In my years as an educator, October has always felt like a slog. The shine of a new school year fades, the holidays feel impossibly far away, and the first round of colds makes its rounds. Now, living through my family’s first fall in the Pacific Northwest, I can confirm that the famous “Seattle soaker” doesn’t help. The gray skies, endless drizzle and chill make everything feel a bit heavier.

But that’s exactly why this is the perfect moment for a pick-me-up. Gloomy days—like gloomy seasons—create the best opportunities to spark excitement. When energy dips, attention rises for anything that brings warmth, joy or connection. It’s like that first cup of hot chocolate on a cold night—it means the most when it’s needed most.

Here in Seattle, local schools are leaning into that energy, rallying around the Mariners’ playoff run with impromptu spirit days and creative messaging about showing up (even when everyone’s tired from the late games).

So, take a page from their playbook: find your own spark and share it. Whether it’s a story, an event or a celebration—now’s the time to spread a little light.

One question for you

1. When the days feel heavy, how do you lift your community’s spirits with good news?

Email us at editor@schoolceo.com or book a time on our calendar and let us know.

Two resources to help

1."All too often, we hear school leaders worry that they’re blasting families with too much communication—but our data doesn’t support that fear. After all, families who were communicated with more frequently actually had higher levels of satisfaction with their schools—as long as the communication was perceived to be both positive and relevant.” — SchoolCEO’s January 2025 research “What Parents Want”

2. Our podcast was recently ranked the #1 education podcast in the country by Million Podcasts! We just finished our fourth season, so now's the perfect time to explore insights from each of our past seasons: Season 1, Season 2, Season 3, and Season 4.

Three ideas to get you thinking

1. “A school system’s credibility lives in the thousands of tiny interactions between families and educators.” — “Amplifying Success, Strengthening Our Community: Durham’s Journey to One Voice”

2. “Every school event is an experience, and if you engineer those experiences intentionally your school events can help you accomplish crucial goals for your school community.” —Read more in “Harnessing the Power of Experiential Marketing”

3. “If you don’t know where you are going, you’ll end up someplace else.” —Yogi Berra, member of Baseball Hall of Fame