West Virginia Achieves Professional Development

Series

Volume XXIIIVolume XXIII

Proactive Community Collaboration to Support

Student Success

West Virginia Department of Education Mission

 The West Virginia Department of Education, in conjunction with the Regional Education Service Agencies and the Office of Performance Audits, will create systemic conditions, processes and structures within the West Virginia public school system that result in (1) all students achieving mastery and beyond and (2) closing the achievement gap among sub-groups of the student population.

Robert HutchinsThe Conflict in Education in a Democratic Society

“Perhaps the greatest idea that America has given the world is education for all. The world is entitled to know whether this idea means that everybody can be educated or simply that everyone must go to school.”

What We Know…

An emerging body of research identifies characteristics of high performing school systems.

These school systems have made significant progress in bringing all students to mastery and in closing the achievement gap.

These systems share characteristics described in The West Virginia Framework for High Performing Schools.

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CULTURE OF COMMON BELIEFS & VALUES

Dedicated to “Learning for ALL…Whatever It Takes”

HIGH PERFORMING SCHOOL SYSTEM

SYSTEMIC CONTINUOUS

IMPROVEMENT PROCESS

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Introduction and Rationale• Proactive community collaboration to

support student success by creating– Cohesiveness– Consistency– Reinforcement– Support

FOR EVERY STUDENT!

School Mental Health Project

“School-community partnerships can weave together a critical

mass of resources and strategies to enhance caring communities that support all youth and their families and enable success at school and

beyond”.

Why do we need School and Community Partnerships?

• Schools are the center of most communities.

• Both parents are working or a large percentage of households are single parent.

• Blending of family, school and community resources can target mutual goals.

School Mental Health Project

“One of the most important, cross-cutting social policy

perspectives to emerge in recent years is an awareness that no single institution can create all

the conditions that young people need to flourish.”

 

Activity # 1• Review and Complete Self-Assessment

Tool for Schools to Evaluate Parent/Family and Community

Involvement

What are the Benefits of a School-Community Partnership?

• Enhanced academic performance

• Fewer discipline problems

• Higher staff morale

• Improved use of resources

• Proactive approach to community problems

Students with involved parents were more likely to

•Enroll in higher-level programs.

•Be promoted, pass their classes and earn credits.

•Attend school regularly.

•Enroll in more challenging academic programs.

•Improve behavior at home and school.

The Casey Foundation

“When schools build partnerships with families that respond to their concerns and honor their contributions, they are

successful in sustaining connections that are aimed at improving student

achievement.”

Making Connections• More children/families have access to health

insurance• More children enter school with the cognitive

strengths, social skills and health that enable them to learn.

• More children have developmentally appropriate preschool experiences.

• More children progress from grade to grade as proficient learners. • Student elementary school attendance increases.

The Casey Foundation’s Three Specific Outcomes

• Impact

• Influence

• Leverage

Activity # 2

• Provide examples of schools that are working to strengthen family involvement.

• Identify strategies that have been the most successful?

• Identify some of the barriers.

How To Develop Community-Based Resources That Lead To

Student Success?

• Create an organizational structure for parent involvement, such as school-based community involvement centers– Parent volunteer coordinator– Parent involvement workshops

A West Virginia Success Story

Family Involvement in Children’s Education

• Features strategies used by 20 Title I Programs to overcome barriers to parent involvement.

• Features strategies that strengthen parent-school communications and help parents support school wide programs.

Barriers to Family Involvement

– Overcoming time and resource constraints– Providing information and training to parents

and school staff– Restructuring school to support family

involvement– Bridging school-family differences– Tapping external supports for partnerships

During 1995-1996– Parents volunteered more than 7000 hours– CTBS scores improve

Evidence of Success

Connecting School, Family and Community Resources

Family Resource Approach

– Need • Employment• Health and Education Services• Physical well-being and safety

Activity #3

• Identify available resources in your community.

• Identify additional resources your community needs.

ReferencesAnnie E. Casey Foundation. Strengthening Schools: Professional Development

Resources. Retrieved on March 3, 2005 from

http://www.aecf.org/initiatives/mc/sf/schools/resources.htm#1.

Bernick, Rivian and Rutherford, Barry. Connecting School Family Community

Resources. RMC Research Corporation. Retrieved on March 7, 2005 from

http://parentinginformation.org/connectingschoolfam.htm.

 

Lounv, Richard (February 26, 1999). How to Increase Parent Involvement in the

Schools. Retrieved on March 3, 2005 from

http://staging.connectforkids.org/articles/parent_involvement_schools.

  

References National PTA. Self-Assessment Tool for Schools to Evaluate Parent/Family Involvement

Retrieved on February 28, 2005 from http://www.pta.org/parentinvolvement/certification/standard6.asp .

Nissani, Helen (2003) Are Schools Ready for Families? Case Studies in School-Family Relationships. Retrieved on March 3, 2005 from

http://www.communityschools.org/AreSchoolsReady.pdf.

 

School Mental Health Project Department. School -Community Partnerships: A Guide. Retrieved on February 28, 2000 from

smhp.psych.ucla.edu/pdfdocs/Partnership/scpart1.pdf .

ReferencesWherry, John (August 27, 2004). Selected Parent Involvement Research. Retrieved on

March 11, 2005 from

http://www.par-inst.com/educator/resources/research/research.php.

Winters, Kirk (October, 1997). Family Involvement in Children’s Education:

Successful Local Approaches. Retrieved on March 3, 2005 from

http://www.educationworld.com/a_issues/issues027.shtml