WC TO LAUNCH PODCAST FOR PARENTS
Office of Advancement Opens New Avenues for Reaching Parents
In the summer of 2019, WC’s Office of Advancement shifted its marketing focus. Once reliant on the traditional forms of broadcast marketing like radio and print ads, the focus was re-oriented to a content-based marketing strategy. That is, providing WC parents and prospective WC parents with valuable resources and information from experts in their field. This new strategy included the launch of a blog for parents, “Navigating Your Child’s Education.” This blog was designed to equip WC parents and prospective WC parents with meaningful information and resources for navigating their child’s education.
From recommended reading lists for preschoolers, to creative breakfast ideas for grade-schoolers, to understanding conflict in middle school, to identifying and addressing stress in high schoolers, WC’s blog for parents is dozens of articles deep with insight and knowledge in raising and educating children of all ages. Many of these articles are authored by WC’s faculty and administration, who represent a wealth of educational expertise. There are also many guest authors such as pastors and university-level faculty and staff from the broader community who offer a variety of voices on education-related topics.
The written format of the parent blog provides a platform for addressing a myriad of education-related topics by a variety of voices. There are also other avenues for engaging parents with meaningful content.
With this in mind, Worthington Christian School is officially launching a companion to the parent blog: a podcast for parents. Sharing the name “Navigating Your Child’s Education,” this podcast is for parents, grandparents, and anyone raising or influencing young people, from preschool through high school. It will provide a platform to dive deeper into education-related topics and create space for true conversation on topics that matter most to parents.
A school podcast is something Director of Advancement Polly Shoemaker (WC ’80) has had on her mind for a few years, but the timing now seems right. With all of the changes 2020 has brought about, the popularity of podcasts has seen a sharp increase. And with the completion of the J. Thomas Anglea Upper School campus, the school has a state-of-the-art recording and broadcast studio capable of producing professional-quality recordings. This studio was designed by faculty members Brian Bayless and David Stoll who have carefully built it with a futuristic, forward-thinking mentality. Brian Bayless is serving as the audio engineer, and WC’s Content Development Specialist Laura Fitzpatrick will serve as host of the podcast.
The first episode of the “Navigating Your Child’s Education” podcast, set to be released on Wednesday, November 4, focuses on the current college admissions landscape. This conversation features two WC seniors, two university-level admissions counselors, and Upper School assistant principal and college counselor Tim Kraynak discussing what changes have taken place in the college admissions process and how it impacts students and their families. It also provides guidance for any high-school aged student and their parents as they look ahead to college.
Jezzy Tagoe was one of the two seniors involved in this recording. Her words on this podcast-recording experience capture the essence of the podcast’s purpose: “This was so helpful and informative for me, not only listening to what others had to say, but also from what I shared and realizing that other people are going through the same things I am.”
The second episode, set to be released on Wednesday, November 18, digs down into social media and its influence on Generation Z. Two WC juniors share their candid thoughts on the topic. One of those juniors, Caleb Denorme, shared his thoughts on the experience, “It was an eye opening experience that alters how I view social media…I’m glad there is a podcast for parents because they can be brought into our world…”
As members of the WC community, there are a few ways to be involved with these new endeavors. Both the parent blog and parent podcast can be found on WC’s website by hovering over the “Parents and Students” section at the top of the main webpage. You can also use the following links to check them out and subscribe.
For the parent blog: You can subscribe to one of the four age-specific blogs (scroll down to the bottom of the blog’s main page to see the short subscription form), which simply adds you to a monthly email list to receive each blog post as it is published. You can also make sure to share on social media any WC blog post that you find particularly helpful or relevant.
For the parent podcast: You can subscribe to the parent podcast (it’s available on every major podcast platform, i.e. Apple Podcasts, Spotify, etc.) to ensure that you are notified of each episode as it is released (the first and third Wednesday of each month). You can also rate the podcast and leave a comment on a topic you’d like discussed on this platform.