SOUTH BEND COMMUNITY
School Corporation
Communications
How Can We Help?
Communications Department
The South Bend Community School Corporation Communications Department supports schools by providing clear, timely, and accurate communication to staff, families, the media, and the community.
Whether you are promoting a school event, highlighting student success, sharing an important update with families, or navigating a time-sensitive issue, our team is here to help.
We partner with schools and departments to ensure SBCSC communication is consistent, professional, and easy to understand — while also helping tell the story of the great work happening across our district every day.
How We Can Support Your School or Department
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Media coordination, press releases, and interview support
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Social media support, promotional graphics, and flyer design
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Website updates and digital content support
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District news, school highlights, and student/staff spotlights
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Photography and video support for school events and district initiatives
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Editing and proofreading support for family and staff communications
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Support with family messaging (emails, robocalls, and urgent updates)
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Branding guidance, templates, and messaging consistency
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Crisis and emergency communication support
Media Inquiries
To ensure accurate information and consistent district messaging, all media inquiries must be coordinated through the SBCSC Communications Department. If a reporter contacts your school or department directly, please refer them to Communications.
Helpful Links
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Social Media Guidelines
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Community Flyers
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District News
Contact Us
General Email: communications@sb.school
Phone: 574-393-6000
Address: 737 Beale Street, South Bend, IN 46616
Blair Yankey, Director of Communications
byankey@sbcsc.k12.in.us
Asha Stichter, Assistant Director of Communications
astichter@sbcsc.k12.in.us
Gaby Hernandez, Communications Specialist
mhernandez@sbcsc.k12.in.us
Meet the Team
Communications Guide
Privacy Policy
- INFORMATION COLLECTION & USE
- LOG DATA
- COMMUNICATIONS
- COOKIES & SECURITY
- CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY
- SOCIAL MEDIA GUIDELINES FOR STAFF
INFORMATION COLLECTION & USE
South Bend Community School Corporation operates http://www.sb.school (the "Site"). This page informs you of our policies regarding the collection, use, and disclosure of Personal Information we receive from users of the Site.
We use your Personal Information only for providing and improving the Site. By using the Site, you agree to the collection and use of information in accordance with this policy.
While using our Site, we may ask you to provide us with certain personally identifiable information that can be used to contact or identify you. Personally identifiable information may include, but is not limited to your name ("Personal Information").
LOG DATA
Like many site operators, we collect information that your browser sends whenever you visit our Site ("Log Data").
This Log Data may include information such as your computer's Internet Protocol ("IP") address, browser type, browser version, the pages of our Site that you visit, the time and date of your visit, the time spent on those pages and other statistics.
In addition, we may use third party services such as Google Analytics that collect, monitor, and analyze this data. This data informs us of website issues, most visited pages, etc. which help us to improve the Site.
COMMUNICATIONS
While using our Site and the forms on our Site, you may provide us with certain personally identifiable information that can be used to contact or identify you. Personally identifiable information may include, but is not limited to your name ("Personal Information").
Personal Information will only be collected for the purposes of registering students, responding to requests, and other necessary school corporation communications and notices. We will never share your Personal Information outside the school corporation.
COOKIES & SECURITY
Cookies are files with small amount of data, which may include an anonymous unique identifier. Cookies are sent to your browser from a web site and stored on your computer's hard drive.
Like many sites, we use "cookies" to collect information. You can instruct your browser to refuse all cookies or to indicate when a cookie is being sent. However, if you do not accept cookies, you may not be able to use some portions of our Site.
The security of your Personal Information is important to us, but remember that no method of transmission over the Internet, or method of electronic storage, is 100% secure. While we strive to use commercially acceptable means to protect your Personal Information, we cannot guarantee its absolute security.
CHANGES TO THIS PRIVACY POLICY
This Privacy Policy is effective as of January 1, 2022 and will remain in effect except with respect to any changes in its provisions in the future, which will be in effect immediately after being posted on this page.
We reserve the right to update or change our Privacy Policy at any time and you should check this Privacy Policy periodically. Your continued use of the Service after we post any modifications to the Privacy Policy on this page will constitute your acknowledgment of the modifications and your consent to abide and be bound by the modified Privacy Policy.
If we make any material changes to this Privacy Policy, we will notify you either through the email address you have provided us, or by placing a prominent notice on our website.
If you have any questions about this Privacy Policy, please contact the Communications Department staff.
SOCIAL MEDIA GUIDELINES FOR STAFF
Social media extends traditional channels of engagement and transparency and opens a two-way conversation with our community providing a means to share South Bend Community School Corporation news.
“Social media” refers to but is not limited to platforms such as Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, Pinterest, Tumblr, Snapchat, Tik Tok, and YouTube.
This social media policy is a guide for anyone managing an account representing any aspect of SBCSC on any social media platform. This does not apply to personal accounts.
The online spaces where you engage are visible to everyone. Respect, professionalism, and awareness are key.
Creating an account
If you intend to use social media in any capacity to represent a school, department, or any other SBCSC entity, use a shared departmental email address to create the account. For instance, “communications@sb.school.”
Each official social media channel should have no fewer than two full-time staff members who have access to the username and password and are full administrators on the account. The username and password should be sent to communications@sb.school. Also include your Twitter handle, Facebook handle, etc. and a link to those.
Each official social media channel should follow SBCSC branding guidelines.
#TeamSouthBend
Everything you do in your role as an employee reflects on the corporation, including interaction through social media—even privately. Remember to be professional and respectful, and avoid engaging in arguments or debates on social media. Avoid posts with the appearance of speaking on behalf of the corporation. The SBCSC accounts do that. This pertains to all content, from the fairly innocuous to emergency situations.
Quality matters
Correct spelling, punctuation, and grammar are of the utmost importance—even on platforms like Twitter, which affords you only 280 characters to share your message. Make every effort to be clear, complete, and concise.
Care should be taken to not mislead or exaggerate information in a clickbait manner or in ways that could be considered spam.
Graphics
Graphics should be appropriate and in focus.
Photography and attribution
Use at least medium resolution for all in-stream images on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram. For Facebook cover photos, use a large resolution photo. Images taken by SBCSC staff do not need attribution on social media, and attribution should not be included on Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook posts. Refrain from downloading images online unless they are copyright free.
Moderating comments
You are responsible for monitoring and moderating posts or comments on your page from other users. Remember that social media users have a right to disagree with us and express their opinion, so deleting or hiding comments should be used sparingly unless the comments:
- Use profanity.
- Include personal attacks.
- Solicit, advertise, or endorse a third-party business or service.
If you believe you have encountered a user who repeatedly violates these guidelines, please email communications@sb.school to discuss a course of action that may include blocking the user.
If you are concerned about a post or comment or are unsure if it should be deleted or hidden, please contact the Communications Department.
Who to follow
Every account must follow, like, or subscribe to the official corporation social media accounts:
Do not follow parent or student accounts. Refrain from following other personal accounts. Exceptions would be the superintendent, governor, mayor, etc.
Videos
Videos must be appropriate for all audiences. The official SBCSC YouTube channel is http://www.youtube.com/c/SouthBendCommunitySchoolCorporation. Within that account are playlists. If you have videos to share on YouTube, contact communications@sb.school for access to a playlist for your school.
Emergency communications
In the event of an emergency, such as inclement weather or another crisis, messaging will originate in the Communications Department. The official SBCSC Facebook and Twitter accounts will share the messaging as well as dialers, emails, etc. Other corporation social media accounts should assist in disseminating messaging by sharing these posts. Regularly check the SBCSC accounts for messages that you can retweet or share on your own channel to ensure safety and awareness.