in more than three students, it pays for itself,” trustee Greg Mack said.

Trustee Derek Knell said the district needed to stay “proactive” in getting its message out about what it has to offer, even during a pandemic. The Target River contract was “the bare minimum” in promotion that could be done.

“We should be doing this in the good times and the bad times,” he said. “I would want us to be back in full time learning tomorrow if we could. We shouldn’t conflate this marketing with the need to get back to full time.”

As of next week, when 11th and 12th graders return to in-person classes, all Novato Unified School District schools will be open at least in a hybrid mode.

Whether the district schools can go full time later this year is under discussion with teachers and the district, Cosca has said.

All Marin teachers working in-person are expected to be able to get vaccinated over the next two weeks. The Marin County Office of Education said it hopes that all in-person teachers could be fully vaccinated by spring break, April 5-9. If that happens, some Marin school districts are discussing a possible return to full-time classes, five days a week, by April 12.