Advocacy & Outreach

Below are some outreach tips to help you better engage your legislators and their staff in Sacramento and Washington, D.C., on behalf of California’s schoolchildren. School governance leaders are encouraged to work with their local CSBA Governmental Relations chairs and Federal Governmental Relations chairs to advance the education agenda and to maintain support for our public schools.

How to write an effective letter

• Include proper salutation. Use standard form for addressing elected or appointed officials.
• Letters can be written by individuals or on behalf of your entire board. If you are writing on behalf of your board, with board approval, print your letter on district letterhead; if you are writing an individual letter, use personal stationery if you have it.
• State letter subject. List the bill number and your board’s position.
• Discuss one bill per letter. Constituent letters are filed by bill number.
• Provide examples. Always provide specific examples of the bill’s impact on your district
  or COE.
• Discuss the facts. Be sure to support your argument with facts.
• Be concise. Make sure writing is clear.
• Always sign your letter. Include yourself or a designated staff person as a resource for more information. Follow up. If the issue is particularly volatile, a visit to your legislator’s office may be in your best interest.
• Keep CSBA informed. Always list CSBA as a recipient of your letter and cc CSBA for legislative and lobbying purposes.

To learn more about how you can help CSBA achieve the legislative and regulatory goals it pursues on behalf of students, school districts and county offices of education, and to read more outreach tips, visit www.csba.org/outreach.aspx