Administrative Procedure 4217 - Parent, Family, and Community Involvement in Schools

I. Purpose

To establish guidelines and procedures to promote parent, family, and community participation in Prince George’s County Public Schools.

II. Policy

The Board of Education recognizes the necessity and value of parent
and family involvement to support student success, optimal development, and
academic achievement. (Board Policy 0105)

III. Background

These procedures are in accordance with guidance provided by the Maryland State Department of Education to the school system in the 2004-2005 school year regarding NCLB-mandated annual updates to the policies and procedures regulating Prince George’s County Public Schools’ initiatives for parent, family, and community engagement. The procedures were developed following a strictly defined template and an extended process for gathering input from a wide cross-section of community partners including parents, educators, political leaders, and business partners. Prince George’s County Public Schools will take the following actions to involve parents and families in the joint development of its district-wide parental involvement plan under Section 1112 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). Prince George’s County Public Schools will take the following actions to involve parents and families in the process of school review and improvement under Section 1116 of the ESEA.

IV. Definitions

1. Parent - Includes a natural parent, a guardian, or an individual acting as a parent in the absence of a parent or a guardian.
2. Family - Defined specifically as a group of people affiliated by blood or by legal ties such as marriage or adoption.
3. Parent Involvement - The participation of parents in regular, two-way, meaningful communication involving students' academic learning and other school activities. The involvement includes ensuring that parents play an integral role in their child's learning; that parents are encouraged to be actively involved in their child's education at school and at home; that parents are full partners in their child's education and are included, as appropriate, in decision making and on advisory committees. (NCLB)

V. Procedures

1. District Level Procedures
   1. Prince George’s County Public Schools will take the following actions to involve parents and families in the joint development of its district wide parental involvement plan under section 1112 of the ESEA.
      1. The members of the Community Advisory Council (CAC), Student Services Advisory Council (SSAC), and the Department of Family and Community Outreach Steering Committee (FACOSC) will work collaboratively with school system personnel to develop the district wide parent involvement plan that is comprehensive in scope, researchbased and that fosters positive home, school, and community relationships essential to successfully educate all students.
      2. The CAC is convened by the Superintendent. The SSAC is convened by the Chief of Student Services. The FACOSC is convened by the Director of the Department of Family and Community Outreach.
      3. The Parent Involvement plan will be vetted throughout the larger community of parent and family stakeholder groups through the Community Advisory Council (CAC), Student Services Advisory Council (SSAC), and the Department of Family and Community Outreach Steering Committee (FACOSC) members, as well as through school system entities engaged in parent, family, and community outreach initiatives.
      4. The plan will be posted on the PGCPS website for input and feedback from the broad community for 14 days prior to submission to the Board of Education for approval.
   2. Prince George’s County Public Schools will provide the necessary coordination, technical assistance, and other support to assist Title I, Part A schools, particularly, and all schools, generally in planning and implementing effective parent and family involvement activities to improve student academic achievement and school performance.
      1. Central Office Parent and Family Involvement Coordinators, under the supervision of the Supervisor of Parent Services are charged with providing site-based planning, training and technical assistance, coordination, resources, implementation and assessment of effective parent
   3. Prince George’s County Public Schools will convene annually to coordinate and integrate parent involvement strategies in Title I Part A with parent involvement strategies under the following other programs:
      1. Head Start.
      2. Even Start Adult Literacy Program.
      3. Comer School Development Program
      4. Family and Community Outreach.
      5. School Based Parent Liaisons.
      6. Homeless Education Program.
      7. Special Education Citizen’s Advisory Committee (SECAC-PG).
      8. Talented and Gifted Parents Advisory Group.
      9. Division of Student Services.
      10. Parents Assisting Teachers.
      11. Early Childhood Education Centers.
      12. Parent Information Resource Center (PIRC).
      13. Business Partnerships.
      14. Other Interested Stakeholders.
   4. Prince George’s County Public Schools will take the following actions to conduct, with the involvement of parents, an annual evaluation of the content and effectiveness of the parent 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 parent involvement activities (with particular attention to parents who are: economically disadvantaged, migrant, disabled, limited English proficient, limited readers, or of any racial or ethnic minority background). The school district will use the findings of the evaluation about its parent involvement policy and activities to design strategies for more effective parent involvement, and to revise, if necessary (and with the involvement of parents) its parent involvement policies. Actions include:
      1. Annual coordination with the Chief Academic Officer for staff time, materials and resources for effective evaluation of the policy, its implementation and documented effects as described in 20 U.S.C. 6318(a)(2)(E).
      2. Parents from Title I schools will be included in broad based focus groups convened to provide specific comment to evaluation instrument items as well as to share findings with their respective constituency groups.
      3. The Superintendent of Schools will assess the status of parent and family involvement based upon researchfindings, review the existing policies and procedures, and develop necessary policies and procedures to support this policy including a review of staff and budget support.
   5. Prince George’s County Public Schools will, with the assistance of its schools, parents, community, and central administration undertake activities 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. Activities include and are not limited to:
      
      1. Providing assistance to parents in understanding the State’s academic content standards and student achievement standards, State and local assessments, the requirements of Title I, and how to monitor a child’s progress and work with educators to improve student achievement;
      2. Involving parents in the development of training for teachers, principals, and other educators to improve the effectiveness of the training;
      3. Providing necessary materials and training for parents to help parents work with their children to improve achievement in literacy and technology from Title I, Part A funds, if the school district has exhausted all other reasonably available sources of funding for that training;
      4. Paying reasonable and necessary expenses associated with parent involvement activities, including transportation and child care costs, to enable parents to participate in schoolrelated meetings and training sessions, from Title I, Part A funds, if the school district has exhausted all other reasonably available sources of funding for that training;
      5. Training parents to enhance the involvement of other parents;
      6. Educating instructional and certified staff, with parent assistance, in the value and utility of contributions of parents, how to reach out to and communicate with and work with parents as equal partners and build ties between parents and school;
      7. 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 in order to maximize parent involvement and participation in their children’s education;
      8. Adopting and implementing model approaches to improving parent involvement;
      9. Developing appropriate roles for community-based organizations and businesses, including faith-based organizations, in parent involvement activities; and
      10. Providing other reasonable support for parent involvement activities under section 1118 as parents may request.
2. School Level Procedures
   
   1. Prince George’s County Public Schools will take the following
      actions to involve parents and families in the process of school
      review and improvement under section 1116 of the ESEA:
      1. Parents, families, and community stakeholders are invited to serve as members of the School Planning and Management Teams (SPMT) and School Improvement Teams (SIT) on an on-going basis, including during the development, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of School Improvement Plans.
      2. The Department of Family and Community Outreach, Department of School Improvement, and Title I Office of Parent Services will provide in-service training and materials for parents and school staffs on the effective engagement of parents, families, and community stakeholders in the development, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of School Improvement Plans.
      3. Strategies for implementing Epstein’s 6 Types of Parent and Family Involvement, Comer’s 3 Levels of Parent/Family Participation, strategies for implementing Title I six components of building parent capacity, and National Standards for Parent/Family Involvement Programs to support students’ academic achievement.
   2. Prince George’s County Public Schools will build the schools’ and parents’ capacity for strong parent involvement, in order to ensure effective involvement of parents and to support a partnership among each school, its parents and community to improve student academic achievement, through the following activities specifically described below.
   3. Prince George’s County Public Schools 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 this paragraph:
      1. No Child Left Behind – parents right to know, etc.
      2. Title I objectives and resource utilization for parent involvement and academic support through Parent/School compacts, school-level parent policy, parent-teacher conferences, the annual Title I Parent Conference, and school-level Title I Orientation.
      3. Voluntary State Curriculum and MSA/HSA and how parents/families can support academic and behavioral expectations.
      4. Parents Assisting Teachers workshops and resource rooms to provide parental strategies for assisting students at home to enhance success on mandated assessments.
      5. Strategies for implementing Title I six components to build parent capacity to support students’ academic achievement.
      6. Maintenance of a resource center, housed within the Department of Family and Community Outreach that provides a library of print, video, and human resources that are available to assist staff and parents.
      7. Parent Empowerment Academy will increase parenting skills including and not limited to nutrition, health, selfesteem, parent/child communication, motivation, discipline, child and adolescent growth and development, understanding gender differences, etc. (such as parent effectiveness training programs).
      8. Literacy Training as well as other specific curricular content areas.
      9. Navigating the system and communication skills for addressing specific concerns.
      10. Parent/family involvement in decision-making at the school and district level.
      11. Accessing community resources for family support.
      12. Mentoring/Tutoring/Enrichment/Extended Day Opportunities.
      13. SAT/Career Preparation.
      14. Other Areas of assessed and parent/community-identified needs and interests.
   4. Convening meetings, training sessions, workshops and/or retreats in schools and community locations, as well as developing and disseminating appropriate materials and resources to address all topics listed above.
   5. Parents will be invited to participate in conferences and training sessions conducted outside of the school system, when appropriate. Parents will be encouraged to participate as partners in providing selected training sessions.
   6. Prince George’s County Public Schools will, with the assistance of its schools, provide materials and training (in a format and language that parents can understand) 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. This will be accomplished by convening meetings, training sessions, workshops and/or retreats as well as appropriate materials and resources to address:
      1. No Child Left Behind – parents right to know, etc.
      2. Voluntary State Curriculum and MSA/HSA and how parents/families can support academic and behavioral expectations.
      3. Parents as Teachers to assist students at home to enhance student success on mandated assessments.
      4. Workshops for parents of children receiving Special Education services through the Partners for Success Office.
      5. Strategies for implementing Epstein’s 6 Types of Parent and Family Involvement, Comer’s 3 Levels of Parent/Family Participation, Title I six components to build parent capacity, and National Standards for Parent/Family Involvement Programs to support students’ academic achievement.
      6. Parenting Skills including and not limited to nutrition, health, self-esteem, parent/child communication, motivation, discipline, child and adolescent growth and development, etc. (such as parent effectiveness training programs).
      7. Literacy Training as well as other specific curricular content areas.
      8. Navigating the system and communication skills for specific concerns.
      9. Parent/family involvement in decision-making at the school and district level.
      10. Parent Teacher Associations/Parent Teacher Student Associations and other school–based parent leadership teams.
      11. Accessing community resources for family support.
      12. Maintenance of a resource center, housed within the Department of Family and Community Outreach that provides a library of print, video, and human resources that are available to assist staff and parents.
      13. Other Areas of assessed and parent/community-identified needs and interests.
   7. Prince George’s County Public Schools will, with the assistance of its schools and parents, educate its teachers, student 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 providing workshops and appropriate resource materials for creating a positive, safe and welcoming environment, and establishing effective communication, conferencing and engagement strategies during the following:
      1. Annual Superintendents’ Principals’ Institute.
      2. Annual Professional Educators Induction Program.
      3. Annual School Development Program Team Retreat.
      4. Annual Title 1 Principals’ Conference.
      5. Annual Title 1 Parent Conference.
      6. Implementation of Title I Parent Empowerment Academy
      7. Ongoing Zone Executive Director’s meetings and training sessions for school administrators and support staff.
      8. On-going training sessions for all departmental and central office personnel.
      9. Annual training and coaching for school improvement teams.
      10. Maintenance of a resource center, housed within the Department of Family and Community Outreach that provides a library of print, video, and human resources that are available to assist staff and parents.
      11. On-going community sessions sponsored by local organizations such as the Office of the County Executive, Chamber of Commerce, Business Roundtable, local universities, etc.
   8. Prince George’s County Public Schools will, to the extent feasible and appropriate, coordinate and integrate parent involvement programs and activities with Head Start, Even Start, the Community Based Classroom, Parent and Child Together (PACT), ESOL, 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:
      1. Convening bi-annual meetings of all PGCPS departmental and office entities engaged in parent, family, and community outreach efforts thereby forming a Task Force that consistently communicates and collaborates to implement an integrated and coherent approach.
      2. Convening an annual meeting of the task force on Parent, Family, and Community Involvement consisting of representatives of community-based organizations and businesses, faith-based organizations and regionally selected parents, in order to sponsor programs, workshops and training sessions to promote and solicit support/resources for the involvement of parents and families in public education.
   9. Prince George’s County Public Schools will take the following actions to ensure that information related to the school and parentprograms, 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.
      
      Continual postings and notifications will be provided via:
      1. PGCPS Website.
      2. PGCPS Office of Communications and Public Affairs Press.
      3. Releases, Newsletters, and Systemic Calendar.
      4. PGCPS Office of Television and Web Services’ Channel 96 Programming.
      5. Departmental Brochures and Information Packets.
      6. School Academic Report Cards.

VI. Related Policies and Procedures

• AP 0500 - School Visitors
• AP 1330 - After School Use of Facilities
• AP 1331 - Shared Space of School Facilities by Non-Commercial Users
• AP 3541 - Student Transportation
• AP 4216.6 - Volunteer Services
• Administrative Procedure 5010, Homeless Children and Youth School Access and Services;
• Administrative Procedure 5125, Student Records;
• Administrative Procedure 5135.1, Fundraising;
• AP 10101 - Student Rights and Responsibilities Handbook

VII. Maintenance and Update of these Procedures

These procedures originate with the Department of Family and Community Outreach and will be updated as needed.

VIII. Cancellations and Supersedures

This Administrative Procedure cancels and supersedes Administrative Procedure 4217, dated June 30, 2005.

IX. Effective Date

Last Revised: September 1, 2008

Documents

• Administrative Procedure 4217 - Parent, Family, and Community Involvement in Schools.pdf