West Virginia
Campaign for Grade-Level Reading
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Creating a
20/20
Vision
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Community Engagement
LEADE
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RS
Tranformative System of Support
for Early Literacy
West Virginia Department of Education
Division of Teaching and Learning
Office of Early Learning
Step 1
West Virginia Campaign for Grade-Level Reading Community Engagement Toolkit
WVBE Policy 2512: A Transformative System of
Support for Early Literacy
The provisions established by the refocusing of West Virginia Code §18-2E-10 have resulted in a repeal
and replace of WVBE Policy 2512 (currently on public comment) to ensure county boards of education are
provided a framework to support a transformative system of support for early literacy. This policy includes
key national and other researched-based components of a comprehensive system to support early literacy
development. The framework is inclusive of the components evidenced below:
West Virginia’s Campaign for Grade Level Reading:
A Transformative System of Support for Early Literacy
Measurement and Support of Children’s Trajectory
for 3rd Grade Literacy Proficiency
A Systemic, Comprehensive Approach
WV Early Learning Reporting System
• Data reporting based on the formative
assessment process
• Family communication resources
• Outcome resources for data-driven decision
making
• Comprehensive P-3 data profile
• 3rd grade achievement gap data analysis
High-quality, Standards-based instruction and
learning
• Personalized learning
• Standards-focused instruction
• Relationship between learning and teaching
Emphasizing high-quality school readiness efforts
Promoting early childhood school attendance
Providing supports to eliminate summer learning loss
Increasing family engagement
Ensuring high-quality instruction and learning
The infrastructure to develop and implement a state wide campaign to close the reading achievement gap is
found in WVBE Policy 2512:
• WVBE Policy 2512: Tranformative System of Support for Early Literacy
• WV Leaders of Literacy: Campaign for Grade Level Reading
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Step 1
West Virginia Campaign for Grade-Level Reading Community Engagement Toolkit
A Comprehensive Approach to Reading Success
by the End of the Third Grade
School
Readiness
Too many children from low-income families begin school already far behind. The research shows that these
children are less likely to be read or spoken to regularly or to have access to books, literacy-rich environments,
high-quality early care, and pre-k programs. As a consequence, these children may hear as many as 30
million fewer words than their middle-income peers before reaching kindergarten. Research also shows that
such interactions are critical for language development, an important precursor to literacy.
61 percent of low-income children
have no children’s books at home.
The
Attendance
Gap
A child’s vocabulary as early as
age three can predict third grade
reading proficiency.
Too many children from low-income families miss too many days of school. Research has found that one in
10 kindergarten and first grade students nationwide misses nearly a month of school each year in excused
and unexcused absences. By fifth grade, children with chronic absences who are from low-income families
achieve lower academically.
One in ten kindergarten students
miss nearly a month of school
every year. In some districts it runs
as high as one in three.
Summer
Learning
Loss
Poor children hear as many as 30
million fewer words than their more
affluent peers.
Kindergarteners who miss 10
percent of school days have lower
academic performance when they
reach first grade.
Among children from low-income
families, who lack the resources to
make up lost time, chronic absence
in kindergarten translated into lower
fifth grade achievement.
Too many children lose ground over the summer months. Without access to the enriching activities available
to more affluent peers, research shows that children from low-income families lose as much as three months
of reading comprehension skills over the summer. By the end of fifth grade, they are nearly three grade levels
behind their peers.
Low-income students lose an
average of more than two months
in reading achievement in the
summer, while their middle income
peers tend to make gains in
reading.
By the end of the fifth grade,
disadvantaged children are nearly
three grade equivalents behind
their more affluent peers in reading.
Studies show 6-week summer
learning programs can produce
statistically significant gains in
reading performance.
Family
Engagement
Parents are the first teachers and most important advocates for their children. Research shows that students
are most successful academically and socially when their parents are involved and engaged in their learning.
Encouraging family engagement can help turn around the state’s achievement problems, starting with making
significant progress against the milestone of grade-level reading by the end of third grade.
Healthy
Readers
Learning begins at birth and healthy development greatly impacts children’s ability to learn. Children who
are on track in their physical, social and emotional, cognitive, and verbal development are more successful
learners from their earliest years, and they are more likely to become proficient readers by the end of the third
grade.
State Level
Outreach and
Professional
Development
The WVDE works with child and family advocates to help assure a seamless system of care, services, and
supports from birth through third grade. This includes policy and practice that promotes children’s optimal
social, emotional, and cognitive development; improves professional development for the early childhood
education workforce, and supports parents as their children’s first teacher and best advocate.
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Step 1
West Virginia Campaign for Grade-Level Reading Community Engagement Toolkit
Overview of the County Early Literacy
Community Engagement Toolkit:
The purpose of this toolkit is provide support that encourages and assists counties in engaging their
communities in a dialogue around the local Campaign for Grade-Level Reading. This is STEP 1 in the four
step process of establishing a transformative system of support for students to meet grade-level proficiency
in reading by the end of third grade, targeting a comprehensive system of support for early literacy in grades
kindergarten through third grade.
STEPS TO A SUCCESSFUL CAMPAIGN
Step 1
Step 2
Step 3
Step 4
Community
Engagement
Complete the
County Needs
Assessment
Submit an
Early Literacy
County Plan
Implement
and Support
Take the initial steps for
ensuring the right
partners are involved.
Determine your
community’s unique
strenghts, opportunities
and challenges
Identify what you aim to
achieve and the steps
needed for success
Embed a culture of
literacy in your
community to help
close the literacy
achievement gap
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Step 1
West Virginia Campaign for Grade-Level Reading Community Engagement Toolkit
What Is Community Engagement?
Community engagement is “the process of working collaboratively with and through groups of people
affiliated by geographic proximity, special interest or similar situations to address issues affecting the wellbeing of those people.” It “involves partnerships and coalitions that help mobilize resources and influence
systems, change relationships among partners, and serve as a catalyst for changing policies, programs and
practices.”
Although schools must be accountable for helping all children achieve, providing effective teaching for all
children in every classroom every day, the Campaign is based on the belief that schools cannot succeed
alone. Engaged communities mobilized to remove barriers, expand opportunities, and assist parents in
fulfilling their roles and responsibilities to serve as full partners in the success of their children are needed to
assure student success.
Why Is Community Engagement Important?
The purpose of TRANSFORMATIVE SYSTEM OF SUPPORT FOR EARLY LITERACY (WVBE Policy 2512) is
to provide rules that encourage and assist county boards in establishing a transformative system of support
for students to meet grade-level proficiency in reading by the end of third grade, targeting a comprehensive
system of support for early literacy in grades kindergarten through third grade. This approach focuses
on supports during the early learning years which include schools and engaged communities mobilized to
remove barriers, expand opportunities, and assist parents in fulfilling their roles and responsibilities to serve
as full partners in the success of their children. The development of a comprehensive, systemic approach
to close the reading achievement gap by third grade targets school readiness, the attendance gap, summer
learning loss and a transformative intervention framework and serves as the blueprint for West Virginia’s
Campaign for Grade Level Reading.
Engaging Communities increases your campaign’s influence and ability to achieve the change you desire. It
broadens your base of support and can put you in touch with important contacts to leverage resources and
get specialized expertise. That kind of support not only makes a program more effective but also improves its
prospects for sustainability.
The community partners that you engage are potential candidates for the County Campaign for Grade-Level
Reading Team that will assist with the development of your county’s Needs Assessment (Step 2). They can
also be instrumental in:
• Identifying additional community partners.
• Building “social capital” -- social ties, networks, and support -- which is associated with better
community unity and well-being.
• Decision-making that can uncover and mobilize community assets, strengths, and resources that would
have been otherwise overlooked.
Before you begin, you need to create a strategy for “gaining entry.” Identify local individuals and organizations
that have historically been advocates of education and literacy initiatives, and build relationships with them
based on trust and mutual respect. Think about who might be good leaders and who might play different
roles. Consider what resources you will need to get people involved and sustain their interest until goals are
met.
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Step 1
West Virginia Campaign for Grade-Level Reading Community Engagement Toolkit
Potential Partners:
County Libraries
and Museums
Town & City
Government
Literacy
Organizations
Medical
Community
Pediatricians
Family Health Care
Local Health Departments
Dentists
Hospitals
Adult Reading Programs
Imagination Library
WV Read Aloud
Save the Children
Parents as Mentors
Parent•Teacher
Organizations
Faith-Based
Organizations
Civic
Organizations
Extended Learning
Organizations
United Way
Rotary Club
Lion’s Club
Boy/Girl Scouts
Kiwanis
Energy Express
After School Network
YMCA/YWCA
Institutions of
Higher Education
Philanthropic
Organizations
Early Childhood
Organizations
Business
Owners
DHHR/Childcare
Head Start, Early Head Start
Birth to 3
In-home Visitation Programs
Family Resource Network
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Step 1
West Virginia Campaign for Grade-Level Reading Community Engagement Toolkit
Steps to Engaging the Community
1.Assess Community Needs and Resources
To get started, an essential first step is a thorough assessment of the Campaign’s needs and resources.
The assessment should focus on the Campaign’s three major components: School Readiness,
Extended Learning, and Attendance—and part on the larger community system—literacy programs
and organizations, community values toward literacy programs, history and experience with community
engagement efforts, and so on. This assessment will help you identify needs—where there are gaps—and
also identify change agents, good people to involve in your own community engagement effort and serve
on the county’s Campaign for Grade-Level Reading Team.
2.Share the Vision of Your County’s Campaign for Grade-Level Reading with
the Community
Sharing information about the Campaign with the community when you have gained entry, and regularly
and frequently (at least monthly) as the project progresses is of great importance. Tell the story of
the Transformative System of Support for Early Literacy in a clear and compelling way. Use simple
language, with visuals, and involve the audience with open-ended questions. Share the story in writing
too, through the Web, newsletters, newspapers and social networking media. This sharing builds mutual
understanding and collaboration and helps your program leverage collective wisdom, effort and support
from the community. Consistently reiterate your vision, and emphasize that participating empowers the
community and helps achieve collective wisdom to produce innovative solutions that improve the quality
of life.
3.Ask Community Members to Assist With the Implementation of the
County’s Campaign for Grade-Level Reading
The next step is getting staff, partners and stakeholders to get involved, working together for the benefit
of your program. They can help with program planning, bringing different perspectives to the table,
offering specialized expertise, and serve on the county’s Campaign for Grade-Level Reading Team. They
may be able to expand the program if volunteers can supplement paid staff or partners can create new
opportunities by lending resources. Raising awareness of the program (marketing) is another major way
they can contribute, taking advantage of both informal networking and social networking media. Raising
money, providing space for activities, and providing pro bono specialized training for staff are other
ways they can contribute. Also, as private citizens, they can advocate for public policies that address
needs identified in the community. Once people and organizations become engaged in working with your
program, they are bound to bring forward other creative ideas for support as well.
4.Shaping Your Community On-Going Engagement Effort
The final step is shaping your community engagement effort, selecting who will be involved and how they
will work together. In thinking about whom to involve, consider the frequency of participation required; the
knowledge, skills and attitudes a person might contribute; the money or time one could contribute; and
the flexibility required to revise activities as needed; and enduring commitment to the initiative. Decide
whether participation will be open to all or by invitation only, and determine a manageable size and
what diverse knowledge, skills and capacities are needed. Strive to include representation of those not
traditionally asked to the table and achieve a balance of thinkers and doers.
Once participants are brought together, they need to determine meeting schedules and modes (inperson, online, by phone). Roles and responsibilities must be assigned, and the group must agree on
leadership roles and their decision-making.
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Step 1
West Virginia Campaign for Grade-Level Reading Community Engagement Toolkit
Successful Community Engagement
There are several ways to increase the likelihood of success for your community engagement effort:
1. Take time to build relationships.
2. Understand the community’s systems and context.
3. Make it easy to participate/eliminate barriers to engagement.
4. Explain the relevance and benefits of the initiative.
5. Empower the community from within.
6. Use coalitions/advisory groups effectively from the beginning to the end of the initiative.
7. Identify desired engagement behaviors.
8. Share the Campaign. Through this communication, you will educate current and potential stakeholders.
(Host live events, volunteer to present at events, create a blog, write news articles, utilize social media,
engage in one-on-one conversations)
9. Be a responsive community engagement leader
Guidelines for working with community partners:
1. Follow up on contacts with potential partners and potential Campaign for Grade-Level Reading Team
members
2. Follow up on offers from community members to provide services to schools
3. Prepare agendas for meetings and adhere to them as closely as possible
4. Be cautious in asking potential partners for financial assistance
5. Be sincere when you ask for advice and respond to suggestions
Community Engagement is the process of building relationships with community members who will work sideby-side with you as an ongoing partner, in any and every way imaginable, building an army of support for
your Campaign for Grade-Level Reading, with the end goal of ensuring that every child reads proficiently by
third grade, and children graduate high school college and career ready. Community Engagement activities
are interactive - they are about sharing of your goals and dreams for the community - creating real, honest
connection.
The steps in creating a Community Engagement Plan are simple. Much like other planning processes, they
will include identifying goals, and then breaking down who you need to engage, and how you will engage
them. The key is to realize you are engaging in a real relationship - one that can accomplish the goals at
hand, while engaging that person’s caring and wisdom. An engaged community will not only attend an event,
but they will also volunteer, and write letters to their legislators; they will help you make your Campaign more
effective and mobilize a core group of stakeholders that are committed to moving forward.
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