Policy 604.07

Title I Parental and Family Engagement Policy

This Parental and Family Engagement Policy is established in compliance with Title I.  It is the policy of Elkhorn Public Schools to implement programs, activities, and procedures for the engagement of parents and family members in Title I programs consistent with the Title I laws.  Such programs, activities, and procedures shall be planned and implemented with meaningful consultation with parents and family members of participating children.

Expectations for Parental Engagement

It is the expectation of Elkhorn Public Schools that parents and family members of participating children will have opportunities available for parental and family involvement in the programs, activities, and procedures of the District’s Title I program.   The term “parental and family engagement” means the participation of parents and family in regular, two-way, and meaningful communication involving student academic learning and other school activities, including ensuring–(A) that parents and family members play an integral role in assisting their child’s learning; (B) that parents and family members are encouraged to be actively involved in their child’s education at school; (C) that parents and family members are full partners in their child’s education and are included, as appropriate, in decision making and on advisory committees to assist in the education of their child; and (D) the carrying out of other activities, such as those described in this parental and family engagement policy.  The District intends to meet this expectation through the following activities:

  • Engaging parents and family members in the joint development of the District’s Title I plan and the processes of school review and school improvement.
  • Providing coordination, technical assistance, and other support necessary to assist participating schools in planning and implementing effective parent and family engagement activities to improve student academic achievement and school performance.
  • Building the schools’, parents’ and family’s capacity for strong parental and family engagement.
  • Coordinating and integrating parental and family engagement strategies under Title I with parental and family involvement strategies under other programs.
  • Conducting, with the involvement of parents and family members, an annual evaluation of the content and effectiveness of the parental and family engagement policy in improving the academic quality of the schools served under the Title I program, including identifying barriers to greater participation by parents and family members in Title I programs, with particular attention to parents and families who are economically disadvantaged, are disabled, have limited English proficiency, have limited literacy, or are of any racial or ethnic minority background, and use the findings of such evaluation to design strategies for more effective parental engagement, and to revise, if necessary, the parental and family engagement policies of the District.
  • Involving parents and family members in the activities of the schools served under Title I.

Policy Involvement

Each school served under the Title I program shall:

  • Convene an annual meeting, at a convenient time, to which all parents and family members of participating children shall be invited and encouraged to attend, to inform parents and family members of their school’s participation under the Title I program and to explain the requirements of the Title I program.
  • Engage parents and family members in an organized, ongoing, and timely way, in the planning, review, and improvement of Title I programs.
  • Provide parents and family members of participating children–(1) timely information about programs under Title I, (2) a description and explanation of the curriculum in use at the school, the forms of academic assessment used to measure student progress, and the proficiency levels students are expected to meet; and (3) if requested by parents and family members, opportunities for regular meetings to formulate suggestions and to participate, as appropriate, in decisions relating to the education of their children, and respond to any such suggestions as soon as practicably possible.

Shared Responsibilities for High Student Academic Achievement

As a component of the District’s parental and family engagement policy, each school served under the Title I program shall jointly develop with parents and family members for all children served under the Title I program a school-parent compact that outlines how parents, family members, the entire school staff, and students will share the responsibility for improved student academic achievement and the means by which the school, parents and family members will build and develop a partnership to help children achieve the State’s high standards.  Such compact shall–(1) describe the school’s responsibility to provide high-quality curriculum and instruction in a supportive and effective learning environment that enables the children served under Title I to meet the State’s student academic achievement standards and the ways in which each parent and family will be responsible for supporting their children’s learning, such as monitoring attendance, homework completion, and television watching; volunteering in their child’s classroom; and participating, as appropriate, in decisions relating to the education of their children and positive use of extracurricular time; and (2) address the importance of communication between teachers, parents and family members on an ongoing basis through, at a minimum–(A) parent-teacher conferences in elementary schools, at least annually, during which the compact shall be discussed as the compact relates to the individual child’s achievement; (B) frequent reports to parents and family members on their children’s progress; and (C) reasonable access to staff, opportunities to volunteer and participate in their child’s class, and observation of classroom activities.

Building Capacity for Engagement

To ensure effective engagement of parents and family members and to support a partnership among the District, parents, family members, and the community to improve student academic achievement, each school participating in the Title I program and the District–(1) shall provide assistance to participating parents and family members, as appropriate, in understanding such topics as the State’s academic content standards and State student academic achievement standards, State and local academic assessments, the requirements of Title I and how to monitor a child’s progress and work with educators to improve the achievement of their children;  (2) shall provide materials and training to help parents and family members to work with their children to improve their children’s achievement, such as literacy training and using technology (including education about the harms of copyright piracy), as appropriate, to foster parental and family member involvement; (3) shall educate teachers, student service personnel, principals, and other staff, with the assistance of parents and family members, in the value and utility of contributions of parents and family members, and in how to reach out to, communicate with, and work with parents and family members as equal partners, implement and coordinate parent and family programs, and build ties between parents, family members and the school; (4) shall, to the extent feasible and appropriate, coordinate and integrate parent and family involvement programs and activities with Head Start, Reading First, Early Reading First, Even Start, the Home Instruction Programs for Preschool Youngsters, the Parents as Teacher Program, and public preschool and other programs, and conduct other activities, such as parent and family resource centers, that encourage and support parents and family members in more fully participating in the education of their children; (5) shall ensure that information related to school and parent and family programs, meetings, and other activities is sent to the parents and family members of participating children in a format, and to the extent practicable, in a language the parents and family members can understand; (6) may involve parents and family members in the development of training for teachers, principals, and other educators to improve the effectiveness of such training; (7) may provide necessary literacy training from funds received under Title I if the District has exhausted all other reasonably available sources of funding for such training; (8) may pay reasonable and necessary expenses associated with parental and family engagement activities, including transportation and child care costs, to enable parents and family members to participate in school-related meetings and training sessions; (9) may train parents and family members to enhance the involvement of other parents and family members; (10) may arrange school meetings at a variety of times, or conduct in-home conferences between teachers or other educators, who work directly with participating children, with parents and family members who are unable to attend such conferences at school, in order to maximize parental and family involvement and participation; (11) may adopt and implement model approaches to improving parental and family involvement; (12) may establish a district-wide parent and family advisory council to provide advice on all matters related to parental and family involvement in programs supported under Title I; (13) may develop appropriate roles for community-based organizations and businesses in parent and family engagement activities; and (14) shall provide such other reasonable support for parental and family engagement activities under Title I as parents and family members may request.

Accessibility

In carrying out the parental and family engagement activities for this Title I Parental and Family Engagement policy, the District shall provide full opportunities for the participation of parents and family members with limited English proficiency, parents and family members with disabilities, and parents and family members of migratory children, including providing information and school reports required under Title I in a format and, to the extent practicable, in a language such parents understand.

Use, Distribution, and Updating of this Policy

This Title I Parental and Family Engagement Policy shall be incorporated into the District’s Title I plan, shall be distributed to parents and family members of participating children, shall be made available to the local community, and shall be updated periodically to meet the changing needs of the parents and family members and the school.

Legal Reference:
Every Student Succeeds Act (2015; 114th Congress S. 1177)

Adopted:  April 10, 2017

Revised: September 9, 2019