1. Parent and Family Engagement Laying the Foundation
Partnership District Award 2015 for excellent district leadership on school, family, and community partnerships
Presented By:
Kathleen Kennedy, Director II
State and Federal Programs
Alvord Unified School District
Presented to:
Riverside County Office of Education
Family Involvement Network
October 2017

2. We know this to be true…
“The level of parent involvement at schools is not determined by parent interest or apathy.
It is determined by whether or not appropriate strategies and structures are in place to facilitate the participation of parents.”
(Milbrey McLaughlin, Stanford University)
Ive never met a parent who didn’t want their child to succeed. … strategies must be put into place to meet the needs of the parens and the students. So what has been done in Alvord?

3. Family Engagement Toolkit Continuous Improvement through an Equity Lens CA Dept. of Education
Critical dimensions of family engagement
We will develop a system of meaningful family engagement.
AUSD, Strategic Plan Strategy, May 2014

4. Getting Started on the Alvord Journey
Get your house in order
Ensure the message by working simultaneously with the support structure.

5. Establishing the Message Family Engagement Toolkit, APPENDIX C, Tools, p. 51
We will make all families feel welcome
We will ensure families are partners in supporting student achievement

6. Communicating with Administrators
District Self-Evaluation
Growth
2012
4 years late, we have a channel for effective, two-way communication with our parents
2014
NNPS, Partnership Schools Handbook, 3rd edition, Corwin Press.com
Family Engagement Framework, CA Dept. of Education, 2011, 2014

7. Communicating to Staff District-wide
District clerical staff and others
Implementing the Welcoming Schools concept
At Your Service! Improving Parent Engagement Through Extraordinary Service
We need to become savvy about how to build relationships and learn how to nurture growing, evolving things.
We need better skills in listening, communicating, and facilitating groups, for these are the talents that build strong communities.
- Margaret Wheatley
Communicate the message beyond administrators
Emphasized internal and external relationships, district role in creating partnerhip,
Mimi Badura, RCOE Consultant Staff Development, June 2013
Communicate the message
Develop a shared understanding of the goals

8. Providing Professional Development
Principals and School Secretaries
Reaching All Families Through Welcoming Schools
Nothing is more important to success in schools than the quality of relationships between and among students, staff and parents. James Comer The degree to which a school is welcoming influences the extent to which parents become involved. Judy Carson, CT State Dept. of Education
We recognize that this is an area we need to build and support. The first efforts in bridging with parents comes from the clerical staff.
Ellen Larson, RCOE Consultant Staff Development, August 2013
Communicate the message
Develop a shared understanding of the goals

9. Family Engagement Toolkit Continuous Improvement through an Equity Lens CA Dept. of Education
Critical dimensions of family engagement
We will develop a system of meaningful family engagement.
AUSD, Strategic Plan Strategy, May 2014

10. Laying the Foundation Four Important Actions, pp. 10 - 14
Action 1: Establish a District-level family engagement team
Family Engagement Coordinator
State and Federal Program Staff
Site administrators
Teachers
Parent leaders
Community Partners
Support Staff
Start with volunteer sites and watch the ground swell.

11. Alvord District
Action Team for Partnership, ATP 2014

12. Families need to see themselves as partners in their children’s education and must construct a role for themselves in their children’s learning …
(Partners in Education, U.S Department of Education, 2013)

13. Action 2: Discuss Core Beliefs
All families want the best for their children
We will respect and value the diverse roles of all individuals and their contributions
All students will graduate from high school ready for college and career
All families want to and can support their children in their schooling
Success is our shared responsibility
Families and staff should be equal partners
High expectations and equitable learning opportunities for all
Inclusive and active partnerships
Engaged learning strengthens our organization
Responsibility for building partnerships rests w/ staff
Relationships that foster a culture of trust and integrity
We will not allow economic, social and academic barriers to impede the safety and education of our students

14. Action 3: Agreeing on district vision statement for family engagement
Review the research on family engagement
Review the current district vision statement
Engage in a facilitated discussion about a new vision statement
Alvord Unified School District is forging partnerships with parents, students and community in order to:
build better, stronger schools
develop a culture of meaningful partnerships between parents and staff in support of student learning
provide a Welcoming Schools environment for all students and families

15. Action 4: Reviewing district & school family engagement policies
“…establish the agency’s expectations and objectives for meaningful parent and family involvement”
ESSA, Section 1116(2)
Determine a District definition of “meaningful”
AUSD: partnerships that connect parents & families to the academic process
Board polices and Administrative regulations
Parent Involvement and Volunteer Policies
Title 1 Compacts
Committee bylaws
Carry the message to all parent groups

16. Dr. Joyce Epstein, PhD, 2015 “Alvord Unified School District
is applying research-based approaches to help schools become welcoming places that engage parents in ways that improve student attendance, attitudes, behavior, graduation rates, achievement, health and post-secondary plans.”
Dr. Joyce Epstein, PhD, 2015
Dr. Epstein earned her doctorate in sociology from Johns Hopkins University where she serves as the principal research scientist, the Director of the Center on School, Family, and Community Partnerships and director of the National Network of Partnership Schools.

19. Through ATP teams, we are building on activities that were already in place, and connecting parent participation to programs that contribute to student success and are central to school improvement.

20. The Mission of the Parent Engagement Office (Established 2012)
The Alvord Unified School District is forging partnerships with parents, students and the community for better, stronger schools.
Five Goals:
Objective:
To create a District culture where parents and staff engage in meaningful partnerships in support of our students
To strengthen community partnerships
To develop family engagement leaders
To increase two-way communication
To assist parents in supporting children in the educational process
To increase student achievement
The mission and objective are clearly communicated on our letterhead, in our newsletters, at meetings.

22. Communicating the Message
To the community
Communicate the message

23. Communicating with Our Schools
PELI Curriculum Presentation Modules
14 elementary and 4 middle schools trained
comprehensive high schools
Goals: to design a program of primary parents to reach out to preschool, and a special ed program to reach out to parents of special ed students
Promising Partnership Practices, NNPS, Johns Hopkins ,2013 (p. 103)
This is our current structure. While there are many out there, this is the one are using.
Provide resources
Provide a strong rationale
Involve school leaders as active participants
Built on Dr. Epstein’s Six Types of Parent Involvement
Communicate the message
Provide unifying professional development

24. Communicating with Our Families Action Teams for Partnership, ATP teams A system for meaningful family engagement
Communication is the bridge, the linkage between the program and the stakeholder.
Required at all sites elemt – middle school. Write goals that connect to school plans
Distribute leadership
Implement the structure with fidelity

25. Communicating for a Shared Understanding Integrating Site Programs
SSC, ELAC, PTA, Parent University, Other Parent Groups
PBIS Intervention
Develop a shared understanding of the goals

26. Integrating District and City Programs
Health Services
Child Nutrition Services Grants: NEOP, Healthier Generation
We Fit
PBIS Pyramid Services: Triple P Parenting
DLAC , ELAC, SSC
SMARTRiverside
Riverside Mayor and City Council Services

27. Supporting the Schools, Developing the Vision
Sustainable programs need strong District leadership, opportunities for sharing and feedback.
Provide recognition, celebrate

28. The effectiveness of parent engagement programs depend on our responses to stake holder needs:
Choose a communication approach that opens rather then blocks a two-way conversation, that helps the audience explore the situation, and generate options for change (Harvard Family Research Project)
The vision is accomplished one piece at a time when structures are in place to provide a vehicle for the work. A process, a system, a structure is needed to turn the talk into action..We must build a system around what we value
Foothill Elementary School ATP Team, 2015
Norte Vista High School
Padres Unidos, 2014

29. National Network of Partnership Schools District Membership, 2012-present
Arizona (2)
Wells (2)
La Granada (2)
Terrace (2)
Promenade (2)
Stokoe (1)
Valley View (1)
Twinhill (1)
RMK (1)
Foothill (1)
Collett ((1)
Alvord School District
Recognized by NNPS for Promising Practices Publication:
La Granada School – Community
Promenade School – Mathematics
Parent Engagement Office – District Practices – Community
Parent Engagement Office – District Practices – Communication
Parent Engagement Office – District Practices – Parent Education

30. The Reason We Do This Work