Support staff can play a crucial role in projecting an image of the school to the community.
Support staff can play a crucial role in projecting an image of the school to the community. Members of support staff are often the first point of contact for visitors, parents, and students and can significantly influence stakeholders\’ perceptions of the school. For example, secretaries often answer almost every phone call and greet every visitor. Custodians maintain the aesthetic appearance of a school, and if they do not take pride in their position, it is not likely that they will maintain it well. Only the support staff can decide whether they work to provide a positive or negative experience for stakeholders. Support staff can reinforce a positive image by providing appropriate and positive service and going above and beyond their duties, which can positively help a school reputation and defuse potentially negative situations. On the other hand, support staff can exacerbate the situation by being unhelpful or unfriendly, which can damage the school\’s reputation and turn away potential stakeholders.
Nonetheless, school leaders must understand that the power support staff has regarding projecting an image of the school to the community is significant; therefore, they must put forth the effort and see the value of providing appropriate training and support to ensure that support staff project a positive image of the school. Moreover, support staff can also play a crucial role in the safety of the school, such as the safety of the food, maintenance of equipment, proper sanitization, and proper reporting of incidents (Ko et al., 2021). Without proper training and clear communication, support staff could make mistakes that create a high risk of injury, damage, or incident (Coulter et al., 2022).
Coulter, R. W. S., Henderson, E. R., Corey, S. L., Gagnon, K., Chugani, C. D., Egan, J. E., Murphy, C. E., Plenn, E. R., Routh, N., Roig, A., & Miller, E. (2022). Exploring how US high school staff support, protect, and affirm sexual and gender minority youth: Methods and lessons learned from a qualitative interview study. International Journal of Qualitative Methods, 21. https://lopes.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=edswss&AN=000783456100001&site=eds-live&scope=site&custid=s8333196&groupid=main&profile=eds1
Ko, D. H., Park, M. H., & Jeong, B. Y. (2021). Risk assessment of educational support staff’s work in schools. Work, 69(3), https://lopes.idm.oclc.org/login?url=https://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&db=ccm&AN=162064707&site=eds-live&scope=site&custid=s8333196&groupid=main&profile=eds1
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