The Lab — LinkedIn Social Calendar (May 2026)

The Lab — LinkedIn Social Calendar

Four-week rolling plan. Each week runs two gives and one ask. Gives lead with expertise or a free resource. The ask rotates across the four weeks so no single offer feels pushed.

Week 1 · May 4–10 · End-of-year IEP push

Theme: the IEPs being signed in May are the ones that show up in due process in October. Use the moment.

Give 1 · Hard Truth Tue May 5 · 8:00 AM CST

What May IEPs really are

Format: Short text post (150–250 words) · No graphic
Funnel stage: Awareness
Hook: "The IEP your team signs in May is the one that gets read in October — by a parent attorney. Most teams forget that."
End on: One question — "What's the one section your team always rushes in May?"
Give 2 · Framework Wed May 6 · 8:00 AM CST

5 IEP red flags to catch before you sign in May

Format: PDF carousel (6–8 slides) · Title slide + 5 red flags + close
Funnel stage: Consideration
Hook angle: a checklist directors can hand to case managers Friday afternoon. Each flag = one slide, one example, one fix.
End on: "Save this and send it to your team before next IEP meeting."
Ask · IEP Builder demo Thu May 7 · 8:00 AM CST

We built a tool because we kept seeing the same 5 red flags

Format: Outcome / behind-the-scenes text post · Optional product screenshot
Funnel stage: Conversion
Hook: "After 24 years in this work, I got tired of seeing the same compliance gaps. So we built the IEP Builder."
CTA: "Comment builder and I'll DM you a demo link before next school year." (One CTA only.)

Week 2 · May 11–17 · What worked, what didn't this year

Theme: directors are quietly running their own year-end review. Help them do it well — then give them a way to start next year stronger.

Give 1 · Lesson Learned Tue May 12 · 8:00 AM CST

The coaching engagement I'd run differently

Format: First-person text post · Nikki's voice · 200–300 words
Funnel stage: Awareness / trust
Hook: "I spent a year coaching a SpEd team and missed the thing that mattered most. Here's what I'd do differently."
End on: "What's the call you'd take back from this year?"
Give 2 · Framework Wed May 13 · 8:00 AM CST

Run a year-end SpEd team debrief in 45 minutes

Format: PDF carousel · Agenda + 4 prompts + 1 commitment
Funnel stage: Consideration
Hook angle: a real meeting agenda directors can borrow this week. Each slide is one section of the meeting.
End on: "Save this for your last team meeting of the year."
Ask · Discovery call Thu May 14 · 8:00 AM CST

If your team doesn't have a coaching plan for fall yet…

Format: Short text post · Specific outcome from a real district (anonymized)
Funnel stage: Conversion
Hook: "Last June, a director told me she had no plan, no budget line, and three new SpEd teachers starting in August. By October, her caseload data looked different."
CTA: "I'm holding 20-min calls in June. DM fall and I'll send the link." (One CTA only.)

Week 3 · May 18–24 · Summer prep & professional growth

Theme: most summer PD doesn't survive the first week of school. Name it, then offer something better.

Give 1 · Hot Take Tue May 19 · 8:00 AM CST

Most summer PD doesn't survive August

Format: Short text post · Take a clear position
Funnel stage: Awareness
Hook: "Summer PD that gets ignored: anything that doesn't change what teachers do in their first week back. Most of it doesn't."
End on: "What's the one piece of summer PD you've actually used?"
Give 2 · Data Drop Wed May 20 · 8:00 AM CST

One stat on SpEd teacher retention — and what actually moves it

Format: Single stat graphic + 200-word unpacking · One number, one source
Funnel stage: Consideration
Hook angle: lead with the number ("X% of new SpEd teachers leave within 5 years"), then the lever districts actually control: coaching in year 1.
End on: "What's working in your district to keep year-1 teachers?"
Ask · Newsletter / Substack Thu May 21 · 8:00 AM CST

The weekly briefing I write for SpEd directors

Format: Short text post · Describe what's in the briefing this week
Funnel stage: Conversion (low friction)
Hook: "I write a weekly briefing for special ed directors trying to do more with less. This week's: [tease the lead item]."
CTA: "It's free. Link in the comments." (One CTA only — link in first comment, not the post body.)

Week 4 · May 25–31 · Building the bench

Theme: districts are short SpEd teachers in May because they didn't grow them in the years before. Reframe the staffing crisis as a pipeline question.

Give 1 · Behind the Scenes Tue May 26 · 8:00 AM CST

What an apprentice's first week actually looks like

Format: First-person text post · Nikki's voice · Real photo if available
Funnel stage: Awareness / trust
Hook: "She walked in with no SpEd license, no classroom of her own, and a coach who had taught for 24 years. Here's what week one looked like."
End on: "What did your first week in SpEd actually teach you?"
Give 2 · Hot Take Wed May 27 · 8:00 AM CST

SpEd staffing isn't a recruiting problem

Format: Short text post · 150–250 words · Sharp position
Funnel stage: Consideration
Hook: "Hiring SpEd teachers from a shrinking pool isn't a recruiting problem. It's a pipeline problem. And we keep solving the wrong one."
End on: "What would you do with the recruiting budget if you could redirect it?"
Ask · Apprenticeship Thu May 28 · 8:00 AM CST

Two apprenticeship cohorts open for fall '26

Format: Short text post · Specific (cohort size, start date, who it's for)
Funnel stage: Conversion
Hook: "If your district will be short SpEd teachers in August, you already know it. Here's what we're doing about it for fall '26."
CTA: "DM apprentice if your district is short-staffed and I'll share the cohort details." (One CTA only.)

How the team uses this

Cadence: Tue–Thu, 7–9 AM CST. Two gives warm the audience; the ask rides Thursday's highest-reach window after value has been delivered.

Asks rotation: Week 1 IEP Builder · Week 2 Discovery call · Week 3 Newsletter · Week 4 Apprenticeship. Rotation prevents any single offer from feeling pushed.

Engineering for engagement: 15 minutes of 3+ sentence comments on others' posts before publishing. End every give with one specific question. Asks always carry exactly one CTA — never two.

Repurposing: Each Tuesday give becomes a Substack Note same week. Each Wednesday carousel becomes an Instagram carousel the following week. Asks stay LinkedIn-only.