A Brief Overview of the
Office
History
The office started out as the Family Partnerships Project in
January 2002, awarding mini-grants to selected elementary, middle
and high schools to work on integrated family engagement plans. It
was a collaborative effort led by the City of Seattle Office for
Education, the Seattle Public Schools Office for Community Learning
and funded from the City of Seattle Families and Education Levy. In
the 2005-2006 school year the office expanded its efforts to
include grants to elementary schools and community based
organizations, and is supported by funds from the new Families and
Education Levy. To view past successes please follow this link: Successful
OFCP Projects
Mission Statement
Our purpose is to help schools learn how to integrate and
institutionalize best practices of family involvement into their
academic and building goals. We seek to create equal and active
partnerships between schools and families in order to eliminate
disproportionality and ensure that all students succeed.
Framework
The Office for Family and Community Partnerships is based on
principles developed over years of research by Dr. Joyce Epstein,
director of the National Network of Partnership Schools at Johns
Hopkins University. The Seattle School District was the first
district in Washington to join the National Network. According to
Epstein’s research, the most effective methods of family
involvement in education can be grouped into six best
practices:
- Parenting
skills.
- Home-school
communication.
- Volunteering for
schools.
- Learning at
home.
- Sharing in school
decision-making.
- Forming collaborations
between schools and community organizations.
Based off Dr.
Epstein’s research, Adie Simmons drafted and introduced The
School-Family Partnership Policy to the Seattle School Board. It
was finally approved in August 2004, and paves the way for a
district-wide optimization of family involvement
Benefits for Those Who
Participate
Schools &
Educators – more satisfying parent-teacher
conferences, better school-home communications, deeper
understanding of families and cultures, new approaches to homework,
and strengthened connections with the community.
Community Organizations
– more ties to
the families they serve, better communication, deeper understanding
of families and their needs, and strengthened
connections.
Seattle Families -- leadership in decision-making, confidence
about parenting, productive conversations with children about
curriculum, and interactions with other parents at the
school.
Seattle Students – better
academic performance, improved attendance, fewer discipline
problems, closure of achievement gap.
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