Bring Your Parent to School DaysFollow Through Urban Learning Laboratory Buffalo, New York Adapting “Bring Your Child to Work Day,” a seventh-grade student asked the principal if there could be a day when parents came to school with their kids. The principal agreed, and the school initiated “Bring Your Parent to School Days” during which parents followed their children’s schedules for the day. More... Donna Kellum, Action Team Chair (716) 888-7007 Type 2 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Calling All MalesClover Street School Windsor, Connecticut Every year it is difficult to recruit enough parents to volunteer for the library, classrooms, and other activities. The Action Team for Partnerships (ATP) worked to solve this challenge by reaching out to an untapped source—fathers and other male relatives. The goal was to involve men in the learning community and provide opportunities for them to be role models for students. Men participating in school activities also would help break the stereotype that only mothers volunteer and monitor student progress. More... Gloria Cicero, Principal (860) 687-2050 Type 3 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Coffees with the PrincipalNaperville North High School Naperville, Illinois Naperville North High School (NNHS) has had three different principal and leadership changes over the past three years. Parents and the community wanted leadership stability within the high school. The Action Team for Partnerships and the new principal helped address this need by coordinating informal coffees with the new principal hosted at parent homes in different elementary school areas. The primary goal of Coffees with the Principal was to engage as many parents as possible in a comfortable, informal setting to meet and dialogue with the new principal. Two-way communication between school and home would help families feel better about the leadership at NNHS. More... Sheila Sarovich, Action Team Chairs (630) 961-9409 Type 2 | High School | Climate of Partnership |
Community BreakfastColonel Ledyard/Groton Heights School Groton, Connecticut The Community Breakfast fostered unity in one school that is housed in two buildings. At Colonel Ledyard/Groton Heights School, pre-k through second grade is in one building, and third grade through fifth grade is housed in a second building. The two buildings share the same principal and assistant principal. The Community Breakfast invited all families and students plus community members to gather for a continental breakfast with school staff one morning before school starts. The goals of the Community Breakfast were to bring together the entire school community and to promote the school-family community partnerships program. More... Susan Morehouse, Assistant Principal (860) 449-5645 Type 2 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Community Breakfast ForumCommunity School #53 Buffalo, New York “The way a child learns cannot be separated from the way a child lives” is the motto for Community School #53. Based on this concept, the faculty and staff at Community School #53 (CS #53) strive to provide a positive learning environment, promote self-discipline, and encourage positive self-esteem so that students achieve success. More... Mary Ruth Morrow-Kapisak, Action Team Chair (716) 888-7098 Type 2 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Fall Harvest PotluckPatagonia Elementary School Patagonia, Arizona Students and staff at Patagonia Elementary School welcomed parents, family, friends, and community members to the second annual Fall Harvest Potluck Dinner one evening from 5:30-7:30 p.m. This celebration culminated the students’ twelve-week fall harvest unit. Students performed, families viewed student projects, and everyone enjoyed food and a bonfire. The school-family-community event showcased student learning. More... Erin E. Ross, (520) 394-3070 Type 3 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Family and Teachers for Children: A Council StructureWest Carrollton Early Childhood Center West Carrollton, Ohio West Carrollton Early Childhood Center established the organization Family and Teachers for Children (FTC) to utilize the unique talents and skills of family members, community members and local businesses, and staff members to provide the best possible learning environment for its students. The organization also maintained ongoing communication between school, home, and community. More... Kimberly Hall, -Alt (937) 859-4601 Type 5 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Family-School Picnic SupperFreedom Elementary School Freedom, Wisconsin Everyone has heard the saying, “Serve food and they will come.” Freedom Elementary proved that this strategy continues to be successful. In September, the school hosted a family-school picnic supper immediately preceding Open House night. Nine hundred people attended and all 900 visited classrooms for Open House. This rural school has 730 students enrolled in Pre-K to Grade 5. More... Jeanne Czech, Principal (920) 788-7950 Type 2 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Grandparents GatheringsWindsor Hills Elementary School #087 Baltimore, Maryland Because of changes in family structure due to death, divorce, and other life events, grandparents are often required to take on the responsibilities of parenting—parenting a second time around. The family demographics of Windsor Hill Elementary reflect this change in society. The Action Team planned activities to provide Windsor Hill’s grandparents with the information and resources they need to foster a positive family structure and keep children focused on their education. The two Grandparent Gatherings also supported school improvement goals of increased attendance and achievement for students in pre-k through fifth grades and improved school climate. More... Matilda Pair, Parent Liaison (410) 396-0595 Type 1 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Incentive NightsEarly Childhood Center #17 Buffalo, New York Winters in Buffalo can be brutal. To warm things up, the Early Childhood Center #17 threw a Beach Party Bingo Night in January for students and families. The night was one of four incentive nights held quarterly throughout the school year to give students, families, and school staff an opportunity to work together in a fun environment reinforcing a skill. Everyone enjoyed the Incentive Night themes of autumn harvest, beach party bingo, critters and creatures, and Hawaiian luau. More... Barbara Clark, Principal (716) 888-7020 Type 3 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Kinship Care Support GroupGrove Park Elementary School #224 Baltimore, Maryland Many students are raised by adults other than their natural parents. The Kinship Care Support Group provided these caregivers with opportunities to meet on a regular basis to discuss the challenges of rearing children other than their own and to share workable strategies, success stories, and failures in a confidential and empathetic setting. More... Joanie Dorsey, Action Team Chair (410) 396-0822 Type 1 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Males 'R' Us Recognition Day and Family PicnicBilingual Early Childhood Center #36 Buffalo, New York Parents, teachers, staff and children gathered in a park across from the school to honor fathers and significant male figures in children’s lives and to strengthen the bond between students and their significant male relatives. Children honored the men with a variety of poems, artwork, and awards. Following the program, everyone stayed for a picnic lunch, reading, and a performance by a Latin band. More... Zulma Dietz, Action Team Chair (716) 888-7047 Type 3 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Middle School Ice Cream SocialGarrett Morgan Cleveland School of Science Cleveland, Ohio Garret Morgan invites all families to an ice cream social held within the first week of school. After the ice cream is served, students watch a movie in the auditorium while parents attend a meeting about the upcoming Academic Achievement Plan (school improvement plan). The entire staff voluntarily attends the social and uses the event as an opportunity to meet families and community members. Staff speakers address parent concerns, safety to and from school on public transportation, and other topics. The school also asks parents to register as volunteers for the Parent-Teacher-Child Club. More... Christine Story, Community Liaison (216) 281-6188 Type 2 | Middle Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Monthly Luncheon with the PrincipalChaska Middle Schools East and West Chaska, Minnesota Monthly luncheons with the principal are one of Chaska’s strategies to promote two-way communication between parents and school staff to gain information, share ideas, discuss concerns, and support each other in raising and educating middle school students. More... Lori Juelich, Parent Involvement Coordinator (952) 401-9454 Type 2 | Middle Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Parent Education CourseRoscoe Elementary School Sun Valley, California Roscoe Elementary School’s Parent Action Committee established a twelve-week parent education course to improve communication between parents and students and decrease incidents of disruptive behavior at school and home. Topics included parenting, positive discipline, high expectations, assertiveness training, and standards-based instruction. More... Curtis Johnson, SB65 Outreach Consultant (818) 767-3018 Type 1 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Parent Information BoothArminta Elementary School North Hollywood, California One of the Site Action Team’s goals was to increase parent attendance at workshops and activities beyond the same consistent group of parents. After a lot of brainstorming, the team decided to create a Parent Information Booth that would get the word out to parents about the variety of workshops available. More... Michelle Brent, Action Team Coordinator (818) 765-5911 Type 2 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Parent WorkshopsDe Anza Junior High School Calexico, California The Calexico School District, located on the Mexican-United States border, is a rural community with an unemployment rate of 20-30%, a high percentage of English language learners, and families that migrate with the change in agricultural seasons. Despite these challenges, the Calexico School District has several parenting programs that exceed a 95% rate of parent participation. More... Jim Shinn, LCSW, Counselor (760) 768-3933 Type 1 | Middle Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Parent-to-Parent InterviewsTexas LEADS Project Austin, Texas A basic tenet of the Texas LEADS (Local Empowerment for Accessible and Diverse Schools) Project is that parents are leaders and decision-makers. The Texas LEADS Project is working in two Austin middle schools to develop a strategy to gather input from parents on their needs, goals, and school activities that they would like to see implemented, as well as to encourage parents to take leadership roles in implementing projects. More... Leslie Friedlander, Project Coordinator (512) 349-2216 Type | Middle Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Pride DayMcGrath Elementary School Grand Blanc, Michigan In the spirit of community, students, staff, and families of McGrath Elementary worked together to beautify the outside of their school in an event entitled “Pride Day.” This casual fun activity involved students’ families and appealed to many different families. Pride Day brought together the school community to blossom a sense of joint ownership about the school. More... Amy Nagy, Principal (810) 581-5901 Type 3 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Providing Information to ParentsColerain High School Cincinnati, Ohio Colerain High School’s PTA identified a communication problem for the school and its families. Important school policies and procedures were listed in the students’ daily planners, but when students were at school, parents could not check procedures. In addition, the PTA wanted to revise their brochure to include more information about Colerain High. The PTA contacted the Action Team for Partnerships, and they joined together on two strategies to improve families’ access to important school information. More... Rose Marie Fromme, Action Team Chair (513) 385-6424 Type 2 | High School | Climate of Partnership |
PSD Fashion ShowPennsylvania School for the Deaf Philadelphia, Pennsylvania Pennsylvania School for the Deaf students commute daily from their homes throughout the city and in some surrounding counties. It is a challenge to involve all families due to their varied needs, interests, and distances from the school. The Partnership Action Team of Community Home and School (PATCH&S) wanted to provide all students and their families with a positive face-to-face school interaction. PATCH&S also wanted to reinforce poise and self-confidence and enhance self-esteem in all students. The resulting activity to meet these goals was a student and family Fashion Show. More... Brenda Wilford, Partnership Action Team of Community, Home, and School Co-Chair (215) 951-4766 Type 3 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Reaching OutColvin Elementary School Wichita, Kansas Colvin Elementary is a high poverty, diverse community with families that speak many languages and do not necessarily know how to navigate the school system. The school uses a variety of strategies to break down walls between the home and school and make a diverse group of families feel welcomed and needed at their community school. More... GwenCarol Holmes, Principal (316) 973-7600 Type 2 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |
School Beautification ProjectMadison Junior High School Naperville, Ohio Madison Junior High School will celebrate its 25th anniversary next year. Since its opening, the school has never fully completed the landscaping around the front entrance, and, consequently, flooding has been a problem. Skate boarders and roller bladers have also found the area enticing, resulting in damage to the surrounding walls and concrete. More... Catherine Redford, Action Team Chair (630) 420-4257 Type 6 | Middle Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Strategies to Inform EveryoneHarborside Middle School Milford, Connecticut The Action Team for Partnerships at Harborside Middle School offered many parent workshops in order to reach as many parents as possible. Due to parents’ busy schedules, the Action Team found it challenging to get parents to attend the presentations. The Action Team for Partnerships addressed this challenge by implementing several ways to get the presentation information to those families who could not come. More... Lori Hart, Action Team Chair (203) 783-3668 Type 2 | Middle Grades | Climate of Partnership |
Thanksgiving DinnerStettin Elementary School Wausau, Wisconsin Planning a Thanksgiving dinner? Why not invite 500 people to feast with you? That is exactly what Stettin Elementary School did. One week before Thanksgiving, students, extended families, school faculty and staff, administrators, and school board members came together to prepare and partake in a delicious Thanksgiving feast celebrating unity. More... Lynn Carr-Berry, Family and School Liaison (715) 261-2800 Type 2 | Elementary Grades | Climate of Partnership |