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The Superintendents to Watch award recognizes up to 25 school district leaders each year who have fewer than five years of experience as a superintendent and who demonstrate dynamic, fast-paced leadership with strong communication at its core.
Under Dr. Garcia's leadership, this has been a year of innovation for Billings Public Schools. After an application process, the district was approved in January 2024 to receive state funding for three new public charter schools:
All three charter schools opened their doors this fall. Currently, 60 students are enrolled in the Billings Early College School, 77 students in the Billings Opportunity School and 40 students in the Billings Multilingual Academy.
Each of these schools has required innovation and community involvement. The district partnered with Montana State University Billings and is currently exploring additional partnerships to support the Billings Early College School. The district also signed a memorandum of understanding with Concordia College because of their ability to offer full academic scholarships to students whose families earn less than $90,000 per year. This partnership is anticipated be a wonderful asset to students who may face a financial barrier when it comes to considering secondary education.
Also under Dr. Garcia's leadership, the district started a new program this year called KinderREADy with state funding through House Bill 352. The program helps children who qualify to develop early literacy skills and be better prepared for kindergarten. Students learn from certified teachers in a classroom in one of three elementary schools.
Dr. Garcia's leadership was essential to the creation of the Billings Public Schools Integrated Strategic Action Plan. The district was pleased to have 100% accreditation rates, even with the new state accreditation requirements that went into effect in July 2023 (at the beginning of his leadership in Billings Public Schools).
Another first in Billings Public Schools is having a Dyslexia Specialist, thanks to Dr. Garcia's advocacy. Dr. Garcia has also made it a priority to gather teachers in the district to create teacher task forces with the goal of elevating instruction.
Thanks to a team effort, the district is already seeing some positive growth. From Fall 2023 to Spring 2024, there was an 8% improvement in elementary school math proficiency and a 6% improvement in elementary reading proficiency.
When Dr. Garcia took the helm as superintendent at the end of the school year 2023, a perception survey was conducted about topics like effective communication, support for teachers, quality of education, school safety and more. Students, parents, staff and community members were invited to fill it out. The same survey was conducted a year later. Under Dr. Garcia's leadership, survey results showed a 12.8% increase in how survey respondents rated communication of the district.
Dr. Garcia led this positive change through a variety of methods:
Ask Erwin He created an 'Ask Erwin' button on the top of the school district website. Anyone can email Dr. Garcia when they click on this button. To date, Dr. Garcia has received over 4,000 emails from this button. He answers all of them himself.
ParentSquare Dr. Garcia researched and found ParentSquare to best meet the communication needs of the district. Before this change, a combination of email or a Robocall system was used for mass alert messaging. The district can now email or text parents easily, and they can choose what language they want to receive messages in.
Parent Committees Dr. Garcia created the Parent Advisory Safety Committee. This is a committee of parents to discuss and inform district decisions related to safety. Recently, this committee suggested the district include the Safer Montana app (for anonymously reporting safety concerns) on all school websites, which was implemented. They also suggested the district email all school families a letter describing how the Safer Montana app works and what happens when they make a report, which was also done. They have offered very valuable insights on a variety of topics related to safety.
Dr. Garcia also created the Parent Advisory Committee. This committee has given important feedback on everything from teacher trainings to the district's new charter schools.
Community Meetings Dr. Garcia immediately introduced regular community meetings. These community meetings create another opportunity for anyone to chat with Dr. Garcia face-to-face. Meetings are advertised through local media, social media, email and in schools.
Media Involvement Dr. Garcia is frequently interviewed by reporters and works to make himself accessible. He frequently chats with reporters from KTVQ, KULR-8/NonStop Local, Billings Gazette, Community 7 and Yellowstone Public Radio. He's also sought opportunities to have on-air conversations with radio personalities. As a result, he's been featured on 98.5 'Kickin' It with Leif,' 102.9 'The Breakfast Flakes' and 107.9 'Montana Talks.'
Project Engage Dr. Garcia looked at how many students drop out of school every year and wanted to do something about it. He created 'Project Engage' to invite students who have dropped out to lunch, along with their families. His goal was to talk to them directly to better understand why they dropped out. He also wanted to show them all of the options available to them, including reenrollment, adult education and the district's new charter schools. At least 25 students showed up to that luncheon.
When Dr. Garcia started as superintendent, he worked with other Billings Public Schools leaders to craft four Strategic Priorities: 1) Cultivate Talent, 2) Foster a Safe and Positive Environment, 3) Address the Needs of Diverse Learners and 4) Increase College, Career and Military Opportunities. The second priority included increasing parent involvement through the creation of Family Friendly Schools.
Through Family Friendly Schools, building principals were asked to hold a family engagement activity once a month, update their school websites, have a social media presence on one platform, offer parents educational opportunities, send out a monthly newsletter, add an 'Ask the Principal' button to their websites, promote district parent surveys and more.
The Family Friendly Schools program had a remarkably successful first year. One parent commented, "As a parent I have seen a huge out reach that has been so helpful to our school and parents!!"
A middle school principal commented, "I feel I have seen a dynamic turnout of families who come from diverse backgrounds be involved with our mission to create a family friendly community at various capacities. I feel it is beginning to improve communication and understanding of what a typical middle schooler looks like, sounds like and what needs they have at this age. I have always been a believer that a school community centers around the child and it takes the educators and guardians in their lives to build a student's success and instill their abilities which can take them anywhere, even through struggles."
Safety is another top priority, especially with the continuation of the district's safety coordinator position. This past summer, the school system practiced its reunification plan, which involved student and parent volunteers and several community partners. It helped identify the strengths and opportunities of the plan and communication surrounding the plan. Billings Public Schools staff members, including administrators, nurses, counselors and school resource officers also participated in PREPaRE Crisis Response Workshop Training presented through the National Association of School Psychologists.
Dr. Garcia is committed to being accessible and transparent for the community.
He immediately implemented frequent Area Community Meetings in his first year with the district. These meetings have allowed Dr. Garcia and other District leaders to give updates and receive community feedback.
Dr. Garcia also created our district's first-ever Student Leadership Advisory Council, composed of student leaders from each of our high schools. They meet monthly with Dr. Garcia and other district leaders to share their perspectives, engage in transparent dialogue and collaborate on everything from school safety to school culture.
In addition, under Dr. Garcia's leadership, the district has been able to provide educational opportunities for families and the community. In January, Dr. Lisa Strohman provided a free presentation regarding social media and its effects on mental health, particularly on kids and teens. In March, Former DEA Agent Rocky Herron provided a free presentation on preventing substance abuse. Both of these evening presentations were free for parents, students and the community.
According to the most recent data, only 25-30% of the population within the school district has a child under the age of 18. As the school district needs support from the entire community, Dr. Garcia has also been an active figure in Billings.
Here are a few examples:
Big Sky Economic Development Panelist Big Sky Economic Development Facebook Post
Billings Chamber of Commerce Podcast ChamberCast Podcast Episode
All City Task Force Meeting YouTube Video of Meeting
One woman recently commented on social media, "So glad we have Dr. Garcia! Our schools are looking up!"
B.A. - Mississippi State University; MPA - University of Georgia
I believe school PR/communications is what I was born to do! One of the biggest decisions a parent can make is where to send their child to school, and it’s an honor to share with our parents the engaging work that their children are doing under the guidance of world-class teachers and leaders. On any given day, in any given school, there are many stories to be told and I take that charge seriously. As school communicators played a key role in COVID-19 communications, storytelling was more important than ever – not only did I share information with parents about our protocols, but I also made over 80 visits to schools last year and told a variety of stories about how students were thriving with both in-person and distance learning options. I also worked with principals to determine best mitigation practices and helped make those pervasive, because positive action must be the foundation of what we are ultimately communicating. School public relations is incredibly complex and I love that each day brings a new challenge.
My greatest school PR success was completing 11 nationally-innovative school communication audits using a process of research, planning, implementation, and evaluation. I am now in phase two of this project and am attending school council meetings to garner feedback from parents about school-level communication and how I can better support the work of their schools. One of the most significant findings is that as students take more ownership of their learning, they also take more ownership in parent communication. Therefore, next steps are to better prepare parents for this transition and to also determine best practices from exemplar teachers and coaches at the secondary level so we can strike the right balance with parents feeling informed and fostering student independence.
My greatest school PR challenge is overcoming rigidity. Like many PR professionals, I am detail-oriented and a self-described perfectionist. It’s a blessing and a curse to see when something is one pixel off, but the greatest challenge I have faced in my 13 years in this field is to learn to be more flexible. I might have an aversion to Comic Sans or Curlz, but it’s not the end of the world if those are a font favorite elsewhere. What’s more important is the bigger picture – staff and parents feeling well-informed and students growing and learning in positive school cultures. Instead of telling someone their website isn’t formatted properly, I now make a 2-3 minute screencast if I think there’s a quick tutorial I can offer to provide ongoing professional learning. By being much more flexible, I have deepened relationships and become better at supporting the most important job that occurs in our school system: teaching.
My favorite part of my job is the relationships. I often say that there is no substitute for showing up, and that’s why I make so many school visits each year. From getting to hold a gorgeous monarch butterfly to watching a vibrant student musical to seeing 3-D printing in action from engineering students, I have witnessed countless unique opportunities, and these experiences are just a small piece of what our students get to take part in each and every day. If I didn’t take the time to form relationships, I wouldn’t know that what students value is knowing that the photos I take may show up in their yearbooks. I wouldn’t know the myriad of annual activities that teachers do across our schools because I wouldn’t have witnessed them firsthand. I wouldn’t know about the families of our principals or what they believe makes their school unique. All of that is invaluable because at the end of the day and at the end of this career, relationships are what will remain – both professionally and personally.
The communication tool I use the most is Canva! I would be a brand ambassador if they asked! I am not very mathematically-minded and it can be challenging for someone with an eye for good design – but not an eye for rulers and gridlines – to be a graphic designer. However, Canva has made it possible and I am able to create aesthetically-pleasing graphics with short turn-around times. I have trained communication ambassadors at our schools how to use it as well. Right after Canva, the tool I most use is iMovie. I am completely self-taught in videography and using iMovie and Canva together has made me someone who can add “videographer” to their list of expertise.