When the polls close and the ballots are counted, the best sound is the roar of ecstatic cheering from delighted but exhausted campaign committee members. A bond campaign takes an inordinate amount of work, but the results are worth the effort when the campaign is managed in a systematic way. Districts can be successful bond recipients when they effectively market their schools to gain the support of their constituents.
Public schools across the U.S. are in dire need of major repairs, remodeling, and rebuilding to meet the educational needs of students. Unfortunately, passing a school bond election is entrusted to school superintendents and other district leaders, who are often inexperienced and ill-prepared and have neither the time nor inclination to focus on tasks that take them far from their primary purpose of teaching and learning.
Attaining voter support in a school bond election requires a thorough understanding of school and community issues. The literature review focuses on communication theory and research to garner support of school district\u27s internal and external stakeholders. Communication is instrumental in passage of a construction bond election.
This dissertation is theoretically grounded in problem-based learning and the research and development process. The tested product is a handbook for superintendents or other district-level administrators on strategies and practices that assist in passing a construction bond election. In the Preliminary and Main field tests, superintendents and other district leaders used the handbook in a workshop. Survey results provided summative data to assess the efficacy of the handbook and the workshop. Formative results also provided rich information to improve and revise the handbook and workshop