Removing Barriers at the Front Door: Using Engagement to Improve Early Registration
Date: 7/21/2026
Time: 10 - 11 AM
Room: Grand Ballroom B (Floor 1)
Skill Session - Live lecture, panel discussion or interactive session with time for Q&A. 60-minutes.
EQUITY–Supporting diversity, equity, inclusion and belonging in communications and public schools
Session Description
Many families face barriers to registering their children for school, including language differences, limited familiarity with the U.S. public education system, difficulty accessing information and limited access to technology. When these barriers go unaddressed, they ripple across the system, affecting students and families’ access to neighborhood schools and a school division’s ability to plan, staff and support students equitably.
Student registrations completed after the start of the school year negatively affect classroom planning, staffing and class size management. In Alexandria City Public Schools (ACPS), enrollment data revealed a troubling pattern of a rise in capacity school transfers that disproportionately impacted families representing ethnically and linguistically diverse communities. In some cases, students were reassigned to non-walkable schools even when their neighborhood school was located within walking distance; often because families were unaware of registration timelines, requirements or supports available to them. Data also revealed a noticeable drop-off in completed registrations beginning July 1 of each year, limiting the school division’s ability to prepare effectively for the upcoming school year.
This data became the catalyst for action. To address these inequities, ACPS implemented a comprehensive, multilingual and community-based outreach strategy designed to meet families where they are and ensure they could easily understand and complete registration early, prior to the start of the school year before July 1, 2025. Central to this effort was leveraging the school division’s Family and Community Engagement (FACE) center as a trusted hub in removing barriers related to travel, parking costs, scheduling and access to technology that families previously faced when having to register at the division’s Central Office, located across a major highway from where families lived - a trip that could take over one hour each way using public transportation.
Too often, student registration is treated as a transactional task rather than a strategic opportunity to build trust, relationships and long-term engagement. This session shares how ACPS designed and executed a K–12 New Student Registration Communications and Engagement Campaign that reframed registration as an equity-centered engagement effort. Attendees will learn how a clear strategy, SMART goals, inter-department coordination and collaboration, multilingual outreach, community partnerships and intentional data tracking led to increased awareness, stronger early registration trends, meaningful connections with families and a reduction in capacity-related transfers for families most impacted by existing barriers.
This session will focus on how equity data can inform communications strategy and how a campaign designed on targeted family engagement can lead to measurable, meaningful change. Participants will leave with practical tools, planning templates and actionable strategies and tactics they can adapt to their own districts, regardless of size or capacity. This session is ideal for communicators seeking to strengthen family engagement, align communications with district priorities and demonstrate equitable measurable impact.
Presenter(s)
Gladis Bourdouane
Assistant Director of Communications
Alexandria City Public Schools (VA)
Gladis Bourdouane has over 15 years of proven communications, public engagement and project management experience in developing high impact, division-level initiatives tailored to reach specific community audiences, focused on two-way engagement, inclusive of community voices.
Ms. Bourdouane immigrated to the Washington D.C. metro area 40 years ago from El Salvador and is passionate about building and maintaining strong ties within the region’s diverse community. As a trusted advocate of racial equity in public education, she is dedicated to community service through her work and volunteer roles throughout northern Virginia. She is a member of the National School Public Relations Association and is currently serving as president-elect for the 2024-25 school year for the Chesapeake Chapter of the National School Public Relations Association.
As a previous project manager at Arlington Public Schools, Ms. Bourdouane focused on leading and supporting family engagement and management of public information for large-scale impactful initiatives in an economically and culturally diverse community.
Today, Ms. Bourdouane puts her collaboration and communications skills to work as Alexandria City Public Schools assistant director of communication, serving as an integral part of the School and Community Relations Department. In her role, she is responsible for the oversight and management of policies, processes and staff that support the division's communications channels. LinkedIn Profile
Cindy Centeno
External Relations Specialist
Alexandria City Public Schools
Cindy Centeno is the External Relations Specialist in the Office of Community Partnerships & Engagement at Alexandria City Public Schools in Alexandria, VA. With a background in media production and community impact, her role is focused on bridging school and community relations through informative and accessible communication and resources.
Prior to working at ACPS, Cindy worked at a higher education institution and multiple non-profit organizations focused on impact and equity.
LinkedIn Profile
Daniela Perez-Bravo
Community Outreach Coordinator
Alexandria City Public Schools
Daniela Perez-Bravo brings extensive experience in community outreach and family engagement within public education, with a focus on building trust, strengthening partnerships, and ensuring families feel informed and supported throughout their educational journey.
Ms. Perez-Bravo immigrated to Maryland at the age of three and began her public school experience in Prince George’s County. Her lived experience as a former public school student deeply informs her passion for helping families navigate school systems and access resources with confidence.
She spent seven years as a Community Outreach Assistant at the same elementary school she attended as a Head Start student after arriving in the United States. In 2020, she joined Alexandria City Public Schools as a Community Outreach Specialist and currently serves as the Community Outreach Coordinator.
In her role, Ms. Perez-Bravo is committed to bridging gaps between schools and communities, empowering families through meaningful engagement, and cultivating strong, collaborative partnerships that support student success. LinkedIn Profile
Removing Barriers at the Front Door: Using Engagement to Improve Early Registration
Category
Skill Session - Live lecture, panel discussion or interactive session with time for Q&A. 60-minutes.