Joyce L. Epstein and Laurel A. Clark
National Network of Partnership Schools
Center on School, Family, and Community Partnerships/CRESPAR
Johns Hopkins University
Many schools, districts, and states are eager to learn how to pay for staff salaries and program costs for school, family, and community partnerships. For answers, we turned to the members of the National Network of Partnership Schools, conducted by Johns Hopkins University. This Network invites schools, districts, and state education agencies to develop comprehensive and productive programs of home-school-community connections. To join the Network, members must agree to support their programs financially.
The annual progress report for the 1996-97 school year – UPDATE – was sent to schools, districts, and states that were members of the National Network of Partnership Schools by December, 1996. Questions about funding were included about levels, sources, and adequacy of funding for school, family, and community partnerships, and whether proposals were written and funded. This summary is based on responses from 94 schools, 25 districts and 7 states.
UPDATE data show how schools, districts, and states are meeting the budget requirement for membership in the National Network of Partnership Schools. Members are tapping into many sources including federal funds such as Title I or Goals , local funds such as state or district grants, and funds from local foundations or other organizations.
Budget Requirements. The data suggest that schools, districts and states should be able to identify adequate funds for their programs.
Schools that receive Title I funds for school-wide or targeted-assisted programs can provide adequate funds for activities planned by an Action Team for School, Family, and Community Partnerships. Schools that do not receive Title I funds also can identify from $500-$2500 or more per year from school budgets and other sources to cover costs for a responsive program of partnerships.
Districts with fifteen or more schools can fund one-full time-equivalent position to facilitate the training, planning, implementation, and sharing activities of all schools and direct district-level programs. Salaries and program costs may range from $50,000-$100,000 per year or more. Smaller districts are able to identify funds to support part-time facilitators and helpful activities to ensure that all families are informed and involved in their children’s education across the grades.
States can fund at least one full-time equivalent coordinator and state leadership activities for $100,000 or more per year. States in the National Network of Partnership Schools reported using Title I, Title VI, Goals and other funds for salaries for state coordinators, other staff, grants to schools and districts, staff development and training workshops for school teams and related activities.
Grant Proposals. Members at 29 schools, 13 districts, and 4 states reported that they wrote proposals in the 1996-97 school year to federal, state, local education agencies, or regional and national foundations to obtain funds for their school, family, and community partnership programs. In their proposals, they discussed their connections with the National Network of Partnership Schools and the Center on School, Family, and Community Partnerships at Johns Hopkins University. They documented that their work was well grounded in theory, research, and tested practice. The Network, then, helps schools, districts, and states provide a base on which to build their requests for funding for their programs of partnership. This is an important function of the National Network of Partnership Schools that seems to be working as planned.
Discussion. It is likely that the figures reported here underestimate the funds that are used for school, family, and community partnerships. Many schools, districts, and states produce newsletters, conduct workshops and fairs, install phones or computerized message systems, perform concerts, dramas, and sports events, and conduct other activities that involve families and communities. They do not always consider the costs of these activities in a separate budget for partnerships. The figures from UPDATE highlight the importance of identifying annual budgets for staff, program costs, and activities for school, family, and community partnerships to ensure that these are guaranteed components in school, district and state organizations.
The 1996-97 UPDATE survey of schools, districts, and states in the National Network of Partnership Schools shows that the National Network of Partnership Schools serves as a catalyst for schools, districts, and states to invest in staff and programs for improving and maintaining school, family, and community partnerships. The initial reports also show that members are off to a good start. As of September, 1997 about 60% of schools, 40% of districts and 17% of states reported that their partnership programs were adequately or well-funded. These percentages reflect the relative ease of funding school-level programs, and the need to invest in district and state staff, grants, training programs, and other activities. The figures are encouraging, but reveal that more work is needed at all levels to fully fund permanent programs of partnerships.
The following information on funding levels and sources may help other schools, districts, and states find the funds they need to support their programs of school, family, and community partnerships.
School budgets for programs of partnership ranged from under $100 to $70,000 in 1996-97. The median value for school budgets was $2,000 and the mean was $4,065, based on 80 cases. The figures range widely because some schools used general funds, and others obtained small or sizable grants for staff and for program costs for school, family and community partnerships.
Major funding sources listed alphabetically for programs and activities of partnership reported by schools in 1996-97 were:
Schools listed several other funding sources for their programs of partnership, including some foundations and organizations that required formal proposals for funding. Funds for school-level activities were obtained from the following sources. State abbreviations refer to state-specific grants and programs.
Twenty-three school members reported writing successful proposals for funding partnerships in 1996-97. The amount of the grants ranged from $300 to $150,000.
District budgets for programs of partnership ranged from under $100 to $1.2 million in 1996-97. The median budget value was $8,000 and the mean was $85,013 based on 23 cases. For the 1996-97 school year, the following were major sources of funding for staff and programs of partnership reported by district members of the National Network of Partnership Schools:
Districts listed several other funding sources for their programs of partnership, including foundations and organizations that required formal proposals for funding. Funds for district-level facilitators, staff, district activities, and support for schools were obtained from the following sources. State abbreviations refer to state-specific grants and programs.
Seven districts reported that they awarded grants to schools for work on school, family and community partnerships in 1996-97. The grants ranged in value from $1,000 to $6,500 per school.
Members in ten districts reported that they wrote successful proposals for funding during the 1996-97 school year. Successful proposals ranged in value from $2,000 to $140,000.
State budgets for programs of partnership ranged from $105,000 to $350,000 in 1996-97. The mean for state budgets was $229,000 and the median budget value was $240,000, based on 6 cases.
States listed several other funding sources for their programs of partnership, including foundations and organizations that required formal proposals for funding. Funds for state-level staff and activities were obtained from the following sources:
Two states awarded grants to districts for their partnership programs in 1996-97. The grants ranged in value from $1,750 to $5,000. Four states awarded grants directly to schools for their partnership programs. The school grants ranged from $500 to $5,000 per school.
In addition to the states, the Department of Defense system made grants for several of its districts and schools that are members of the National Network. District grants averaged $5,000 and school grants averaged $3,000.
Members in four states reported writing successful proposals for partnerships in 1996-1997. Successful proposals ranged in value from $29,000 to $200,000.
Updated to include data received by September 26, 1997