When is a BOCES not a BOCES? |
On Board Online • October 10, 2011
By Brian M. Butry
Communications Coordinator
Two years ago, the Genesee Valley BOCES decided renaming two of its satellite academies wasn’t enough to spruce up its image.
So rather than just hosting a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the two career and technical centers, the BOCES decided to launch a top-to-bottom rebranding effort at the start of the 2009 school year that turned the district into the Genesee Valley Educational Partnership.
It joined Questar III (formerly Rensselaer-Columbia-Greene County BOCES) and Champlain Valley Educational Partnership (Clinton-Essex-Washington-Warren BOCES) in rebranding efforts.
Rebranding is often associated with businesses changing a store logo or trying to invigorate a tired consumer product. But in this case it was an effort to better represent educational offerings.
Also, there was a perception that there are problems with the term “BOCES.”
“We went around asking people what does BOCES stand for and people couldn’t answer,” said Genesee Valley board member Jim Morey. “The BOCES acronym tended to be meaningless or negative.”
Morey, who chaired the district’s enhanced branding committee, said he found himself constantly explaining the BOCES acronym – Board of Cooperative Educational Services – as well having to explain and defend the entity’s mission.
A retired advertising executive who spent nearly 40 years working for a large marketing and public relations firm in Rochester, Morey said the perception existed not only in the public’s eye, but also within component districts who were supplying Genesee Valley’s student population.
“Somehow it’s known as the place for the slow learners or the disciplinary problems,” he said. “But people have no idea about our career and tech centers or our academies that specialize in things such as information technology, health careers and criminal justice.”
Morey and eight other officials within the BOCES met for more than six months hashing out an agreement on the district’s rebranding effort.
“We thought our name was holding us back,” said Morey. “By changing to Genesee Valley Educational Partnership, district officials say the new moniker provides a better representation of who they are and delivers “a positive statement regarding how their constituencies can expect to be treated — as partners in education.”
To that end, Morey said the district’s public relations director and graphic design artist played an integral role in launching the rebranding effort.
They developed a contemporary new logo and with it a new theme – Success Stories Written Here – as a way to highlight their quality programs and services. They also instituted district-wide graphic standards. For too long, the committee found, Genesee Valley used different slogans, themes, and logos which only added to the confusion about the BOCES.
Staff then had to develop a marketing plan to make the public cognizant of the district’s services and to instill pride in Genesee Valley’s students and staff to help improve the district’s image in the communities it serves.
“It was a long haul,” said Morey. “But more and more people are referring to ‘the partnership’ and that’s what we are in terms of our relationship with our districts, parents and students.”
Decoding Questar III
Genesee Valley isn’t the first BOCES to undergo the rebranding process, however. That distinction belongs to the former Rensselaer-Columbia-Greene County BOCES, known since July 1994 as Questar III.
The name Questar III, according to the district website, reflects an evolution in the organization’s role and mission. “Quest” stands for the educational journey, “star” for the brilliance of programs, staff and students, and “III” for the number of counties served.
Superintendent James Baldwin said the district decided on rebranding for similar reasons to Genesee Valley – eliminating a community stigma with BOCES and highlighting its high-end offerings.
But the name change evolved into much more in the past 17 years, according to Baldwin.
“What we’ve done since the rebranding is to focus less on the name and more on brand development,” he said. “And that relates more to what you do than what you call yourself.”
Questar III, said Baldwin, placed an emphasis on the development of its New Visions education program which helps students earn college credit. The district also revamped its special education and career and technical education offerings.
District services have also boomed since the rebranding. Questar III is home to one of the most successful state aid and financial planning services in the BOCES network, with more than 600 subscribers. The district was also able to develop inter-municipal agreements to provide internal audit services to more than 100 school districts around the state.
In 2007, Questar III further cemented its reputation as an innovator among the state’s 37 BOCES districts when it helped launch the very successful Tech Valley High School in Rensselaer.
The school focuses on 21st Century skills in a project-based learning environment and engages students in the region’s emerging technologies – biotechnology, nanotechnology, information technology, energy technology and advanced materials.
“Changing a name, in and of itself, doesn’t really rebrand a district.,” Baldwin said. “What rebrands you is the services you’re known for. Creating both academic programs and district services for which Questar III is known across the state has helped us build the brand.”
But that doesn’t mean there weren’t some bumps along the way.
Baldwin joked that soon after the name change, many in the community thought he ran a bus company because the name Questar III was plastered along the sides of school buses that were part of the district’s former transportation service.
This is where the district’s marketing efforts helped change public perception.
Baldwin said making sure Questar III retained its association as a BOCES was important, but so was using the new district logo and tagline “putting students first.” By developing a consistent message and look, the community was able to grasp what the district offered, he said.
“Rebranding is an expensive activity and there are certainly limitations in what we can do, but I think it has had an impact,” Baldwin said. “It is an ambitious and continuing activity. You just can’t say we’re going to do rebranding for a year and then rest on your laurels. You have to be constantly thinking about the brand and what it means.”
Champlain Valley Educational Services
Craig King has had a similar experience in rebranding his BOCES district.
The superintendent of Champlain Valley Educational Services said losing the BOCES tag helped the district become an integral part of a regional economic development strategy.
“When the Air Force base closed here, there was a concentrated effort to work together to ensure the success of the area,” he said. “Businesses are bringing new families in and families see opportunities for their children … they see us as a very important partner.”
But King said for people moving to the Plattsburgh area from out-of-state, Canada or one of New York’s large cities, they may not know what BOCES is or what it does. Hence the change to Champlain Valley Educational Services from Clinton-Essex-Washington-Warren BOCES.
With the name change came new ventures for the district. In addition to offering career and technical education classes for its component districts, Champlain Valley has boosted its medical and veterinary programs, enhanced its adult education offerings and developed the renowned Plattsburgh Aeronautical Institute.
“There’s an appreciation from the school districts and the community,” said King. “They understand we’re part of the economic development of the area.”