Greensburg superintendent Darrin Headrick was driving home the night the tornado hit town. He stopped at Greensburg High School principal Randy Fulton’s house to take cover. He soon discovered the entire school system was wiped out. Every building was gone. Textbooks were scattered all over town, and computers were destroyed. Only the bleachers behind the football field remained.

Headrick had some tough decisions to make. To help families feel like it was worth coming back to Greensburg, he had to reassure them school would be back in session by fall. Headrick knew he could turn this tragedy into an opportunity and make the Greensburg schools better than ever.

Along with 95 percent of the town’s 1,500 residents, Headrick was homeless. With only four months to restore Greensburg Unified School District #422, Headrick went to work. All he had to work with was his laptop and cell phone, so he got in his truck and started looking for a wireless signal.

For the first three months after the tornado, no one could live in Greensburg. Because the tornado had affected telephone service, no one had a home telephone (landline); people were either in shelters or staying with friends and family out of town. Everyone was eager to reconnect and get information. The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) provided primary crisis communications by distributing flyers at checkpoints on the edges of town with important updates, but residents had to come to town to get them. Although flyers wouldn’t usually be considered a rich channel, under the circumstances, they were invaluable.

Unable to access the school’s normal communication channels, Headrick took a lesson from his students who preferred to communicate via text messaging because of its capacity for rapid exchange. Headrick realized text messaging was the perfect new channel for disseminating formal school communications. Few people had computers or landlines, but most folks had cell phones. Those who didn’t own cell phones quickly acquired them. Headrick set up a centralized network in which families were able to subscribe to a text service and receive important updates instantly wherever they were.

Once the text service was up and running, Headrick was struck by its efficiency. He also observed students’ text messaging habits to see what else he could learn. Even though it wasn’t appropriate for the school administration to use the informal shorthand used by students (r u there?), he appreciated students’ mastery of the art of keeping the message simple. The school
focused on creating clear messages that conveyed the essential information people needed without the usual filler. This new streamlined approach was liberating.

When things stabilized, Headrick set up forums at which students, parents, and teachers could participate in two-way, face-to-face communication. The text service was fabulous, but it didn’t allow for real feedback or personal dialogue. Left to its own devices, the school grapevine would surely spread false information.

The community had experienced a traumatic event, and people needed to spend time together to heal. Headrick wanted to check in and make sure everyone understood school really would begin as usual. The only way he could be sure people were truly receiving this message was to look them in the eyes, read their body language, and provide other nonverbal reassurances if their facial expressions revealed doubts. He also wanted to listen to students’ and teachers’ concerns and stories.

Rebuilding will take several years, but thanks to a temporary campus of trailers, the Greensburg schools started on time that fall. Communications within the school have continued to change. Every Greensburg High student now has a laptop and hands in assignments via e-mail. Teachers provide instant feedback on homework through instant messaging. Students can download notes when they miss class. And rather than spending hours trying to track down parents over the phone, teachers use e-mail whenever possible.

The administration, teachers, students, and parents of Greensburg schools still talk to each other in person when it makes sense. The rest of the time, they happily communicate using the latest technologies.

Discussion Questions

1. Describe the advantages and disadvantages of text messaging as the preferred communication channel in Greensburg after the tornado.

2. What lessons can corporate managers take from this story?

3. What was Headrick’s vision for Greensburg schools? Why was it important for him to have a vision?