Coffee, Tea & Talk Curriculum & School Success Conversation SeriesLandstuhl Elementary/Middle School , Kaiserslautern Germany Landstuhl Elementary/Middle School held its first Coffee, Tea & Talk Curriculum and School Success Conversation Series on Thursday, January 21, 1999, from 3:30pm-6:15pm. It was the idea of the seventh grade team. The team tried to think of a way in which the new seventh grade students’ and parents’ education could be enriched. The Conversation Series also helped address school improvement goals in math, reading/language arts, and school-home partnership. More... Laurie Kline, Action Team Chair (637) 192-650 Type 4 | Middle Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Communication ConnectionsSouth St. Paul High School South St. Paul, Minnesota The South St. Paul High School Partnership Action Team responded to the number one request on a parent survey—to increase communication between home and school, particularly about poor student status prior to midterm and about positive efforts from home and school. The Communication Connections program was for grades 7-12, which includes 100 teachers and approximately 1500 students. More... Jill Bjorkland, Action Team Chair (651) 552-5566 Type 2 | High School | Climate of Partnership |
Employment Exchange for SuccessBay-Brook Elementary School Baltimore, Maryland Bay-Brook Elementary School has included Parent Tutors in the school improvement plan for the past four years. The Parent Tutor position involves a variety of responsibilities, including being available on a regular schedule and supporting the instructional program. This support is necessary to meet our goal of improved student achievement. The school budget usually allows us to pay minimum wage to a small number of Parents Tutors, but we never have enough funds for the number of volunteers we need. More... C.E. Reinholdt, Principal (410) 396-1357 Type 6 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Everything You Always Wanted to Know About Edmonson-Westside But Were Afraid to AskEdmondson-Westside High School Baltimore, Maryland At an evening Action Team meeting at Edmondson-Westside High School, Team members realized that many parents were not aware of all that the school had to offer. Many parents did not know about the various clubs and vocational trades at the school and were extremely interested in finding out more about them. It was decided that an evening activity should be planned where every vocational trade and club could set up a booth and highlight their work. Excitement quickly grew for this Type 2 activity and plans began by selecting a date and forming a committee. It was decided that all of the middle schools in our area would also be invited to encourage students to attend our city-wide vo-tech school. Fliers were designed and printed by students in our printing trade and sent to all families and middle schools. The event was described at a staff meeting and all trades, clubs, and teachers of academic subjects were encouraged to attend and set up a booth which would showcase what they do. More... Bessina Williams, Action Team Chair (410) 396-8090 Type 2 | High School | Climate of Partnership |
Family BookshelfSteeple Run Elementary School Naperville, Illinois A wealth of very informative professional reading materials are housed in the Steeple Run Elementary School Learning Resource Center (LRC). In an effort to assist families with parenting and child rearing skills, and to support students at each grade level, the Steeple Run Family Bookshelf was created during the 1998-99 school year. Approximately 40 books that focus on child development, literacy, and mathematics are part of the Family Bookshelf. Parents are welcome to visit the Family Bookshelf in the LRC to check out books through the computerized circulation system. For those parents who cannot come to the Family Bookshelf in the LRC, a book order and delivery system was created. More... Mary-Ann Porter, LRC Director (630) 420-6385 Type 1 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Home Visits, Community Gala, and Promise Keepers ChartsFranklin Elementary School Massillon, Ohio During the 1997-98 school year, Franklin Elementary School decided it wanted to increase family and community involvement. A parent committee was formed to give input to the school for the school improvement plan. In the Spring of 1998, a team of teachers met to look at the school improvement process and to establish school-wide goals for the 1998-99 school year. Two goals were written to improve family and community involvement. Action plans designed to help reach the goals, included the following activities: home visits, a Community Gala, and School Promise Keeper Charts. More... Karen Long, Action Team Chair (330) 830-1820 Type 2 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Ice Cream SocialRidge Elementary School Bellevue, Ohio We’ve always had a hard time getting parent involvement in our school, so we knew we had to do something fun to make parents want to be more involved in their children’s education. More... Malia Jarvis, District Key Contact (419) 484-5030 Type 2 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Mercer Family CenterMercer Elementary School Shaker Heights, Ohio The Mercer Family Center is one vehicle through which we involve parents and community members in the education of Mercer School students. It is a room with many different types of reading materials, a sofa, table and chairs, and a combination television/VCR for independent viewing of school-related videos. All furnishings in the room were donated. The physical structure is one component of the Mercer Family Center. Programming for school improvement is the second way in which the Center serves our school community. Each of the six types of involvement is addressed by Family Center programming. More... Patricia D. Heilbron, Principal (216) 295-4070 Type 5 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Open House Should Be Called Opening Our HomeIronton High School Ironton, Ohio The members of Reach Out 2000 sponsored an Open House at Ironton High School on August 24, 1998. This was the first time the school had an open house of this magnitude prior to school starting, and the first time our committee sponsored one. It could not have been done without the assistance of many, many volunteers—the students, staff, and the community. The funding for the Open House came from several different sources—the Principal’s fund, the central office (which gave us paper and the opportunity to reproduce materials), business and private donations, and our Ohio Partnerships funding. More... Tomi Lintner, Teacher (740) 532-3911 Type 2 | High School | Climate of Partnership |
Parent Resource HandbookFernway Elementary School Shaker Heights, Ohio Fernway Elementary is a 350 student K-4 school in the Shaker Heights City School District. Prior to the 1998-99 school year, school and district policies, curricula, and volunteer information were developed and distributed separately. The effectiveness of these documents depended in large part on the organizational skills of individual families, i.e., the papers were disposed of, lost, or kept in various places. Consequently, the administration, teachers, and PTO leaders often were asked procedural, curricular, and informational questions that indicated a lack of familiarity with the documents previously sent home. It was felt that parents who were less involved in school activities were less likely than active parents to have important information about the school. More... Donna Prots, PTO VP Parent Education (216) 295-4040 Type 2 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Parent Support GroupShaker Heights High School Shaker Heights, Ohio The following assumptions and goals provided the basis for a plan that was submitted to the Shaker Heights High School PTO for a parent support group. More... Mary Mulligan, (216) 283-5880 Type 1 | High School | Climate of Partnership |
Parents, Do You Know Where the Quality Is?Reid Elementary School Grand Blanc, Michigan In an effort to improve communication with parents and involve them in decisions which affect the school, we began using a survey each spring. The same 12 questions are asked of all parents, staff, and students. In addition, each participant is given the opportunity to make comments and suggestions. The results of the survey are used in a couple of different ways. Parents’ comments and suggestions are reviewed, and when possible, changes are made to accommodate their expectations and concerns. For instance, concerns about consistency in discipline and consequences among classrooms were noted on several surveys. As a result, a Reid School Handbook was developed, and Mr. Baldwin, our principal, explained the school’s rules to each class. A copy of the handbook was sent home with each child. More... Keith Baldwin, Principal (810) 591-7121 Type 2 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Recipe for Parent InvolvementEli Whitney School Enfield, Connecticut During the week of March 6, 1999, all of the schools in Enfield, Connecticut celebrated "In Enfield, Families Matter" Week with special activities. The district PIE Committee sponsored the event. Town-wide activities to celebrate families in Enfield took place each day during the week. More... Patricia McCarthy, Action Team Chair (860) 763-7541 Type 4 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Volunteer Appreciation TeaWashington Elementary School Mundelein, Illinois Washington Elementary School is located in the central southern portion of Mundelein School District #75. With a present enrollment of approximately 510 students, it serves students in grades PK-5. Washington School received the National Excellence in Education Award from the U.S. Department of Education in 1993 because of the continuous efforts of our dedicated staff, our involved parents, students, and community members who help us on our journey towards excellence. More... Jenny Illing, (847) 949-2714 Type 3 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |