Family and Community
Involvement Highlights
Awards
2004-2005 Highlights
2002-2003 Highlights
Awards
The Office of Family and Community Partnerships Wins
National Award
The National Network of Partnership Schools at Johns Hopkins
University, Maryland awarded the Office of Family and Community
Partnerships their 2004 Partnership District National Award with
special distinction. The award recognized the FPP and Seattle
Public Schools for their excellence in district Family Involvement
leadership, project management, and innovation.
Family
Partnerships 2004 Award Winners
The following individuals, who were honored at the 2003-2004
Family Partnerships End-of-the-year retreat for their outstanding
commitment and dedication to involving families in
schools.
Congratulations
to the following honorees:
Chilo
Granizo, Instructional Assistant - Beacon Hill
Elementary
Yolanda McGhee, Family Support Worker - Brighton
Elementary
Barbara Hicks, Instructional Assistant - Dearborn
Park Elementary
Jean McGhee, Volunteer Coordinator - High Point
Elementary
Jeff Farmer, AmeriCorps Volunteer - Northgate
Elementary
Mary Barrionuevo, Parent - Northgate
Elementary
Betty Patu, Intervention Program Coordinator -
Rainier Beach High School
Geneva Wheeler, Nurse - Secondary BOC
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Highlights from the 2004-2005 School
Year
Northgate Elementary - Parent Effectiveness Leadership
Training
Twenty Spanish-speaking parents participated and graduated from
the Latino Parent Leadership Training (PELT), which is a series of
6 workshops addressing parent involvement. Many of the parents that
participated in the training were also students in the ESL classes
held at Northgate. As a result of the training, parents are now
ready to become school leaders and advocates for student
success.
Beacon Hill
Elementary - "El Dia Del Nino" Celebration
Parents from the "Latino Mini-PTA" at Beacon Hill Elementary
organized an "El Dia del Nino" (Day of the Child) celebration. El
Dia Del Nino is a great tradition in Mexico and other Central
American countries where children are honored by teachers and their
parents with special parties in school and at home. The El Dia Del
Nino celebration at Beacon Hill included performances in which the
children showcased Latin American culture through traditional dance
and fashion. The performances were followed by a potluck dinner
that the volunteer parents cooked, which included tamales from
different countries. Guest speakers at the event included City
Council member, David Della and Seattle School Board Member, Jan
Kumasaka.
Rainier Beach
High School HUB
Rainier Beach High School created the Family Partnerships Resource
and Leadership HUB for families. The HUB, located in a portable
classroom near the school year, maintains a Parents Reference
Library, offers computers with internet access for parents,
provides space for PTA and community meetings, connects families
with information and referrals, and hosts the food distribution
program for needy families and the MENS group. The MENS group is a
collaborative action team of fathers, teachers, and students who
work together to increase community and business partnerships,
tutoring, and volunteerism in the school.
Hamilton
International Middle School - Families Learning
Together
Hamilton International Middle School focused on connecting parent
involvement events with student learning. They hosted a series of
educational events for families that included:
The "English
for Parents" Project
The Office of Family and Community Partnerships collaborated with
the Fremont Public Association and Seattle Pacific University to
train a group of 6 Reading Corps VISTA members to teach English as
a Second Language to parents from Northgate, Thurgood Marshall,
Fairmount Park, and Secondary BOC. Classes were offered from
January to June, in the daytime and evening at all four sites with
a total of 110 parents participating. As a result of these classes,
many of the parents now feel more comfortable at the schools and
have gone on to participate in leadership training opportunities
offered by both the schools and the Office of Family and Community
Partnerships.
National
African-American Parent Involvement Day Celebration
The Office of Family and Community Partnerships awarded small
grants to 7 Seattle elementary and middle schools to support events
celebrating the National African-American Parent Involvement Day on
February 14th. This national day of recognition honors and
celebrates the involvement of African-American parents in the
education of their children. Grant recipients were: Aki Kurose
Middle Schools, Broadview-Thompson Elementary, Dearborn Park
Elementary, Martin Luther King Elementary, Orca Elementary,
Whitworth Elementary, and John Muir Elementary. School events
included workshops for parents on how to support their children's
learning, a day in which parents were invited to visit their
children's classes and have lunch with the school principal, and a
luncheon where parents received special recognition from their
children for their support.
Back to School
Mini-Grants
The Office of Family and Community Partnerships awarded small
grants to 17 Seattle schools to support projects to back to school
projects. Many of the schools used the funds to enhance the school
environment, so that it was more welcoming and friendly to
families. Other schools used the funds to support back to school
events for parents and family members. Grant recipients were: A
lternative Elementary II (AEII), Alki Elementary, Aki Kurose Middle
School, Bagley Elementary, BF Day Elementary, Broadview-Thomson
Elementary, Catherine Blaine K-8, Eckstein Middle School, Franklin
High School, Green Lake Elementary, Laurelhurt Elementary, Lawton
Elementary, Madrona K-8, North Beach Elementary, Olympic View
Elementary, Washington Middle School, and West Seattle High
School.
Third Annual
Family Literacy Conference
The Office of Family and Community Partnerships in partnership
with the Family Literacy Coalition of Puget Sound hosted the third
annual Family Literacy Conference titled "Making Connections -
Tools for Educators" in May 2005. Workshop presenters included
Jerry Large, columnist for the Seattle Times. The Family Literacy
Coalition of Puget Sound is a consortium of local agencies that
provide family literacy services in King County
Parent
Leadership Training for FPP Schools - The Center for Parent
Leadership Institute from Kentucky
28 parents from the Office of Family and Community Partnerships
and Title I school sites participated in a two-day training that
was conducted by the Center for Parent Leadership (CPL) from
Lexington, Kentucky. The CPL is a nationally recognized parent
training institute that for over 20 years has trained thousands of
parents from all income levels and ethnicity backgrounds across
America to become school leaders and partner with schools.
Participants in the training were empowered with new knowledge to
become effective advocates for the success of all children. The
training included workshops on leadership and communication skills,
how to understand student achievement data and identify gaps, how
to partner with schools to increase student achievement, and how to
mobilize other parents to get involved in schools.
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Highlights from the 2002-2003 School
Year
Involving Latino, Chinese, Vietnamese, and
African-American Families
Over the past three years, Beacon Hill Elementary has targeted
outreach efforts at specific groups, starting with Latino families.
Each year, Beacon Hill expands their goal to reach a new target
group. With each group, Beacon Hill has established unique programs
based on a needs assessment, which is conducted through group
meetings, surveys, and focus group sessions. Examples of the unique
programs established for each target group include: a Latino PTA;
ESL classes and math literacy programs for Latino families
culminating in their volunteering in the classrooms and teaching
math to other Latino parents; an after-school homework program for
Chinese and Vietnamese families; and parent workshops for
African-American parents, which focused on academic
standards.
Brighton
United Parent Alliance (B.U.P.A.)
Brighton Elementary has formed an immigrant and refugee parent
alliance with the mission of having an organized, involved group of
Brighton parent leaders focused on the academic excellence and
social awareness of their children. The goal of B.U.P.A. is to
recruit parents and adult family members representing the diverse
demographics of Brighton and to train them to become natural
leaders in the education of their children. Next year, Brighton
will offer the parents in B.U.P.A. an in-depth training in parent
leadership.
Family
Enrichment Center
The Family Enrichment Center at Meany Middle School provides a
welcoming, relaxed place where Meany families can find resources
and support. The Family Enrichment Center offers classes and
workshops on parenting, computer skills, job skills, and health
care; school support programs for parents to help their children
with homework, school information, and conferences; family
activities such as cultural celebrations, science nights,
technology nights, and literacy events. The staff involved in the
creation of the Family Enrichment Center have also put together a
video for family members, which provides parents with information
that they need to know about Meany Middle School. The video has
been created in several different languages, with ELL/Bilingual
students presenting information in their home language.
WASL
University and Parent Prep Academy
The WASL University and Parent Prep Academy at Dearborn Park
Elementary was designed to both teach 4th grade students skills and
strategies for taking the Washington Assessment of Student Learning
(WASL), and to teach parents and family members how to help their
children study for the WASL at home. WASL University classes were
held once a week for three months. The adult family members were
required to participate in two Parent Prep Academy classes, at
which translated materials and interpreters were provided. The
parents were also asked to help out at the WASL University classes
at least once throughout the three-month session. At the end of
WASL University, there was a graduation and family pot-luck to
celebrate everyone's achievements.
National
African-American Parents Day
Stevens Elementary celebrated National African-American Parents
Day, which took place on February 10th, 2004, by inviting the
African-American parents to spend the day at school. At the
beginning of the day, parents were welcomed to the school with a
breakfast, after which they had the opportunity to visit their
children's classrooms and observe teachers conducting classes. The
parents also had lunch with the staff and other parents and
participated in a discussion group at the end of the day with staff
members. Parents praised day as an opportunity to learn reading
techniques to help their children at home.
Partnership
with the Parent Coaching Institute (PCI)
Rainier Beach High School and Interagency Academy have partnered
with the Parent Coaching Institute (PCI) to provide parent coaching
services to a selected group of parents. Each parent is assigned a
professional coach that has participated in a year-long,
graduate-level parent coach training program. During coaching phone
conversations, the coach supports the parent by listening, asking
key questions, providing information, and offering specific
suggestions to help the parent implement new attitudes and
parenting strategies. By enhancing the parenting skills through the
Parent Coaching Institute, Rainier Beach High School and
Interagency Academy have been able to create better partnership
programs at their school.
Improving the
School-Home Community System
Hamilton International Middle School has improved its school-home
communication system by publishing a new School Family Handbook,
which is written in family-friendly language. They have also
reviewed all school-to-home materials and letters to reformat and
re-write in family-friendly language that is easy to translate.
They published and mailed quarterly Global Outlook Newsletters;
posted Family Weekly E-bulletins with school news, a calendar of
activities, family resources, learning at home tips, PTSA and
district news, and community news and resources. They revamped and
continuously updated the school web site; established and
maintained a Family Involvement Database for volunteer interests
and parent leadership opportunities. Contracted with the Language
Line Services for phone interpretation when Bilingual IAs are not
available to assist bilingual parents to communicate with school
staff.
Saturday
Family Get-Together and Lunch
B.F. Day Elementary hosted a Family Get-together and Lunch at the
New Holly Family Center. At the event, families were given ideas
for organizing and supporting homework at home and participated in
a literacy activity and parent workshop led by B.F. Day staff
members. Parents also took home activities to do with their
children, and each child was given a free book to take home.
Interpreters and free childcare were available at the
event.
The RBHS Men's
Group
Rainier Beach High School recruited fathers, male school staff,
male community members, and male students to form a group dedicated
to strengthen and support the school's mission and to create better
partnerships with the community. The group designs volunteer and
leadership projects that create learning opportunities for students
and for adults. Group members serve as mentors and role-models to
students and advocate for systemic change and integration of the
best practices of parent involvement in the school.
Food for
Families - Body and Mind
The Rainier Beach High School Family Center collects weekly food
donations from Safeway stores in the neighborhood. The food is
shared with Interagency Academy, located in the same neighborhood.
The food is donated to families, who stop by to pick up food at
each school location. As the families collect food, they are
provided with school, parenting, and resources information.
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