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New 5-Year Grant Supports NNPS Growth and Studies of
Student Achievement
TThe Center on School, Family, and Community Partnerships at Johns Hopkins University was awarded a five-year grant to continue developing and improving the National Network of Partnership Schools. The project, Family and Community Involvement: Achievement Effects, is funded by the National Institute of Child Health and Development (NICHD). It is part of an interagency initiative with the National Science Foundation (NSF) and the Institute for Education Sciences (IES) to learn more about designing and scaling up school improvement programs and components.
NNPS Partnership Awards
Will Offer $500 Prize
NNPS will expand its Partnership Awards program to include $500 prizes. Beginning in 2004, up to ten school, district, state, or organization partnership programs will receive a $500 prize with their Partnership Award and the additional honor of Special Recognition.
Issues & Insights: Consider TIPS Interactive Homework to Connect Home and School for Fall 2004
... Educators often discuss the amount and not the quality of homework that teachers assign students.
In the News: NNPS District Award Winner
Saint Paul Public Schools was featured in the Star Tribune (Minneapolis-St. Paul) for incorporating information about the Hmong culture into the social studies curriculum in grades kindergarten through third.
Meeting the Challenge: Connecting Your Partnership Program to Student Math Achievement
New provisions in the No Child Left Behind Act have encouraged many districts and schools to set improved student math achievement as one of their annual goals. Many schools in the National Network of Partnership Schools (NNPS) organize their partnership programs to include activities that help meet this goal.
Leadership Line: In This Together: One District’s Story of Building a Program of Partnerships
“We are a school district that has struggled to get our arms around parent involvement in a structured way. It has taken us a while to get to this point, but now we are moving in the right direction,” explained Dr. Brenda Holmes, Director of the Family and Community Partnerships Unit of Montgomery County Public Schools (MCPS) in Maryland.
Research Synthesis Examines Diversity and School, Family, and Community Connection
No matter their race, ethnicity, culture, or income, most families have high aspirations and concerns for their children’s success. This is one of the findings in the latest research synthesis from the Southwest Educational Development Laboratory’s (SEDL) National Center for Family and Community Connections with Schools. The synthesis, Diversity: School, Family, and Community Connections, is the third in a series of reviews of research on key educational issues.
NNPS Resources on Homework and TIPS
Elementary School Report: Seven Ways to Use Technology to Involve Families in Children’s Education
Technological advances have rapidly changed the ways we communicate with others. As part of this evolution, schools can use technology to communicate with families more frequently and efficiently and to help families support students’ learning at home. Consider implementing the following seven ways to increase family and community involvement using technology.
Middle and High School Report: Involve Families and the Community in Postsecondary Education Planning
By the time you read this article, most high school seniors will have applied to college or for career technical education. They are eagerly awaiting the arrival of acceptance letters. Some students had a good experience planning the next stage of their education or training. Others experienced anxiety and still feel frustrated and unsure of what lies ahead.
Research Brief: Effects of Family and Community Involvement on Chronic Absenteeism
According to the U.S. Department of Education, student absenteeism is a serious issue for many elementary and middle schools. Research has shown that, as early as the elementary grades, higher levels of absenteeism predict whether or not students drop out of school. Partnership practices that improve student attendance may help improve graduation rates.
Article in Principal Describes Leadership Roles for Partnerships
Principals have important roles to play in strengthening school programs of family and community involvement. This theme is discussed by NNPS authors Joyce L. Epstein and Natalie Rodriguez Jansorn in the lead article of the January/February 2004 issue of Principal, journal of the National Association of Elementary School Principals.
Two Reports Spotlight the National Network of Partnership Schools
Two reports released in late 2003 featured NNPS research and approaches for developing stronger programs of school, family, and community partnerships. Independent reviewers found the NNPS Partnership Model useful for increasing family involvement in middle schools and for developing parent and community leadership as part of school improvement.