Buncee Blog

It’s been a challenging past few months, and during this time, we’ve all had to find new ways to spread positivity and keep our community inspired and motivated. Mary Bryant Elementary School Assistant Principal Victoria Morse, of Hillsborough County Public Schools, has gone above and beyond when it comes to inspiring her staff. She created her “Bronco Broadcast”, where she used Buncee to share a video message with her staff every morning during the last few months of the school year. Here are some of the Buncees she shared with her staff:

 

We were so inspired by Victoria’s creativity, and the passion she brought to her broadcasts, as she in turn inspired her staff. We had the honor of chatting with Victoria about the importance of spreading positivity, and how Buncee can be a powerful tool to connect your school community:

 

We’ve heard so much about your Bronco Broadcast, what inspired you to use Buncee to start creating and sharing this?

I was inspired to use Buncee and create the Bronco Broadcast over our Spring Break as a way to communicate with my staff with updates and information related to school closing and the Coronavirus. More importantly, I wanted to create the short 3-minute videos to help them feel connected as a community and to reassure them that we would get through it together. I believe as a leader, we have to take care of the people around us. I wanted my staff to view the Bronco Broadcast and feel full of hope, positivity, and inspired. Ultimately, this would positively impact our students and their eLearning.

So much of our role as educators and leaders involves people. I knew that creating a daily Bronco Broadcast using Buncee could have the potential to overcome the feelings of isolation that the pandemic caused. Once I began broadcasting and sending the Buncees to my staff, I heard from colleagues who are teachers and administrators. They too were feeling isolated, and needed some positive messages. So I began sharing the Buncees with them as well. As we wrapped up the last episode of the school year (51 episodes!), the daily Buncees were being shared with educators in Florida, Alabama, Georgia, Texas, Oklahoma, Colorado, and South Carolina.

I used Buncee for my Bronco Broadcasts because it is a very engaging way to communicate with stakeholders. There are many different types of Buncee backgrounds and templates available to choose from, such as the “newsdesk” design I utilized for the Bronco Broadcasts. The Buncees I create each morning for my  Bronco Broadcast always include: an inspirational quote , a short video message, and sometimes added Buncee art such as a Buncee sticker or animation.  Each morning, I create the  “Buncee set” and then film my 3 minute video message.  This is then sent as a link in an email to view. I can also send the Bronco Broadcasts in a text, which is how my colleagues around the United States began viewing these Bronco Broadcast. I also shared Buncees on social media through Twitter to further connect the community. They are so easy to share and view depending on your audience!

 

How do you think staying connected has a positive impact on your community?

I am just blown away by the impact this daily Bronco Broadcast made on our school community. There was so much uncertainty with the pandemic. Many things were out of our control. But, there are things we can control. You can control your attitude. You can control your outlook on things. You can control how you respond to situations. So each day I created the Bronco Broadcast to keep everyone connected, to help make them smile, and to strengthen our relationship as a community. At the end of the day as a leader, people need to know you care, that you are there to support them, and that you are willing to do whatever it takes to motivate and inspire them to be their best.

I began featuring two staff members each day and incorporated a “Sparkle Comfy Couch.” Two staff members would be introduced as the “Special Guests” and I would share things I knew about them as part of the Bronco Broadcast. I would have the staff members on the Sparkle Couch as paper cutouts and dressed in a certain funny outfit.  Staff members began telling me that their kids and family would look forward to my morning broadcasts. Most shared they began watching together, and said it was their reason to get up each morning. It became intriguing to wonder who would be on the Sparkle Couch each day. Teachers began sharing how much they looked forward to viewing it before they started teaching each day, and how it kept them thinking positive all day. 

 

What is your advice for other administrators who want to spread positivity with Buncee?

Buncee is amazing. It is so easy to use and really helped me tap into my creativity as I designed my daily Bronco Broadcasts. As a communication tool, it truly is remarkable! When you are an administrator, I believe you have to lead with positivity. Each day I knew I needed to use my daily Bronco Broadcasts to leave people feeling uplifted. So I always planned a little humor and a positive message I knew everyone could connect with personally.  People need a leader who is not afraid to be vulnerable. Take that risk and be courageous. Do something that has never been done before. The Bronco Broadcasts became so much more to so many more people than I ever imagined. Our community came together in such an incredible way. Many of my staff asked if I was going to continue the broadcasts after school ended and joked, “How will I get through my day now if there isn’t a Bronco Broadcast?”

 

In what other ways have you used Buncee to spread positivity?

We also began creating weekly Buncees for our students as a way to spread positivity to them as well. My principal and I wanted to give the students some consistency, so each Friday we sent a 3 minute “Feel Good Friday” video message designed to instill hope and positivity in their eLearning experience. Each Friday broadcast included a brief message from the principal, some giveaway prizes to teachers, and a raffle drawing for 6 students to earn a free book upon our return. We ended the broadcasts by sending positive thoughts to our students with a quote. We received tremendous positive feedback from our stakeholders about the impact our weekly broadcasts made with the students and families. Many shared how excited the students were to see us each Friday, and our positivity made a huge difference.  

My experience with making and sharing my Buncees has been AMAZING! I can’t say enough good things about Buncee.  As an Assistant Principal, communication is another key component to being an effective leader.  Buncee allows me to communicate regularly with all stakeholders, and tailor the messages for each audience!  Making and sharing the Buncees brings me great joy! As a leader and an educator, I want to instill hope and inspire others.  The positive feedback has been overwhelming and nothing I ever expected from launching the Bronco Broadcasts! People continue to reach out and share how the daily Buncees inspire, motivate, and give them hope.  I am so grateful for Buncee. and look forward to continuing to lead with positivity!

 

Do you have an idea for spreading positivity with Buncee? We’d love to hear about it! Share it with us on Twitter, Instagram, our Facebook Page or Buncee Educators Group, and spread your own positivity!