Projects
Assist Education Services partners with school districts and trusts local and regional resources to help leaders navigate complexity and turn it into clarity, understanding, and progress. Whether the work involves finances, facilities, community engagement, or challenging decisions, our role is to support districts as they lead their own efforts—connecting strategy, communication, and community voice to build trust over time and create the conditions for long-term success.
Award-Winning Bond & Public Affairs Communications
Credit: Willamette ESD Communications Team
Assist Education Services partners with school districts to design transparent, trust-centered public affairs and bond communication strategies grounded in local values and community voice. In Gervais School District, this work—developed in close collaboration with Willamette ESD (WESD) and Fenstermacher PR—was recognized with a PRSA Oregon Spotlight Award for excellence in public affairs communications during the 2024 bond campaign.
Assist led the collaborative engagement strategy—coordinating partners, shaping clear and culturally responsive messaging around facilities and finances, and supporting sustained outreach across a diverse community. Rather than relying on last-minute advocacy, the district focused on long-term trust-building and consistent, factual communication.
The result was historic: after more than 30 years and eight failed bond attempts, Gervais passed its capital bond with 71.7% voter approval and significantly increased community participation. A compilation of local media coverage documents how clear, accurate information was shared and consistently reported, reinforcing public understanding and confidence throughout the process.
COLLABORATORS: Gervais School District, Willamette ESD and Fenstermacher PR
Financial Outlooks: Making School Funding Understandable
Assist Education Services partners with school districts to strengthen community trust through clear, transparent communication. As part of this work, we help districts develop Financial Outlooks—plain-language, community-facing reports that explain how school funding works, where resources are strong, and what challenges lie ahead.
Created in collaboration with Roseburg School District, this project translates complex budgets, state funding formulas, and local revenues into accessible narratives that build understanding over time. Financial Outlooks are reinforced through coordinated social media storytelling and aligned with district engagement efforts, including support for groups such as Long-Range Facilities Committees. Together, these tools reduce confusion, demonstrate responsible stewardship of public funds, and foster informed, ongoing community dialogue about the future of local schools. See the great work completed by the team in Roseburg at https://www.roseburg.k12.or.us/154102_3.
COLLABORATORS: Roseburg School District, ECF Consulting & KW Consulting
Facility Videos: Transparency Through Visual Storytelling
After a recent bond measure did not pass, Cascade School District took time to reflect on what it learned from engaging its community. One clear takeaway was the need for greater transparency and shared understanding around the condition of school facilities.
Assist Education Services partnered with the district to turn formal facility assessments into clear, community-facing video stories. Rather than releasing a technical written report, we worked with local videographers to provide a high-level, visual overview of building conditions—showing both the care districts take to maintain their schools and where real, long-term needs exist.
Aligned with the state’s facilities assessment process, these videos translate complex technical data into accessible narratives that highlight daily stewardship, aging systems, safety considerations, and future investment needs. Used across districts, this approach builds informed trust and understanding well before funding decisions are required.
COLLABORATORS: Cascade School District, Creative Asset, R&C Management and Willamette ESD
Community Newspapers: Building Trust and Connection
Assist Education Services supports school districts in developing locally tailored community newspapers that help communities stay informed, connected, and confident in their schools. Grounded in the belief that if districts don’t tell their own story, someone else will, these publications are designed around what community members want and need to know.
In Marcola School District, district leaders and staff led the creation of Our Story, using it as a consistent, community-wide tool to celebrate students and staff, highlight the good happening in schools, and share clear, trustworthy information about district priorities. With strategic guidance from Assist and communications partners, the newspaper became a key driver of increased community engagement—contributing to higher participation at district events and community conversations and strengthening long-term trust between the district and its community. See past newspapers.
COLLABORATORS: Marcola School District, Fenstermacher PR
Social Media: Telling Your Story Before Someone Else Does
Assist Education Services partners with school districts to build intentional, trust-centered social media strategies grounded in a simple truth: if districts don’t tell their own story, someone else will—often without context or accuracy. Our role is to support districts as they highlight the good happening in their schools, reminding communities of the students, staff, and programs they value and support.
In Three Rivers School District, district leaders embraced this approach and led a storytelling effort across social media and video, using their creativity and local voice to showcase student success, staff dedication, and daily stewardship across a geographically large and diverse district. The district communications efforts have expanded its reach—growing its social media following by nearly 1,000 new followers. Their use of video storytelling generated more than 13,000 views for a post in 2026, including 12,000 unique viewers, dramatically increasing visibility and awareness.
By empowering districts to tell their own story, this approach builds understanding over time, strengthens community pride, and creates a more accurate, balanced narrative about public education. Check out the great work the district is doing on their Facebook page.
COLLABORATORS: Three Rivers School District
