Family Engagement Plan

1. Commitment to Members of Historically Marginalized and Oppressed Communities

• Culturally Responsive Curriculum: Develop and implement a curriculum that reflects the cultural diversity of the children in the classroom. Include books, materials, and activities that showcase diverse cultures, languages, and traditions.
   
• Acceptance: Welcoming atmosphere that encourages involvement of all family units as described:
  • Families whose primary or home language is not English.
  • Parents or guardians working full time.
  • Fathers or father figures.
  • Family members who are not living at home, including deployed or incarcerated parents or guardians.
  • Parents or guardians with disabilities.
  • Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Questioning, Intersex, Asexual or Gender Non-Conforming (LGBTQIA+) Families
  • Tribal Families
  • Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) Families
  • Other underrepresented families as applicable.
     
• Translation Services: Offer materials, workshops and communications in multiple languages. Ensure that families with limited English proficiency have access to translators/Language Link translators/ Google translate for conferences and meetings.
   
• Outreach to Community Organizations: Family Support Specialist (FSS) have been hired to Partner with local organizations who can provide services that meet the needs of the family units in the ECEAP program. FSS staff also meets with families three times a year to discuss economic stability of the family through a survey. On-going communication between FSS and families is the norm.
   
• Equitable Access: All children must feel safe, valued and loved.
  • Follow the ECEAP priority points system with fidelity when enrolling children
  • Provide different levels of support to each child based on what they need.
  • Eliminate language or behavior that is stereotypical, demeaning, exclusionary or judgmental.
  • Recognize that the learning environment and its materials reflect what is valued or not valued, present or omitted.
  • Build strong family to school connections.
  • Support guardians as they work with their children at home.
  • Review behavior data to make sure one category of student populations is not overrepresented.

2. Decision-Making and Goal Setting for the Child

• Family-Centered Goal Setting : Conferences between teachers and families happens three time a year to collaboratively set goals for their child’s development and learning. Engage families in discussing their child’s strengths, needs, and cultural values, and co-create Individual Learning Plans (ILPs).
   
• Progress Monitoring: Share updates on the child’s progress frequently. Use multiple formats, such as phone calls, home visits, Remind and google-meets, ensure families have the opportunity to discuss and modify goals as needed.

3. Engaging Families in Two-Way Communication

• Regular Check-Ins: Establish regular, scheduled two-way communication through multiple channels—phone calls, email, Remind, Google-Meets and face-to-face meetings. Ensure that this communication is ongoing, rather than only around issues or concerns.
   
• Family Surveys and Feedback : Conduct regular surveys to get feedback on how the program is meeting family expectations and to invite suggestions for improvement.

4. Engaging Families in Truly Reciprocal Ways

• Shared Leadership Opportunities: Invite families to lead events or initiatives that are important to them, such as cultural celebrations or community service projects.
   
• Parent Experts: Identify and invite parents with specific skills (e.g., cooking, storytelling, crafts) to share their expertise with the class.

5. Learning Activities for the Home and Community

• Home Learning Kits: Provide home learning kits with books, manipulatives, and activities that families can use to reinforce classroom learning. Include instructions and suggestions on how to modify activities for different skill levels.
   
• Community-Based Learning: Offer suggestions for family-friendly learning experiences in the community.
   
• Digital Resources : Chromebooks are available to all families to check out for the school year for easy access to digital learning. Create an online resource hub with activities, videos, and reading lists that families can access to support their child’s learning at home. Ready Rosie would be an example of this.

6. Invite Families to Participate in Program-Level Decisions and Advocacy 

• Family Policy Council: Create a Family Advisory Committee composed of parents from diverse backgrounds to advise on school policies, curriculum. Make sure that the committee has a clear voice in decision-making processes.
   
• Parents/Guardians and FSS planning meetings: Ensure that parents are represented on the school’s governing bodies or committees to have a say in program-level decisions.

7. Implementing a Comprehensive Program-Level System of Family Engagement

• Family Engagement Framework: Develop a formal Family Engagement Framework that outlines clear objectives, strategies, and benchmarks for success in family involvement. This framework should be inclusive of all families and culturally sensitive.
   
• Professional Development: Provide ongoing training for staff on best practices in family engagement, focusing on cultural competency, implicit bias, and effective communication.
   
• Annual Family Engagement Assessment: Conduct an annual assessment of family engagement efforts, using feedback from families and staff. Make necessary adjustments to the program based on findings.
   
• Community Partnerships: Build strong partnerships with local community organizations, social services, and health agencies to create a network of support for families.

8. Evaluation and Continuous Improvement

• Feedback Loop: Regularly solicit feedback from families through surveys, focus groups, and informal conversations. Adjust programs and practices based on this feedback to meet the evolving needs of the community.
   
• Family Engagement Metrics: Establish metrics to track family participation and engagement, such as attendance at events, feedback response rates, and progress toward family-set goals for children.
   
• Celebrating Successes: Highlight successes and positive outcomes from family engagement efforts through newsletters, social media, and school events to motivate continued participation.

Adoption Date:  First Reading 10.24, Adopted