Many uncertainties remain about the short- and long-term effects of the COVID-19 crisis. School development officers know that ongoing philanthropic support of their schools has never been more important.

Parents’ perceptions of your school’s offerings remain one of the most important aspects that influence their enrollment and re-enrollment decisions. Now, perhaps more than ever, parents are experiencing—firsthand—how your school operates each and every day.

When students are at school, they are in an environment that facilitates learning and growth. So when students learn from home, parents are tasked with creating a similar space. This helps ensure students can learn effectively.

Before you can solicit donors and prospects, you should first evaluate them to confirm their ability to give, commitment to your school and the project, and track record of giving. When you have determined if your prospect meets the ACT criteria, you will be ready to solicit them with confidence.

One of the most difficult responsibilities for a School Head is making staffing decisions, particularly when nonrenewals or reductions in force are necessary. As many schools look to the long-term impact of COVID-19, this unfortunate task might be something your team is considering.

We recently hosted a webinar with three legal experts from Zarwin Baum DeVito Kaplan Schaer Toddy, P.C., to answer your questions about how to handle loans, layoffs, and landlords during the COVID-19 crisis. While there are no simple answers for what we’re experiencing, we want to share insights from the webinar with you here.

The misnomer of “social distancing” implies that not only are we physically distant from one another, but we have put all our social connections at arm’s length. Our mutual experience during this crisis emphatically belies that notion.

So, how can teachers communicate with parents in a way that keeps them informed and engaged with their child’s education? How can teachers best satisfy parents’ expectations? ISM recommends that touch points between teachers and parents be personal and spontaneous. This is even more important now while students are learning from home and parents have become even more involved in their children’s education.

The COVID-19 crisis has presented a unique opportunity for development professionals to do the critical groundwork in identifying those prospects whose capacity and inclination can make an impact on current and future fundraising projects.

The full impact of COVID-19 is yet to be determined, but many schools are prepared for the worst. Some are anticipating a fiscal loss. Such projections can trigger a knee-jerk reaction to cut the budget, so preparation is key.