Changes to policy, scientific discovery, and expert recommendations and opinions all have the power to rapidly influence the landscape of a sector. Whether you’re a leader at a non-profit, a member of a university’s marketing department, or a stakeholder for a public health agency, being informed about the latest industry happenings can be the difference between exceeding and falling short of organizational goals. At Hager Sharp, our experts vigorously scan media coverage to identify areas of opportunity. And now, with the introduction of the Sharp Round-Up, you too can review what we consider to be some of the top news of the week.
Below you will find a compilation of news spanning the health and education, labor, and economy sectors. This list includes mainstream, DC-focused, and trade publication coverage from Saturday, November 25, to Friday, December 1. Let these clips serve as a resource when developing thoughtful strategies and use them to further foster organizational innovation and adaptability.
Here’s what you need to know.
Education News:
An organization called The Konnection is working to address chronic absenteeism in Detroit schools, according to a recent article in Chalkbeat. The organization gives students exercises that focus on “positive attendance and academic habits” like going to bed early, following a routine, and organizing their backpack.
Health News:
Life expectancy is finally on the rise, but still hasn’t fully recovered following the COVID-19 pandemic, according to a recent CNN article. Expectancy dropped 2.4 years after the first two years of the pandemic and rose 1.1 years in 2022.
New research reflects that legalizing cannabis may lower the usage of alcohol and tobacco in 18–20-year-olds, according to Forbes. The research was based on legalization of the drug in California and contributes to the conversation on whether cannabis should be considered a “gateway drug” in the future.
A new report by the Population Reference Bureau says that “progress in women’s health since the 1960’s is backsliding,” according to an ABC News article on the topic. The report indicated that Millennial and Gen Z women are more at risk of death associated with childbirth, suicide, and being murdered. Political division, impacts of COVID-19, harmful social media content, and limitations on access to reproductive health resources were cited as possible reasons.
At Hager Sharp, volunteering and giving back to our community is a core feature of our company culture. Our founder, Susan Hager, devoted her life to helping others. She was one of the early VISTA volunteers (now incorporated as AmeriCorps VISTA), started a Head Start program at a small village in Alaska, blazed a trail for women business owners, and founded Hager Sharp as a means to harness marketing and communications as powerful tools for positive change.
Susan inspired a sense of service in all who knew her, and her legacy in this regard remains strong to this day within Hager Sharp. Each year, Hager Sharpers make use of their Hager Hours – 16 hours of paid time off annually – to volunteer and serve their community in ways that matter most to them. This year, our team’s service has included volunteering with:
Cradles to Crayons, a nonprofit dedicated to providing children from birth through age 12 with the everyday essentials they need to thrive — at home, at school, and at play;
Girl Scouts, a youth organization for girls in the United States and American girls living abroad;
Story Tapestries, a Maryland-based nonprofit that uses the arts as a powerful tool to create accessible, open spaces and opportunities for individuals to reach their highest potential and to work together for a more inclusive community; and
With these organizations, Hager Sharpers have chaperoned activities, planned and implemented events, organized fundraisers, directed people to resources (like vaccinations, free locally grown fruits and vegetables, yoga and meditation) at a community wellness event, developed strategic communications plans, raised awareness, participated in panel discussions and presentations, and more. The beauty of our Hager Hours benefit is its flexible design that allows each of us to serve in a way that is most meaningful to us personally.
We also volunteer as a team to magnify our individual impact. To mark Hager Sharp’s 50th anniversary in June, we visited JK Community Farm in Purcellville, Virginia, a local farm and nonprofit that grows and provides produce for people to enhance their nutrition security. While there, we planted more than 35,000 sweet potatoes for harvest this Fall.
As the world marks International Volunteer Day on December 5th – a day for celebrating and thanking people around the word for their voluntary service – we are encouraging our team to close out 2023 with an act of service. Do you have an organization or activity to recommend?
Changes to policy, scientific discovery, and expert recommendations and opinions all have the power to rapidly influence the landscape of a sector. Whether you’re a leader at a non-profit, a member of a university’s marketing department, or a stakeholder for a public health agency, being informed about the latest industry happenings can be the difference between exceeding and falling short of organizational goals. At Hager Sharp, our experts vigorously scan media coverage to identify areas of opportunity. And now, with the introduction of the Sharp Round-Up, you too can review what we consider to be some of the top news of the week.
Below you will find a compilation of news spanning the health and education, labor, and economy sectors. This list includes mainstream, DC-focused, and trade publication coverage from Saturday, November 11, to Friday, November 17. Let these clips serve as a resource when developing thoughtful strategies and use them to further foster organizational innovation and adaptability.
Here’s what you need to know.
Education News:
Academic achievement for students in America faltered during the pandemic and has largely not recovered since. Recent data suggests this may be due to student attendance. The data shows that students are missing more school now than before the pandemic and is dramatically worse in high-poverty schools.
According to research published in the Psychological Medicine journal, children below age 9 who spend 12 hours per week reading for pleasure tend to do better on cognitive tests and have better mental health when they are adolescents than those who have not developed this habit. Benefits include better memory, speech development, and academic achievement and fewer signs of stress or depression and behavioral problems.
Health News:
A new analysis of studies conducted over the last 50 years shows that common pesticides used in homes, gardens, lawns, and sprayed on food are contributing to a large decline in sperm count among men worldwide. Men who were most exposed to the pesticides, such as those who work in agriculture, had significantly less sperm concentration than men who less exposure.
A new study finds that people who commit daily “micro-acts” of joy experience a 25% increase in emotional well-being throughout the course of a week. Examples include making a gratitude list, doing a nice gesture for a friend, celebrating another person’s joy, and visiting a sick neighbor.
Changes to policy, scientific discovery, and expert recommendations and opinions all have the power to rapidly influence the landscape of a sector. Whether you’re a leader at a non-profit, a member of a university’s marketing department, or a stakeholder for a public health agency, being informed about the latest industry happenings can be the difference between exceeding and falling short of organizational goals. At Hager Sharp, our experts vigorously scan media coverage to identify areas of opportunity. And now, with the introduction of the Sharp Round-Up, you too can review what we consider to be some of the top news of the week.
Below you will find a compilation of news spanning the health and education, labor, and economy sectors. This list includes mainstream, DC-focused, and trade publication coverage from Saturday, November 4, to Friday, November 10. Let these clips serve as a resource when developing thoughtful strategies and use them to further foster organizational innovation and adaptability.
Here’s what you need to know.
Education News:
Chronic absenteeism continues to plague students across the country following the COVID-19 pandemic. A new story in The 74 Million delves into the factors that are perpetuating the issue at hand, including worsening mental health, remote learning, and absenteeism in teachers.
New data published this week by the National Center for Education Statistics revealed that the number of students participating in summer academic programs or after school remedial or enrichment activities has declined in the last school year.
A recent report by the Brookings Institution is claiming that the Supreme Court’s recent decision to ban race-based admissions in the United States will “not affect admissions at most colleges and universities,” according to an article by Inside Higher Ed. The article’s claim comes from the fact that the decision only affects universities that used affirmative action prior to the decision—which mostly applies to highly selective universities.
Health News:
With the Thanksgiving holiday rapidly approaching, health officials are recommending that those who haven’t received their flu and/or COVID-19 shots get them before joining their family for celebrations. According to an article by CBS News, the CDC is expecting the winter season to bring more cases of the flu, COVID, and RSV—all of which could be combatted by increased vaccination rates. Similarly, a Kaiser Family Foundation article notes that experts are recommending that infants under 6 months old or with underlying medical conditions receive the new RSV shot to protect them.
Black children are historically underdiagnosed for ADHD, signifying a “deepening inequity for Black children, and especially Black males,” said a CBS News story on the topic. Children who don’t receive treatment of ADHD through therapy and/or medication are at risk of facing more difficulty later in life, including drug addiction and self-harm, said the story. In order to address the problem, experts cite culturally sensitive screening as a necessary part of the diagnosis.
Two recent studies found that regular marijuana use may have a link to heart attacks. The data reflected a 34 percent increase of daily users developing some sort of heart failure, said an article by The Hill.
Every day, we’re bombarded with information: whether we’re online or offline, when we’re at work or off the clock, while we’re using our discerning minds or enjoying mindless entertainment. We need to quickly decide what we believe is true, relevant to us, and worth acting on. So, how do we decide?
When faced with a barrage of messaging, the information source becomes a cue we use to determine whether to believe and give weight to what we are being told. This is just one reason that engaging trusted voices and organizations is critical to the success of health communications programs.
As health communicators, we have to figure out what will reinforce the credibility of our programs and motivate audiences to adopt our calls to action. Robust, meaningful partnerships are an essential strategy to this end. And if done effectively, partnerships can also help us enhance our programs, expand reach and engagement among audiences, maximize resources, and improve program sustainability. Below are four approaches to help ensure that everyone—including you and your partners—get the most out of your partnerships.
Understand your audiences and engage the partners that are most credible to them
Our unique experiences—our culture, community, social circles, and countless other factors—impact what we view as credible, relatable sources of information. Use formative research to identify whom your audiences trust and look to for information. Then place those trusted sources and the organizations that serve them among your priority partners. By engaging trusted partners to disseminate your messages and align their name with your program, you can increase the likelihood that your audiences will pay attention to and act on your messages.
Engage partners early and often
Bring partners to the table as early as possible in your program planning. This goes a long way to cultivating a mutually beneficial relationship, as the partner feels—and rightly so—that their own interests are being considered. It also can be a huge boon to your planning, because it helps you uncover areas for collaboration, address gaps, and reduce redundancies with what your partners are already doing. Then, once you have partners at the table, keep them there with regular contact. Give them opportunities to share with you and other program partners their team’s impact and present their best practices. Partners who see themselves and their goals reflected in your program are more likely to give their own time to further your impact.
Apply the Golden Rule to your partnerships
The strongest and most enduring partnerships are mutually beneficial. Don’t enter any partner conversations with only asks. Be prepared to share what your partners will gain by collaborating with you. Take care to consider what the organization may find valuable and tailor your offerings accordingly.
Tailor your outreach and asks to the individual partner
Not all partners are created equal. And thank goodness! Do your homework and customize your collaboration ideas based on the capacity and goals of the partner. If you activate your partners in the ways that best fit their own capabilities and interests, they’ll see that you recognize the unique value they bring to the program and feel galvanized to continue supporting you.
These four approaches are just the beginning when it comes to building robust, lasting, and mutually beneficial partnerships. Though it takes time and care, partnership development brings great value to our health communications efforts. We’re stronger together, and together with partners, we can amplifyour impact and achieve wonderful things.
