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| Aaron Thomas |
FOR MANY OF US in school leadership, social media has
become a vital tool for connecting with colleagues and professional growth and
an important vehicle for communicating with our various stakeholders.
But when it is used for less admirable purposes or abused,
social media can exact a heavy adverse toll on a school district, fueling
community anger, wide misunderstanding and student disciplinary actions.
What happens when you and
your school district are put in an extreme situation where you can’t seem to
stay ahead of the misinformation being spread across social media? What do you
do when your district becomes the focal point for individuals — many of them
with no connection to your community or schools — to express their displeasure
in the most coarse ways, and what recourse do you have when the superintendent
becomes the designated target of these nasty and relentless attacks?
A False Narrative
That is exactly what happened to me and my small urban school
district of 609 students located just outside of Pittsburgh. We experienced
extreme backlash from across the country after our cheerleaders, without
discussing or notifying anyone, decided to take a knee during the national
anthem before a high school football game with members of our local Veterans
for Foreign Wars color guard in attendance in October 2016.
Of course, this was controversial locally, and we worked hard to
address the situation with all parties, including the VFW members. Even though
they didn’t agree with the stance, they exhibited their greatness in how they
handled the situation.
The attention to the students’ protest first showed up on a
local community-based Facebook page. Then it was picked up by local news media,
who noticed the aggressive back and forth dialogue. Ironically, many of the
participants weren’t even local community members. Then a national media outlet
put a small blurb about the incident on its website.
Things took a turn for the worse after a social media
personality, who didn’t reside in Pennsylvania, took hold of the story and
changed the narrative to say that I had orchestrated the entire demonstration
and planned this protest for my own political reasons. To make matters worse,
the author of the fabricated story told followers to call the school or e-mail
me directly to voice their displeasure and disdain. This story was shared and
viewed more than 7 million times throughout social media. The backlash was
almost crippling.
Phone calls and e-mails poured into our tiny district from
across the country, most of them to tell me they thought I was a horrible
person and a disgrace — and to do so in vile terms. Death threats toward me and
my family followed, resulting in police surveillance until the furor calmed
down.
Refocus Locally
As a school leader how do you respond? And what are my
takeaways?
- No. 1: Accept the fact there are times when you just
have to ride out a storm, and let the rumble happen. It was obvious I could not
stay ahead of the misinformation being spread over social media about the event
itself, or me personally. I could not stay ahead of how fast the fabricated
versions of this matter were shared and viewed. I could not stay ahead of the phone
calls and e-mails and had to accept the timeless saying, “This too shall pass.”
As a school district, we communicated with families and students
via our global phone system. We also sent e-mail blasts and text notification
updates, all focused on ensuring families that their children were safe and
reinforcing that safety and security was our first priority. We also increased
local police presence throughout the district as a precaution.
- No. 2: Explain as best
you can what is transpiring. I have previously heard the phrase, “control your
narrative,” but it can be hard to address when you are dealing with a barrage
and you can’t get it under control. It will pass, but maybe not as soon as
you’d like.
- No. 3: Double
down your concentration and focus on
your district and your community. Those stakeholders and their opinions are what really matters. After the rumble ceases, you can
start getting yourself and your district
back to normal.
AARON THOMAS is superintendent of the Cornell School District in Coraopolis, Pa. Twitter:
@DrAaronThomas42