Community Outreach – a key factor in the success of the Enrolment Drive
Enrolment of students into Bridge Nigeria Schools has been a successful milestone and this is due to the previous community outreach programmes which are always held at the end of each academic year.
The success of previous outreach sessions l by the Bridge Nigeria Schools team is due to two major actions:
- The Program Manager trained Academy Managers, who adopted the mantra “Have a growth mindset!” throughout the training and outreach session.
- The Program Manager and the Schools Director communicated and followed up on a regular – and consistent – basis.
The outreach theme for December 2021 was ‘Let’s celebrate, Bridge is changing the lives of children…We can do more!’ The Academy staff were celebrating great results from recent outreach activities in the month of October while also reminding parents that Bridge is changing the lives of children in the community. During the October 2021 outreach session, the admissions target was met by 96 percent. This was a significant increase from previous outreach sessions, which had significantly lower admission numbers.
The December 2021 outreach goal was to continue growing Bridge schools in Lagos and Osun through new pupil admissions, while also retaining active students. Consistent follow-up during outreach activity execution also ensured that academy staff were supported and closely monitored throughout the outreach period.
Part of the events that were carried out during the community outreach sessions by Teachers and Academic Managers were:
- Market Expo
- Community Demo Lessons
- Religious Events
- Placement Exams
- Parents Phone Calls
- Community Partnerships
- Success Tours
- Business Visits
Market Expo: The Market Expo is a type of informational outreach event that takes place in a community market space or business district. Pupil performances may be held during Market Expos if permitted.
Community Demo Lessons: The demo lesson is a 20-minute Bridge lesson designed to be taught during outreach events by a Bridge teacher using a teacher guide on a teacher computer. The demo lesson’s goal is to introduce prospective Bridge parents and their children to the life-changing education taught in our schools and to generate excitement about our academics.
Religious Event: A religious outreach activity is a Bridge International Academy outreach event held at a church, mosque, or other place of worship with the approval and support of the religious leader.
Placement Events: New parents are met and encouraged to visit the academy during outreach activities so that their children can take placement exams.
Parents Phone Calls: An Outreach Parent Call is a type of engagement activity that aims to convert new parents and increase retention among active parents.
Community Partnerships: Community partnerships are a strategic way to grow your school by collaborating with various local organisations. It is an informal partnership intended to benefit children in the community by referring them to learn at Bridge with the goal of increasing their learning gains, confidence, and discipline. As a school, you can benefit from group admissions using this approach. The partner, on the other hand, benefits from the structured Bridge engagement, which includes reporting, financial accountability, and academic performance tracking over time.
Success Tours: Success Tours are how we show parents everything Bridge has to offer. During Success Tours, parents can interact with our innovative learning materials, see all of the elements of a Bridge classroom, and learn how to enrol their children at Bridge.
Business Visits: The primary goal is to identify potential small-medium organisations within Bridge communities and target their employees who are in the same economic stratum to have strategic conversations about Bridge and our value propositions that meet their education expectations, which will eventually lead to a conversion.
To cement success, Academy Managers were given a feedback form in which they could share their outreach experience, successes, challenges, and suggestions for improvement, which will help shape future projects in greater depth.
