Forsyth County Schools District Parental Involvement Policy
SECTION 1118(a)(2) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (ESEA):
In support of strengthening student academic achievement, each local educational agency (LEA)
or school district that receives Title I, Part A funds must develop jointly with, agree on with, and
distribute to, parents of participating children a written parental involvement policy that contains
information required by section 1118(a)(2) of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of
1965 (ESEA). The policy establishes the LEA’s expectations for parental involvement and
describes how the LEA will implement a number of specific parental involvement activities, and
it is incorporated into the LEA’s plan submitted to the State educational agency (SEA).
PART I
GENERAL EXPECTATIONS FROM
THE GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
[NOTE: Each district, in its District Parental Involvement Policy, must establish the
district’s expectations for parental involvement. [Section 1118(a)(2), ESEA.]
The Forsyth County School District agrees to implement the following statutory
requirements:

The school district will put into operation programs, activities and procedures
for the involvement of parents in all of its schools with Title I, Part A
programs, consistent with section 1118 of the Elementary and Secondary
Education Act of 1965 (ESEA). These programs, activities, and procedures
will be planned and operated with meaningful consultation with parents of
participating children.
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Consistent with section 1118, the school district will work with its schools to
ensure that the required school-level parental involvement policies meet the
requirements of section 1118(b) of the ESEA, and each include, as a
component, a school-parent compact consistent with section 1118(d) of the
ESEA.
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The school district will incorporate this districtwide parental involvement
policy into its LEA plan developed under section 1112 of the ESEA.
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In carrying out the Title I, Part A parental involvement requirements, to the
extent practicable, the school district and its schools will provide full
opportunities for the participation of parents with limited English proficiency,
parents with disabilities, and parents of migratory children, including
providing information and school reports required under section 1111 of the
ESEA in an understandable and uniform format and, including alternative
Dr. John D. Barge, State School Superintendent
February 2013 • Page 1 of 11
formats upon request, and, to the extent practicable, in a language parents
understand.
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If the LEA plan for Title I, Part A, developed under section 1112 of the
ESEA, is not satisfactory to the parents of participating children, the school
district will submit any parent comments with the plan when the school
district submits the plan to the State Department of Education.
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The school district will involve the parents of children served in Title I, Part A
schools in decisions about how the 1 percent of Title I, Part A funds reserved
for parental involvement is spent, and will ensure that not less than 95 percent
of the one percent reserved goes directly to the schools.
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The school district will be governed by the following statutory definition of
parental involvement, and expects that its Title I schools will carry out
programs, activities and procedures in accordance with this definition:

Parental involvement means the participation of parents in regular, two-way,
and meaningful communication involving student academic learning and other
school activities, including ensuring—
(A) that parents play an integral role in assisting their child’s learning;
(B) that parents are encouraged to be actively involved in their child’s
education at school;
(C) that parents 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;
(D) the carrying out of other activities, such as those described in section
1118 of the ESEA.
PART II
DISTRICT PARENT INVOLVEMENT GOALS
(1) In order to create a full partnership with each child’s family, we will work to
ensure open lines of communication between the school system and the home.
(2) By conducting evaluations on all aspects of the Title I Program, we will strive to
meet the changing needs of all families in supporting their children’s academic
success.
(3) We will provide numerous opportunities for parents to be involved in decision
making and to receive guidance on how to support their Title I child’s academic
progress.
Dr. John D. Barge, State School Superintendent
February 2013 • Page 2 of 11
PART III.
DESCRIPTION OF HOW DISTRICT WILL IMPLEMENT REQUIRED
DISTRICTWIDE PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT POLICY COMPONENTS
[NOTE: The Districtwide Parental Involvement Policy must include a description of how the
district will implement or accomplish each of the following components. [Section 1118(a)(2), ESEA.]
1. The Forsyth County School District will take the following actions to involve parents
in the joint development of its district-wide parental involvement plan under section
1112 of the ESEA:
 Opportunities to attend open sessions for review of CLIP descriptors and
budget plans and provide feedback at the district level during the summer
of 2013;
 Opportunities for parents to provide feedback at parent engagement
sessions provided by the district (July 22 and others as scheduled);
 Opportunities for parents to review the district plan on the FCS website
and provide feedback;
 Opportunities for parents to review the plan at the school-level with Title I
staff and provide feedback to the district;
 Opportunities for parents to provide feedback at the FPAC meeting in
September 2013 and throughout the academic year;
 Opportunities for parents participating in district school-readiness and
family literacy training through the Transition Services Office to provide
feedback;
 Opportunities for parents of students participating in Kinder Camp to
provide feedback;
 Opportunities for parents to provide feedback through Spring 2013 parent
surveys and other survey data collected throughout the academic year;
 Opportunities for parents to attend meetings due to the district provision
for transportation, childcare, and translation services.
2. The Forsyth County School District will take the following actions to involve parents in
the process of school review and improvement under section 1116 of the ESEA:
 Opportunities for parents to review the plan at the school-level with Title I
staff and provide feedback to the district;
 Opportunities for parents to review the plan through the websites at the
Title I schools;
 Opportunities for parents to participate on schoolwide planning
committees and to meet with Title I principals and staff to review the plan
and provide feedback during the academic year;
 Opportunities for Title I staff members to make presentations at Local
School Council meetings and to respond to questions;
Dr. John D. Barge, State School Superintendent
February 2013 • Page 3 of 11
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3.
Opportunities for parents to complete both formal and informal needs
assessments;
Opportunities for parents to express concerns, ask questions, or voice
complaints by following the steps outlined in the school-level
Complaint/Concern/Question procedure and to receive timely responses
from school staff members.
The Forsyth County School District will provide the following necessary coordination,
technical assistance, and other support to assist Title I, Part A schools in planning and
implementing effective parental involvement activities to improve student academic
achievement and school performance:
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Providing opportunities for Title I teachers and administrators to attend
Title I Technical Assistance meetings that include training on programs,
activities, and strategies aligned to academic progress and student
achievement and focusing on engaging Title I parents;
Providing opportunities for district and school Title I staff to share
resources and documents that support Title I parent engagement through
itslearning.
Providing opportunities for district Title I staff to make regular site visits
to Title I schools to review documentation and provide technical
assistance to Title I staff;
Coordinating the use of TINA (Title I Needs Assessment), a web-based
assessment tool, to assist schools in managing and collecting data to
inform decisions and plan for parent engagement in Title I schools;
Providing opportunities for school and district staff to participate in
professional learning at the district, state, and national level through
workshops and conferences;
Providing opportunities for school-level Parent Involvement Coordinators
to meet regularly to share resources and strategies;
Providing updated community resources to assist schools in meeting the
needs of Title I parents;
Providing support for training of Translation Resource Persons (TRPs)
through SpanGlish Translation Agency and other identified agencies to
provide interpretive services at Title I schools to non-English speaking
parents, including Title I parent events and Title I parent conferences;
Providing support for interpreters through Albors and Associates for nonEnglish speaking parents (phone conferences);
Providing support for the identification/selection of quality resources for
the district Parent-Teacher Resource Room at the Almon C. Hill Center
and at Title I schools;
Providing a roster of childcare workers available to provide services at
Title I parent events at each school.
Dr. John D. Barge, State School Superintendent
February 2013 • Page 4 of 11
4. The Forsyth County School District will coordinate and integrate parental involvement
strategies in Part A with parental involvement strategies under the following other
programs:
 Provide a Memorandum of Agreement with Lanier Technical College to
support family literacy through Adult ESL/GED;
 Provide a Memorandum of Agreement with Ninth District Opportunity
Head Start and Georgia Pre-K to increase school readiness among the
preschool Title I –eligible population in the district;
 Provide support for school readiness and family literacy for Title Ieligible preschool students enrolled through Ninth District at the Almon
C. Hill Center through a scheduled series of training events and programs
including: The Reading Foundation, Life Skills Literacy, Adult
ESL/GED/Citizenship, Parent-Teacher Resource Room outreach events
and distribution of learning-at-home resources, Kindergarten orientation
for students entering a Title I elementary school, and No Parent Left
Behind training sessions aligned to Kindergarten curriculum standards;
 Provide a summer Kinder Camp and Parent Academy for at-risk students
entering Kindergarten at Cumming, Chestatee, and Midway Elementary
Schools and their parents;
 Provide classroom space at Chestatee Elementary for 2 Georgia Pre-K
and Headstart classrooms through Ninth District Opportunity;
 Provide copies of Ninth District Opportunity’s Community Resource
Guide to Title I parents (English and Spanish);
 Provide copies of United Way’s Community Help Guide to Title I parents
(English and Spanish);
 Continue to provide a leadership class for Title I parents through a grant
from the Forsyth County United Way;
 Establish a District Title I Parent Advisory group that will meet
periodically and serve as a focus group to discuss districtwide parent
involvement needs.
 Continue to provide support for family literacy through Literacy Forsyth,
a districtwide Partner-in-Education for Title I;
 Continue to provide support for family literacy through a partnership with
the Forsyth County Public Library.
5. The Forsyth County School District will take the following actions to conduct, with the
involvement of parents, an annual evaluation of the content and effectiveness of this
parental involvement policy in improving the quality of its Title I, Part A schools. The
evaluation will include identifying barriers to greater participation by parents in
parental involvement activities (with particular attention to parents who are
economically disadvantaged, are disabled, have limited English proficiency, have
limited literacy, or are of any racial or ethnic minority background). The school
district will use the findings of the evaluation about its parental involvement policy and
activities to design strategies for more effective parental involvement, and to revise, if
necessary (and with the involvement of parents) its parental involvement policies.
Dr. John D. Barge, State School Superintendent
February 2013 • Page 5 of 11
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Each spring, school-level Parent Involvement Coordinators and Title I
Lead teachers will meet with district personnel to review the previous
year’s Parent and Staff Needs Assessments and to discuss the goals for the
new year’s surveys. The committee will draft new surveys and publish
them for review before they are finalized. Upon approval, district Title I
staff will work with Owl Education to prepare the surveys for
administration to teachers and parents. Two of the purposes of the surveys
are to identify needs of parents and to identify areas in which teachers
require support for working with parents. The surveys are available on
line and on paper.
Throughout the year, district personnel provide parent members of the
Federal Programs Advisory Council with numerous opportunities to
provide feedback.
Throughout the year, school-level Title I staff provide parents with both
formal and informal opportunities to discuss their needs and to evaluate
programs.
At both the district and school levels, parents have opportunities to
participate in focus groups.
PART IV
1. The Forsyth County School District will build the schools’ and parents’ capacity for
strong parental involvement, in order to ensure effective involvement of parents and to
support a partnership among the school involved, parents, and the community to
improve student academic achievement, through the following activities specifically
described below:
A. The school district will, with the assistance of its Title I, Part A schools, provide
assistance to parents of children served by the school district or school, as
appropriate, in understanding topics such as the following, by undertaking the
actions described in the chart:
Georgia’s
Academic
Content and
Achievement
Standards
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Provide links on the Forsyth County Schools website and the school websites to the
Georgia Department of Education and National PTA publications, presentations,
and guides to Common Core Standards;
Provide presentations at Curriculum Nights, Math and Reading Nights, Federal
Advisory meetings, Local School Council meetings
Make available printed copies of documents in school offices;
Provide a Parent Toolbox on the district website
Provide information at Parent-Teacher Conferences
Provide the Transition Services Office Calendar of Events to parents
Provide trainings throughout the year during Federal Programs Advisory Council
meetings and share resources with schools so that they may redeliver the training;
Coordinate literacy services through the Forsyth County Public Library, Literacy
Forsyth, and Lanier Technical College
Dr. John D. Barge, State School Superintendent
February 2013 • Page 6 of 11
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Georgia and
Local
Academic
Assessments
including
Alternate
Assessments
Requirements
of Title I, Part
A
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How to
Monitor Their
Child’s
Progress
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How to Work
with
Educators
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Provide resources for circulation in the district’s and in the schools’ ParentTeacher Resource Rooms
Collaborate through the Transition Services Office and district Title I programs
with Ninth District Opportunity Head Start, Early Head Start, and Georgia Pre-K
programs in Forsyth County to support school readiness and successful
Kindergarten transition.
Provide links to the Partnership for Assessment and Readiness for College and
Career (PARCC) on the district website;
Provide links to district assessment calendars, study guides for assessments, and
guidance concerning testing environments through the district website;
Provide links to the district’s R4 Dashboard for student profiles and student
achievement;
Provide links to practice tests for assessments (CRCT and EOCT);
Provide a Parent Guide to Grading and Reporting;
Provide information at Parent-Teacher Conferences;
Make available printed copies of documents in school offices.
Provide an overview of the requirements of Title I, Part A on the district and school
websites and in school newsletters: (1) their child’s school’s participation in Title I,
(2) the requirements of Title I, (3) their rights to be involved;
Provide an explanation of the requirements at the schools’ Title I Annual Parent
Meetings, at other meetings scheduled throughout the year, at Open Houses, at
Local School Council meetings, in first day packets.
Provide interim reports and report cards on their child’s progress. Dates are posted
on the district’s Professional Calendar.
Conduct Parent-Teacher Conferences. In addition, parents may request a
conference at any time.
Provide opportunities at Parent Nights for parents to learn how to access
information in Infinite Campus and in itslearning.
Provide resources in the district’s Parent Toolbox.
Provide opportunities for parents to participate in the development of the school’s
School-Parent Compact and Parent Involvement Policy;
Provide opportunities for parents to provide feedback in the district’s Parent Needs
Assessment;
Provide Title I workshops and meetings with school staff.
Participate in the GaDOE Parent Engagement Conference 2014 in Athens;
Partner with United Way for a grant to provide Title I PIC Leadership 2014 focused
on volunteer placement and decision-making skills
B. The school district will, with the assistance of its schools, provide materials and
training to help parents work with their children to improve their children’s
academic achievement, such as literacy training, and using technology, as
appropriate, to foster parental involvement, by:
 Provide materials in both school and district Parent-Teacher Resource Rooms for
circulation;
Dr. John D. Barge, State School Superintendent
February 2013 • Page 7 of 11
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Provide training for parents at Federal Programs Advisory Council Meetings, at
Title I PIC Leadership 2014 meetings, at district Title I Parent Advisory meetings,
and at school Title I Parent Meetings.
Publicize the Transition Services Office Calendar of Activities(classes)
Provide Parent Involvement Coordinator Training so that school Title I staff may
redeliver training to parents;
C. The school district will, with the assistance of its schools and parents, educate its
teachers, pupil services personnel, principals and other staff, in how to reach out
to, communicate with, and work with parents as equal partners, in the value and
utility of contributions of parents, and in how to implement and coordinate
parent programs and build ties between parents and schools, by:
 Identify staff and parent needs in formal and informal needs assessments;
 Provide training to Parent Involvement Coordinators, district leaders, and
principals on effective parent engagement strategies (Parents on Board,
Parents on Our Side, and Cultural Proficiency training, Welcoming Schools
and Beyond the Bake Sale book studies)
D. The school district will, to the extent feasible and appropriate, coordinate and
integrate parental involvement programs and activities with Head Start, Even
Start, Home Instruction Programs for Preschool Youngsters, the Parents as
Teachers Program, and public preschool and other programs, and conduct other
activities, such as parent resource centers, that encourage and support parents
in more fully participating in the education of their children, by:
 Provide a Memorandum of Agreement with Lanier Technical College to support
family literacy through Adult ESL/GED;
 Provide a Memorandum of Agreement with Ninth District Opportunity Head Start
and Georgia Pre-K to increase school readiness among the preschool Title I –
eligible population in the district;
 Provide support for school readiness and family literacy for Title I- eligible
preschool students enrolled through Ninth District at the Almon C. Hill Center
through a scheduled series of training events and programs including: The
Reading Foundation, Life Skills Literacy, Adult ESL/GED/Citizenship, ParentTeacher Resource Room outreach events and distribution of learning-at-home
resources, Kindergarten orientation for students entering a Title I elementary
school, and No Parent Left Behind training sessions aligned to Kindergarten
curriculum standards;
 Provide a summer Kinder Camp and Parent Academy for at-risk students
entering Kindergarten at Cumming, Chestatee, and Midway Elementary Schools
and their parents;
Dr. John D. Barge, State School Superintendent
February 2013 • Page 8 of 11
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Provide classroom space at Chestatee Elementary for 2 Georgia Pre-K and
Headstart classrooms through Ninth District Opportunity;
Provide copies of Ninth District Opportunity’s Community Resource Guide to
Title I parents (English and Spanish);
Provide copies of United Way’s Community Help Guide to Title I parents
(English and Spanish);
Continue to provide a leadership class for Title I parents through a grant from the
Forsyth County United Way;
Establish a District Title I Parent Advisory group that will meet periodically and
serve as a focus group to discuss districtwide parent involvement needs.
Continue to provide support for family literacy through Literacy Forsyth, a
districtwide Partner-in-Education for Title I;
Continue to provide support for family literacy through a partnership with the
Forsyth County Public Library.
E. The school district will take the following actions to ensure that information
related to the school and parent- programs, meetings, and other activities, is sent
to the parents of participating children in an understandable and uniform
format, including alternative formats upon request, and, to the extent
practicable, in a language the parents can understand:
 Provide support for training of Translation Resource Persons (TRPs) through
SpanGlish Translation Agency and other identified agencies to provide
interpretive services at Title I schools to non-English speaking parents,
including Title I parent events and Title I parent conferences
 Provide procedures and access to SpanGlish for translation of documents
needed for parent communication
 Provide support for interpreters of Albors and Associates for non-English
speaking parents (phone conferences)
 Provide a means for translation of all documents on the district website, to the
extent practicable
F. Provide other reasonable support for parental involvement activities under
section 1118 as parents may request.
 Each school will submit to the district any parent comments if the
schoolwide plan under section (1114)(b)(2) is not satisfactory to parents
of participating children. Submission of comments will be made to the
Title I Director, and the parent will be notified by the district for a
conference.
 Each school will provide parents with an opportunity to express concerns,
ask questions, or voice complaints by following the steps outlined in the
Dr. John D. Barge, State School Superintendent
February 2013 • Page 9 of 11
school-level Complaint/Concern/Question procedure and to receive timely
responses from school staff members.
PART V
DISCRETIONARY DISTRICTWIDE PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT POLICY
COMPONENTS
GUIDANCE: The Districtwide Parental Involvement Policy may include additional
paragraphs listing and describing other discretionary activities that the school district, in
consultation with its parents, chooses to undertake to build parents’ capacity for
involvement in the school and school system to support their children’s academic
achievement, such as the following discretionary activities listed under section 1118(e) of
the ESEA:
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involving parents in the development of training for teachers, principals, and
other educators to improve the effectiveness of that training;
providing necessary literacy training for parents from Title I, Part A funds, if the
school district has exhausted all other reasonably available sources of funding for
that training;
paying reasonable and necessary expenses associated with parental involvement
activities, including transportation and child care costs, to enable parents to
participate in school-related meetings and training sessions;
training parents to enhance the involvement of other parents;
in order to maximize parental involvement and participation in their children’s
education, arranging school meetings at a variety of times, or conducting in-home
conferences between teachers or other educators, who work directly with
participating children, with parents who are unable to attend those conferences at
school;
adopting and implementing model approaches to improving parental
involvement;
establishing a districtwide parent advisory council to provide advice on all
matters related to parental involvement in Title I, Part A programs;
developing appropriate roles for community-based organizations and businesses,
including faith-based organizations, in parental involvement activities; and
Dr. John D. Barge, State School Superintendent
February 2013 • Page 10 of 11
PART IV.
ADOPTION
This Districtwide Parental Involvement Policy has been developed jointly with, and agreed on
with, parents of children participating in Title I, Part A programs, as evidenced by
______________________.
This policy was adopted by the Forsyth County School District on __mm/dd/yy______ and
will be in effect for the period of _______. The school district will distribute this policy to all
parents of participating Title I, Part A children on or before _________________.
_______________________________
(Signature of Authorized Official)
_______________________________
(Date)
*It is not a requirement that the Districtwide Parental Involvement Policy is signed. This
sample template is not an official U.S. Department of Education document. It is provided only
as an example.
Dr. John D. Barge, State School Superintendent
February 2013 • Page 11 of 11