Broadening Engagement: The Exciting Potential of the Communications/Advancement Partnership
The People Talking interview with thought leader Jan Abernathy, CCO of the Browning School - Part One
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School Statements: Writing with Empathy, the first asynchronous writing seminar, will be offered on three consecutive Tuesdays March 12th, 19th and 26th. A reading and guided assignment will arrive in your inbox very early each of these Tuesdays and I will hold Zoom office hours late morning for drop in. I will provide general feedback on each assignment with the goal to have a completed statement prototype/model by the end of the course.
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So much Stony Creek Strategy news - Q1 has seen many exciting developments. I have to get my act together to frame them all up and communicate well and properly. Speaking engagements booked, live workshops scheduled, interesting partnerships and programming on the horizon - stay tuned! And I’m also starting to look for some part time admin help - if you or someone you know might be interested in a few hours a week to keep me organized, do some editing and generally have some fun along the way, drop me a line at jfaulstich@stonycreekstrategy.com.
Stony Creek Strategy services
Is change happening at your school? Take a look at our website - SCS can help.
Sticky situation? We can provide advice and crisis communication services.
Change initiative for next year? We understand change. We can partner with you to facilitate a senior team retreat, manage a task force, or be a coach and resource at your side.
Looking to revamp hiring, evaluation, faculty workload or wondering how to elevate your communications function? We got you.
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On to today’s post!
I “met” Jan Abernathy through LinkedIn and it was her feed that made me a LinkedIn convert. Her posts were so timely, relevant and insightful. I’ve learned so much! And she is such a generous cheerleader to other people, lifting up my Talking Out of School posts as I leaned in more and more to being a comms evangelist. I am delighted she agreed to sit down with me for an interview where we went on so long, it’s a two parter.
Jan is the Chief Communications Officer at The Browning School, a K-12 boys' school in New York City, and presents regularly at conferences sponsored by regional, national and international independent school associations. She is president of New York City Independent Schools Communications Professionals, and the co-founder of Black Advancement Networking Group, which works to gain further representation and greater professional growth of Black professionals in advancement roles in independent schools. She is a member of the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) Commission on Communications and Marketing, and on the faculty of the CASE Academy, providing professional development to emerging and mid-career advancement professionals. She is also a CASE Laureate, a honor bestowed on the organization's most senior volunteers.
A Northwestern University graduate, Jan is a trustee at Grace Church School in New York City, and Tessa International School in Hoboken, NJ. She was formerly board chair at Stevens Cooperative School in Hudson County, NJ. Her consulting firm, Jan Abernathy Strategic Communications, provides communications and DEI counsel for educational institutions and non-profits. Jan and her husband Jerome are parents of a daughter, Noe, and a son, Sam, both independent school graduates. She can be reached here.
Today, we’ll discuss the evolving relationship between communications and advancement and how communications can be a key partner in assisting advancement to both meet their very public, very-neccessary-to-the school revenue goals while also starting to shift their mindset around engagement and cultivation - and how this work is complimentary, not at odds with each other. And then in April, I’ll publish part of the conversation we had about the shifting role of communications in independent schools, its best and highest function, and how managing crises is just part of the fabric now.