Building a community using email: A case study of community group

This case study describes changes in parent involvement facilitated by the use of an email list for a regionally based girls’ school threatened with closure. From an organization with less than 8 active members, the parent group grew to over 100 active members with an additional five new subcommittees in less than one month. Issues of information boundaries, and the power accumulation with the exercising of information control are examined as is the role of increased social cohesion resulting from the introduction of an electronic mail list. The resultant changes in the nature of the activities of the parent stakeholder group and the relationship with the Board of Trustees are described. The major concerns of the parent stakeholder group and their effects on the decision-making processes in the management are discussed. The use of an email list to share information and devolve power is analyzed and recommendations for the use of email lists for supporting the development of a strong, diverse yet cohesive stakeholder community are made.