Engaged Families: An Essential
Dropout Prevention Strategy
Information taken from the National Dropout Prevention Center
for Students with Disabilities @ www.ndpc-sd.org
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It’s the Law!
IDEA 2004
ESSA 2015 (Every Student Succeeds Act)
NCLB 2002
All contain requirements
about parent participation
in their youth’s education.
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Graduation 20/20
…established to assist in building capacity to
increase the high school completion rate for ALL
students with special emphasis on students with
disabilities (SWD) and those of low socioeconomic status.
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Family Influences are Powerful
(Mapp, 2006)
There is a positive and convincing relationship between family
involvement and benefits for students, including improved academic
achievement. The relationship holds across families of all economic,
ethnic, and educational backgrounds and for all students of all ages.
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Introduction
 During the elementary years as youth move from “learning to read” to
“reading to learn,” the partnerships that have formed between parents
and teachers remain critical.
 As youth transition to adolescence and beyond, the support gained
from effective home-school partnerships is proven to boost students’
academic performance, school attendance, behavior marks, and selfimage.
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Families of all cultural backgrounds,
education, and income levels:
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Encourage their Children
Talk to them about the importance of school
Help them plan for higher education
Keep them focused on learning
Help them with their homework
Funding Title I Parent and Family Engagement Set-Aside:
Requirements
 1% district is required
 90% (of the 1%) to schools
 Priority given to high-need schools
 Parents and family members of low-income students
must have a voice
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Funding Title I Parent and Family Engagement Set-Aside:
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Funds must be used for at least one of the below activities:
1. Training school staff regarding engagement strategies;
2. Supporting programs that reach families at home, in the community and at school;
3. Disseminating information on best practices focused on engagement, especially
for increasing engagement of economically disadvantaged families;
4. Sub-granting to schools to collaborate with community-based organizations or
businesses that have a track record of improving family engagement; or
5. Engaging in any other activities that the district believes are appropriate in
increasing engagement.
6. A state must provide an assurance in its state plan that it will provide school
districts and schools with effective parent and family engagement strategies.
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Title IV Statewide Family Engagement Centers
Statewide Family Engagement Centers
1. Assist parents in participating effectively in their children’s education and
helping their children meet state academic standards;
2. Develop and implement, in partnership with the state, statewide policy to
provide services that will help to remove barriers for family engagement;
and
3. Develop and implement parental involvement policies required in the ESSA.
County and School Strategic Plans
When developing the plan:
1. Must consult parents of children in schools receiving Title I
funds and Special Education.
2. Must include strategies the district will employ to meet the
parent an.d family engagement requirements
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Combine School Efforts
Parent and Family Engagement Strategies and Activities
What information do
parents need so that
student success is
maximized?
Have the highest
dropout rate.
Parents of Students with
Special Needs
Academic
Parents who
fit both
subgroups
Community
Parents of Low-Income
Students
How does your
parent center
support
parents?
How do you address
parent concerns?
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Families of Youth with Disabilities:
Are as involved in school as any other
parents—often more so.
Variations based on disability:
 Speech or orthopedic impairments – most
likely to participate in school meetings,
events, or to volunteer.
 EBD or MR – least likely to participate
in above, but are most likely to attend
parent-teacher conferences.
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Benefits of Family Involvement for
School
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Gain parents’ trust, input and support
Improved school leadership and staffing
Better quality and variety of instructional programs
More professional development for teachers and staff
Increased funding for health and safety initiatives
Improved facilities at school
Better overall outcomes for the students
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Benefits of Family Involvement for
Parents
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Develop relationships, trust and bonds with the school
School gains an understanding of the parent’s viewpoints and needs
School climate improves because of health and safety initiatives
School facilities and programs improve
Better overall outcomes for the students
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Benefits of Family Involvement for
Students
Middle school and high school students whose parents
remain involved tend to:
 Have a positive attitude about school
 Earn higher grades
 Score higher on standardized tests
 Graduate from high school and enroll in post-secondary programs
 Refrain from destructive activities such as alcohol and drug use and violence
 Have better overall outcomes
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Effective Action Steps
• Link family and community engagement efforts to student learning;
• Create initiatives that will support families to guide their children’s
learning, from preschool through high school;
• Develop the capacity of school staff to work with families;
• Focus efforts to engage families on developing trusting and
respectful relationships; and
• Embrace a philosophy of partnership and be willing to share power
with families. Make sure that parents and school staff understand
that the responsibility for children’s educational development is a
collaborative enterprise (Mapp, 2004).
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Think About It
 How would you characterize the home-school partnerships
at your school (e.g., good, average, poor, non-existent)?
 In what ways do parents partner with your school? …is
there a local parent group/organization that supports
parents?
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High School Students
In the transition years,
parents of children with disabilities
must confront the impact of disability
on their child in the adult world
as well as new fears for their child’s future.
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Creating Partnerships with Parents
“Despite widespread endorsement of family-school partnerships to
support student learning, most educators in the United States have
received little or no training in working effectively with families”
(International Reading Association, 2002)
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What Families Say…
Families say that the current system does not make it easy for them
to be effective partners:
• Lack of coordinated, individualized services for students
• Cultural differences may complicate relationship
• Lack of information
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What Youth Say….
71% said one of the keys to
keeping them in school is
better communication between
parents and schools and
increased parental
involvement in their education
Fewer than half said that their school contacted them
or their parents when they were absent or dropped out
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Parents Aren’t Born Knowing
How to Engage
So help them learn how!
 Support parents in understanding how they can become involved at school –
to whatever degree they are able/want to
 Offer parents opportunities to learn about your school and how they can
become involved
 Work with your PTI to start a parent mentor program or a parent university
 Connect parents with the PTI and other resources
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Barriers to Inclusive Family
Involvement
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Schools not knowing how to form family/school partnerships
Parents not knowing how to form family/school partnerships
Parents not knowing the law, or their rights, responsibilities, etc.
Transportation issues
Timing of meetings conflicts
Language – ESL and the jargon of education
Parents’ fear of retribution
Family adversity and negative parental attitudes about school
Schools are sometimes more welcoming to parents they want to interact
with than to ‘problem parents’
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Think About It
 What are the greatest barriers parents face in interacting and
partnering with your school?
 Discuss how the barrier(s) might be overcome.
 Share out!
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Considerations
• What roles are families comfortable with?
• What information or supports do families need to participate
and/or to support students’ education
• How’s your school climate for family involvement?
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Think About It
List two strategies (e.g., activities, events, meetings, focus groups,
media, flyers) that will assist in creating and increasing positive
relationships with your child’s school.
Consider the following:
 Family awareness
 Family engagement/involvement
 Family support
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Validate- Welcome all families into the
school community
Families are active participants in the life of the school, and feel
welcomed, valued, and connected to each other, to school staff, and
to what students are learning and doing in class.
PTA
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Validate – Welcome all families into the
school community
Share the power: Families and school staff are equal partners in decisions
that affect children and families, and together inform, influence and
create policies, practices and programs.
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NAVIGATE
Consider Culture and Climate
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Strategy: Use Cultural
Navigators
 Tailor training to the cultural traditions of families to improve
recruitment and outcome effectiveness
 For example, parents from culturally and racially diverse populations may
prefer one-on-one meetings rather than more traditional training formats
 Additional strategies may include family-mentoring programs, needs
assessment surveys, and working with culturally specific community
organizations that have created relationships of trust
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Cultivate family involvement
Strategies:
 Account for cultural and individual differences
 Offer a wide variety of ways to participate
 Support participation in any school or community opportunity
 Enable participation regardless of skill level
 Provide support to improve participation skills
 Develop annual family events and build on them
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Cultivate family involvement
Strategies:
 Arrange meeting schedules to accommodate family needs
 Provide staff development on welcoming and working
collaboratively with families and students
 Develop supports and materials that reflect diversity
 Make regular home/school communication an expectation
 Provide referrals to community resources
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Communicate Effectively
Families and school staff engage in regular, two-way, meaningful
communication about student learning.
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Cultivate better communication
Strategies:
 Reach out to families
 Visit your students’ homes
 Invite parents to be part of school teams and committees
 Hold parent conferences or support groups
 Provide feedback to parents on student progress more frequently
 Report more than just negative behavior
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Cultivate better communication
Strategies:
 Phone network or chain of volunteer families to call each other
 Short survey to determine events and activities families want
 Invite families to visit, and create a comfortable environment
 Suggestion box for families to communicate anonymously
 Opportunities for youth involvement in all school activities
 Open school gym, pools, classrooms for after-school events
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ERASE
Parent Dissatisfaction and Disengagement
Explain – What is the problem?
Reason – What is he/she getting out of it or avoiding?
Appropriate – What do you want him/her to do
instead?
Support – How can you help this happen more often?
Evaluate – How will you know if it works?
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Understand and Provide the
Resources and Strategies
Parents Need to Participate
Effectively
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Resources to support family involvement
Informational needs of parents and students:
 Self-advocacy
 Balancing educational standards education with
functional life skills
 Career preparation and employment options
 Collaboration across systems and agencies
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Resources to support family involvement
School policies and procedures:
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Written policies that overtly respect diversity
Clear information for families on policies, goals, reforms
Training available for families on policy, reform, related issues
Accessible and understandable decision-making and
problem-solving processes
 Student and family stakeholders on governance and other
programs and committees
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Strategies Parents Can Use to
Participate
 Share the goals you have for your child
 Respond to requests from school within a timely manner
 Seek clarification—Don’t be shy… ASK QUESTIONS!!
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Strategies Parents Can Use to
Participate
 Share your concerns often – as frequently as possible – both the negative and
positive
 Be certain to share concerns in a positive manner, ensuring that you are
assisting in the relationship to improve and strengthen the communication
between parents and schools in general
 Promote communication with your child
 Consider how your child interacts within the school environment
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Strategies Parents Can Use to
Participate
Home visits
 Be prepared
 Ask questions, seek clarification
 Seek feedback on students’ progress, frequently
Establish a line of communication that works best
for you and the school representative.
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Summary
• Work to develop proactive parent involvement
• Assess your school’s climate… Is it family friendly?
• Train school personnel on building parent engagement
• Conduct a family needs assessment and use the results
• Help parents learn how to participate
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Summary
• Use a variety of communication methods and strategies
• Communicate based on individual student and family needs
• Include alternate formats and languages as needed
• Strengthen communication with parents: send information home frequently
• Don’t forget to report positive student behavior and achievement!
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Relationships are KEY!
“The ways schools care about children is reflected in the
way schools care about the children’s families.”
(Epstein, 1995)
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Selected Resources
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http://www.wvpti.org/
http://www.parentcenterhub.org/
http://www.parentcenterhub.org/ptacs/
http://www.servingongroups.org/
http://www.spanadvocacy.org/Resources
http://www.pacer.org/
http://www.thearc.org/
https://www.disability.gov/
http://webgui.phila.k12.pa.us/offices/p/publicengagement/pfengagement/framework
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http://www2.ed.gov/documents/family-community/partnership-frameworks.pdf
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http://www2.ed.gov/documents/family-community/faqs.pdf
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http://www2.ed.gov/documents/family-community/partners-education.pdf
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http://www.gse.harvard.edu/news-tags/karen-mapp
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http://www.k12.wa.us/GATE/default.aspx
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http://www.k12.wa.us/GATE/BuildingBridges/pubdocs/DEWISGuide-Final.pdf
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http://www.gaspdg.org/graduate-first
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https://www.surveymonkey.com/s/parent-engagement-template
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For Additional Information:
Contact
Nancy Cline, Coordinator
nmcline@k12.wv.us
Pat Homberg, Executive Director
phomberg@k12.wv.us
Susan Beck, Assistant Director
sbeck@k12.wv.us