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“Hope sleeps in our bones like a bear waiting for spring to rise and walk.
– Marge Piercy
Spring is here! Do you, like the slumbering bear, need to rise and walk? The actions we take now will not only awaken our sense of hope for the future, they will certainly determine the whole trajectory of the next academic year for our students.
In this issue of the newsletter, you'll find information on the annual evaluation of the district parent and family engagement policy and the U.S. Department of Education's new non-regulatory guidance.
Annual Evaluation of District Parent and Family Engagement Policy
Districts must conduct an annual evaluation of the content and effectiveness of their parent and family engagement policy. The ultimate goal of this yearly evaluation is to ensure that the district’s parent and family engagement policy is effective in improving the academic quality of all schools served by Title I.
The evaluation of the policy must identify:
- Barriers to greater participation by parents in activities (with particular attention to parents who are economically disadvantaged, disabled, have limited English proficiency, have limited literacy or are of any racial or ethnic minority background);
- The needs of parents and family members to assist with the learning of their children, including engaging with school personnel and teachers; and
- Strategies to support successful school and family interactions.
Some suggested strategies for evaluation of the district's parent and family engagement policy include, but are not limited to, the following:
- Survey parents annually at a minimum. Include questions that will identify barriers to parent and family engagement.
- Develop a parent advisory committee or host focus groups to solicit further meaningful input.
- Conduct district and school level self-assessments of the activities within the policy.
- Gather data of participation rates for school- and district-level family engagement activities.
- Gather data from school or district volunteer logs.
- Review achievement data for schools served by Title I.
Use the findings from these annual evaluations to design evidence-based strategies for more effective parental involvement, and to revise, if necessary, the district's parent and family engagement policy.
- Suggest policy revisions to schools that deliver Title I, Part A services.
- Suggest revisions/additions to the district-level parent and family engagement policy that relate to improving capacity for parent and family engagement.
- Remove barriers to parent and family engagement.
- Develop a report that you share with parents, staff and the community.
Coordinator's Year at a Glance: Suggested Tasks for April
- Conduct other stakeholder consultations on the development of the local education agency (LEA)/school Title I plan for the upcoming year’s GMAP application. Stakeholders include parents/families, private schools, homeless education programs, migrant education programs, English learner programs and school leadership teams.
- Conduct annual evaluation of district parent and family engagement policy in improving the academic quality of all schools.
- Evaluate the services with local neglected or delinquent facilities, if applicable. Develop a plan for ongoing consultation for the upcoming school year.
- Consult with the local homeless liaison to determine number of homeless students and amount of reservation of Title I funds.
- Consult with eligible private schools and obtain affirmation of consultation with participating private school officials.
- Consult with local early childhood stakeholders (Exceptional Children, Pre-K, Head Start, etc.) to coordinate early childhood services (Title I Pre-K) as appropriate.
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