Parent Involvement Policy
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- Board Policy 6020 PDF [Español]
Instruction BP 6020(a)
PARENT INVOLVEMENT
The Governing Board recognizes that parents/guardians are their children's first and most influential teachers and that sustained parent involvement in the education of their children contributes greatly to student achievement and a positive school environment. The Superintendent or designee shall work with staff and parents/guardians to develop meaningful opportunities at all grade levels for parents/guardians to be involved in district and school activities; advisory, decision-making, and advocacy roles; and activities to support learning at home.
Parents/guardians shall be notified of their rights to be informed about and to participate in their children's education and of the opportunities available to them to do so.
The Superintendent or designee shall regularly evaluate and report to the Board on the effectiveness of the district's parent involvement efforts, including, but not limited to, input from parents/guardians and school staff on the adequacy of parent involvement opportunities and barriers that may inhibit parent/guardian participation.
Title I Schools
Each year the Superintendent or designee shall identify specific objectives of the district's parent involvement program for schools that receive Title I funding. He/she shall ensure that parents/guardians are consulted and participate in the planning, design, implementation, and evaluation of the parent involvement program. (Education Code 11503)
The Superintendent or designee shall ensure that the district's parent involvement strategies are jointly developed with and agreed upon by parents/guardians of students participating in Title I programs. Those strategies shall establish expectations for parent involvement and describe how the district will carry out each activity listed in 20 USC 6318. (20 USC 6318)
The Superintendent or designee shall consult with parents/guardians of participating students in the planning and implementation of parent involvement programs, activities, and regulations. He/she also shall involve parents/guardians of participating students in decisions regarding how the district's Title I funds will be allotted for parent involvement activities. (20 USC 6318) The Superintendent or designee shall ensure that each school receiving Title I funds develops a school-level parent involvement policy in accordance with 20 USC 6318.
Non-Title I Schools
The Superintendent or designee shall develop and implement strategies applicable to each school that does not receive federal Title I funds to encourage the involvement and support of parents/guardians in the education of their children, including, but not limited to, strategies describing how the district and schools will address the purposes and goals described in Education Code 11502. (Education Code 11504)
Instruction AR 6020(a)
PARENT INVOLVEMENT
District Strategies for Title I Schools
To ensure that parents/guardians of students participating in Title I programs are provided with opportunities to be involved in their children's education, the Superintendent or designee shall:
1. Involve parents/guardians of participating students in the joint development of the Title I local educational agency (LEA) plan pursuant to 20 USC 6312 and the process of school review and improvement pursuant to 20 USC 6316 (20 USC 6318)
The Superintendent or designee may:
a. Establish a district-level committee including parent/guardian representatives from each school site to review and comment on the LEA plan in accordance with the review schedule established by the Governing Board
b. Invite input on the LEA plan from other district committees and school site councils
c. Communicate with parents/guardians through the district newsletter, web site, or other methods regarding the LEA plan and the opportunity to provide input
d. Provide copies of working drafts of the LEA plan to parents/guardians in an understandable and uniform format and, to the extent practicable, in a language the parents/guardians can understand
e. Ensure that there is an opportunity at a public Board meeting for public comment on the LEA plan prior to the Board's approval of the plan or revisions to the plan
f. Ensure that school-level policies on parent involvement address the role of school site councils and other parents/guardians as appropriate in the development and review of school plans
2. Provide coordination, technical assistance, and other support necessary to assist Title I schools in planning and implementing effective parent involvement activities to improve student academic achievement and school performance (20 USC 6318)
The Superintendent or designee may:
a. Assign person(s) in the district office to serve as a liaison to the schools regarding Title I parent involvement issues
b. Provide training for the principal or designee of each participating school regarding Title I requirements for parent involvement, leadership strategies, and communication skills to assist him/her in facilitating the planning and implementation of parent involvement activities
c. Provide ongoing district-level workshops to assist school site staff and parents/guardians in planning and implementing improvement strategies, and seek input from parents/guardians in developing the workshops
d. Provide information to schools about the indicators and assessment tools that will be used to monitor progress
3. Build the capacity of schools and parents/guardians for strong parent involvement (20 USC 6318)
The Superintendent or designee shall: (20 USC 6318)
a. Assist parents/guardians in understanding such topics as the state's academic content standards and 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
b. Provide materials and training to help parents/guardians work with their children to improve their children's achievement, such as literacy training and using technology, as appropriate, to foster parent involvement
c. Educate teachers, student services personnel, principals, and other staff, with the assistance of parents/guardians, in the value and utility of parent/guardian contributions and in how to reach out to, communicate with, and work with parents/guardians as equal partners, implement and coordinate parent/guardian programs, and build ties between parents/guardians and the schools
d. Ensure that information related to school and parent/guardian programs, meetings, and other activities is sent to the parents/guardians of participating students in a format and, to the extent practicable, in a language the parents/guardians can understand
e. Provide other such reasonable support for parent involvement activities as parents/guardians may request
f. Inform parents/guardians and parent organizations of the existence and purpose of parent information and resource centers in the state that provide training, information, and support to parents/guardians of participating students
In addition, the Superintendent or designee may:
a. Involve parents/guardians in the development of training for teachers, principals, and other educators to improve the effectiveness of such training
b. Provide necessary literacy training, using Title I funds if the district has exhausted all other reasonably available sources of funding for such training
c. Pay reasonable and necessary expenses associated with parent involvement activities, including transportation and child care costs, to enable parents/guardians to participate in school-related meetings and training sessions
d. Train parents/guardians to enhance the involvement of other parents/guardians
e. Arrange school meetings at a variety of times or, when parents/guardians are unable to attend such conferences, conduct in-home conferences between parents/guardians and teachers or other educators who work directly with participating students
f. Adopt and implement model approaches to improving parent involvement
g. Establish a districtwide parent advisory council to provide advice on all matters related to parent involvement in Title I programs
h. Develop appropriate roles for community-based organizations and businesses in parent involvement activities
i. Make referrals to community agencies and organizations that offer literacy training, parent education programs, and/or other services that help to improve the conditions of parents/guardians and families
j. Provide a master calendar of district activities and district meetings
k. Provide information about opportunities for parent involvement through the district newsletter, web site, or other written or electronic means
l. Engage parent-teacher organizations to actively seek out and involve parents/guardians through regular communication updates and information sessions
m. To the extent practicable, provide translation services at school sites and at meetings involving parents/guardians as needed
n. Provide training and information to members of district and school site councils and advisory committees to help them fulfill their functions
o. Regularly evaluate the effectiveness of staff development activities related to parent involvement
p. Include expectations for parent/guardian outreach and involvement in staff job descriptions and evaluations
The Superintendent or designee may:
a. Identify overlapping or similar program requirements
b. Involve district and school site representatives from other programs to assist in identifying specific population needs
c. Schedule joint meetings with representatives from related programs and share data and information across programs
d. Develop a cohesive, coordinated plan focused on student needs and shared goals
5. Conduct, with involvement of parents/guardians, an annual evaluation of the content and effectiveness of the parent involvement policy in improving the academic quality of the schools served by Title I (20 USC 6318)
The Superintendent or designee shall:
a. Ensure that the evaluation include the identification of barriers to greater participation in parent involvement activities, with particular attention to parents/guardians who are economically disadvantaged, are disabled, have limited English proficiency, have limited literacy, or are of any racial or ethnic minority background (20 USC 6318)
b. Use the evaluation results to design strategies for more effective parent involvement and, if necessary, to recommend changes in the parent involvement policy (20 USC 6318)
c. Assess the district's progress in meeting annual objectives for the parent involvement program, notify parents/guardians of this review and assessment through regular school communications mechanisms, and provide a copy to parents/guardians upon their request (Education Code 11503)
The Superintendent or designee may:
a. Use a variety of methods, such as focus groups, surveys, and workshops, to evaluate the satisfaction of parents/guardians and staff with the quality and frequency of district communications
b. Gather and monitor data regarding the number of parents/guardians participating in district activities and the types of activities in which they are engaged
c. Recommend to the Board measures to evaluate the impact of the district's parent involvement efforts on student achievement
6. Involve parents/guardians in the activities of schools served by Title I (20 USC 6318)
The Superintendent or designee may:
a. Include information about school activities in district communications to parents/guardians
b. To the extent practicable, assist schools with translation services or other accommodations needed to encourage participation of parents/guardians with special needs
c. Establish processes to encourage parent/guardian input regarding their expectations and concerns for their children
The district's Board policy and administrative regulation containing parent involvement strategies shall be incorporated into the LEA plan and distributed to parents/guardians of students participating in Title I programs. (20 USC 6318)
School-Level Policies for Title I Schools
At each school receiving Title I funds, a written policy on parent involvement shall be developed jointly with and agreed upon by parents/guardians of participating students. Such policy shall describe the means by which the school will: (20 USC 6318)
1. Convene an annual meeting, at a convenient time, to which all parents/guardians of participating students shall be invited and encouraged to attend, in order to inform parents/guardians of their school's participation in Title I and to explain Title I requirements and the right of parents/guardians to be involved
2. Offer a flexible number of meetings, such as meetings in the morning or evening, for which related transportation, child care, and/or home visits may be provided as such services relate to parent involvement
3. Involve parents/guardians in an organized, ongoing, and timely way in the planning, review, and improvement of Title I programs, including the planning, review, and improvement of the school's parent involvement policy and, if applicable, the joint development of the plan for schoolwide programs pursuant to 20 USC 6314
The school may use an existing process for involving parents/guardians in the joint planning and design of the school's programs provided that the process includes adequate representation of parents/guardians of participating students.
4. Provide the parents/guardians of participating students all of the following:
a. Timely information about Title I programs
b. A description and explanation of the school's curriculum, forms of academic assessment used to measure student progress, and the proficiency levels students are expected to meet
c. If requested by parents/guardians, opportunities for regular meetings to formulate suggestions and to participate, as appropriate, in decisions related to their children's education, and, as soon as practicably possible, responses to the suggestions of parents/guardians
5. If the schoolwide program plan is not satisfactory to the parents/guardians of participating students, submit any parent/guardian comments when the school makes the plan available to the district
6. Jointly develop with the parents/guardians of participating students a school-parent compact that outlines how parents/guardians, the entire school staff, and students will share responsibility for improved student academic achievement and the means by which the school and parents/guardians will build a partnership to help students achieve state standards
This compact shall address:
a. The school's responsibility to provide high-quality curriculum and instruction in a supportive and effective learning environment that enables participating students to achieve the state's student academic achievement standards
b. Ways in which parents/guardians will be responsible for supporting their children's learning, such as monitoring attendance, homework completion, and television viewing; volunteering in the classroom; and participating, as appropriate, in decisions related to their children's education and the positive use of extracurricular time
c. The importance of communication between teachers and parents/guardians on an ongoing basis through, at a minimum:
(1) Parent-teacher conferences in elementary schools, at least annually, during which the compact shall be discussed as it relates to the student's achievement
(2) Frequent reports to parents/guardians on their children's progress
(3) Reasonable access to staff, opportunities to volunteer and participate in their child's classroom, and observation of classroom activities
7. Build the capacity of the school and parents/guardians for strong parent involvement by implementing the activities described in items #3a-f in the section "District Strategies for Title I Schools" above
8. To the extent practicable, provide full opportunities for the participation of parents/guardians with limited English proficiency, parents/guardians with disabilities, and parents/guardians of migrant children, including providing information and school reports required under 20 USC 6311(h) in a format and language such parents/guardians can understand
If the school has a parent involvement policy that applies to all parents/guardians, it may amend that policy to meet the above requirements. (20 USC 6318)
Each school's parent involvement policy shall be made available to the local community and distributed to parents/guardians of participating students in an understandable and uniform format and, to the extent practicable, provided in a language the parents/guardians can understand. (20 USC 6318)
Each school receiving Title I funds shall annually evaluate the effectiveness of its parent involvement policy. Such evaluation may be conducted during the process of reviewing the school's single plan for student achievement in accordance with Education Code 64001.
The principal or designee, jointly with parents/guardians of participating students, shall periodically update the school's policy to meet the changing needs of parents/guardians and the school. (20 USC 6318)
District Strategies for Non-Title I Schools
For each school that does not receive federal Title I funds, the Superintendent or designee shall, at a minimum:
1. Engage parents/guardians positively in their children's education by helping them develop skills to use at home that support their children's academic efforts at school and their children's development as responsible members of society (Education Code 11502, 11504)
The Superintendent or designee may:
a. Provide or make referrals to literacy training and/or parent education programs designed to improve the skills of parents/guardians and enhance their ability to support their children's education
b. Provide information, in parent handbooks and through other appropriate means, regarding academic expectations and resources to assist with the subject matter
c. Provide parents/guardians with information about students' class assignments and homework assignments
2. Inform parents/guardians that they can directly affect the success of their children's learning, by providing them with techniques and strategies that they may use to improve their children's academic success and to assist their children in learning at home (Education Code 11502, 11504)
The Superintendent or designee may:
a. Provide parents/guardians with information regarding ways to create an effective study environment at home and to encourage good study habits
b. Encourage parents/guardians to monitor their children's school attendance, homework completion, and television viewing
c. Encourage parents/guardians to volunteer in their child's classroom and to participate in school advisory committees
3. Build consistent and effective communication between the home and school so that parents/guardians may know when and how to assist their children in support of classroom learning activities (Education Code 11502, 11504)
The Superintendent or designee may:
a. Ensure that teachers provide frequent reports to parents/guardians on their children's progress and hold parent-teacher conferences at least once per year with parents/guardians of elementary school students
b. Provide opportunities for parents/guardians to observe classroom activities and to volunteer in their child's classroom
c. Provide information about parent involvement opportunities through district, school, and/or class newsletters, the district's web site, and other written or electronic communications
d. To the extent practicable, provide notices and information to parents/guardians in a format and language they can understand
e. Develop mechanisms to encourage parent/guardian input on district and school issues
f. Identify barriers to parent/guardian participation in school activities, including parents/guardians who are economically disadvantaged, are disabled, have limited English proficiency, have limited literacy, or are of any racial or ethnic minority background
g. Encourage greater parent/guardian participation by adjusting meeting schedules to accommodate parent/guardian needs and, to the extent practicable, by providing translation or interpreter services, transportation, and/or child care
4. Train teachers and administrators to communicate effectively with parents/guardians (Education Code 11502, 11504)
The Superintendent or designee may:
a. Provide staff development to assist staff in strengthening two-way communications with parents/guardians, including parents/guardians who have limited English proficiency or limited literacy
b. Invite input from parents/guardians regarding the content of staff development activities pertaining to home-school communications
5. Integrate parent involvement programs into school plans for academic accountability
The Superintendent or designee may:
a. Include parent involvement strategies in school reform or school improvement initiatives
b. Involve parents/guardians in school planning processes
Approved: 6/13/2019