1 Thank, Explain, Ask: a user’s guide Every advocacy presentation before a public body should follow three simple rules: Thank your audience for the opportunity to make your presentation. Explain your point of view, using facts and personal experience to back up your case. And finally, ask your audience to support your request. That’s the strategy behind EdTA’s Thank, Explain, Ask School Board Powerpoint. The following 6 slides are intended to give you some guidance on how to use and adapt the powerpoint for your own purposes.

2 A user’s guide: the slides The slide presentation features reliable national data that is applicable in any theatre education advocacy situation. There are also slides that include faux facts and figures intended to be examples of information you should be gathering about your theatre program and its students. As persuasive as national studies and surveys are in their affirmation of theatre education’s value, information about how your theatre program is helping students succeed in both theatre and life are far more powerful to your community—whether it’s a school board, a legislator, or business council.

3 A user’s guide: the script Every advocacy presentation should include both a factual and emotional appeal. And that’s what we’ve tried to do in Thank, Explain, Ask. We annotated the script with its appropriate companion slide number and bolded text that you will need to personalize, either about your program or yourself. For the emotional appeal, there is both a student and a teacher example. Always have your own story about how theatre education has impacted your life. It will improve your credibility with the audience and give added weight to your appeal.

4 A user’s guide: the photos The production photos included in the powerpoint are fair game—you can use them as they appear here—but the idea is for you to customize this presentation in a way that showcases the value of your school theatre program. In other words, add your own production, classroom, and other photos that bring your program to life for your audience.

5 A user’s guide: the leave behind You always want to leave the audience something that supports your presentation, so they can reference it later. We’ve already done half the work: For your leave behind, consider using one of two Did you Know full- page ads (you can find them elsewhere in EdTA’s Advocacy Toolbox) and the other side for facts and figures about your own program. The Did you Know sheet will guide your audience to the EdTA advocacy pages where the sources for the data cited in the presentation can be found.

6 A user’s guide: some presentation tips There are some fundamental things to bear in mind when you are planning to make an advocacy presentation before a school board. Here are some basics you need to know and few strategies you should apply to your presentations: Know when and where your school board meets. Find out when key votes will happen (such as cutting or restoring a school’s arts budget) Understand who exactly you’ll be speaking to. Is it just board members or will it include district officials as well? Find out the time limit allowed and stick to it. Stay positive and be respectful—school board members are representatives of the community. Attacks and charges will only turn them off. If you are part of a group of presenters, make sure you’re all on the same page, even while you share your unique perspective. (continued)

7 A user’s guide: some presentation tips Don’t forget to distribute the leave behind (as explained earlier) to school board members and others in the audience. Offer to follow up with individual members who have questions that isn’t necessarily time to answer during the meeting. Do not assume that school board members do not know or do not value the importance of theatre and other arts education. Know the situation: what cuts are required? What are the alternatives? Try to link your facts to how theatre education helps the district achieve other education goals. The arts are part of the solution, not a outlier with no relevance to the district’s overall education strategy. Be interested in what the board has to say and stay for the entire meeting.. Make sure you offer to answer questions. If you don’t know the answer, assure the asker that you will get back to them later with the information they requested.