PARENT & FAMILY ENGAGEMENT PLAN

FAIRVIEW ATTENDANCE CENTER

Parent and Family Engagement Policy

School Year 2020-2021

Revised: 12-2-2020

In support of strengthening student academic achievement, Fairview Attendance Center (FAC) receives Title I, Part A funds and therefore must jointly develop with, agree on with, and distribute to parents and family members of participating children  a written parent and family engagement policy that contains information required by section 1116(b) and (c) of the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). The policy establishes the school’s expectations for parent and family engagement and describes how the school will implement a number of specific parent and family engagement activities.

 FAC agrees to implement the following requirements as outlined by Section 1116:

● Involve parents, in an organized, ongoing, and timely way, in the planning, review, and improvement of programs under Title I, Part A, including the planning, review, and improvement of the school parent and family engagement policy and the joint development of the school wide program plan under Section 1114(b) of The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA).

● Update the school parent and family engagement policy periodically/annually to meet the changing needs of parents and the school, distribute it to the parents of participating children, and make the parent and family engagement policy available to the local community via our school website.

● Provide full opportunities, to the extent practicable, for the participation of parents with limited English proficiency, parents with disabilities, and parents of migratory children, including providing information and school reports required under Section 1111 of the ESSA in an understandable and uniform format, including alternative formats upon request and, to the extent practicable, in a language parents understand.

● If the school wide program plan under Section 1114(b) of the ESSA is not satisfactory to the parents of participating children, submit any parent comments on the plan when the school makes the plan available to the local educational agency (Itawamba County School District Central Office)..

● Be governed by the following statutory definition of parent and family engagement and will carry out programs, activities, and procedures in accordance with this definition:

Parent and Family Engagement means the participation of parents in regular, two-way, and meaningful communication involving student academic learning and other school activities, including ensuring:

(A) Parents play an integral role in assisting their child’s learning

(B) Parents are encouraged to be actively involved in their child’s education at school

(C) Parents are full partners in their child’s education and are included, as appropriate, in decision-making and on advisory committees to assist in the education of their child

(D) Other activities are carried out, such as those described in Section 1116 of the ESSA

 A: ANNUAL TITLE I MEETING

FAC will conduct an annual meeting, at a convenient time, and encourage and invite all parents of participating children to attend to inform them about the school’s Title I program, the nature of the Title I program, the parents’ requirements, the school parent and family engagement policy, the school wide plan, and the school-parent compact. Administrators hold the Annual Title I meeting each year. This meeting gives us the opportunity to meet with parents/guardians to discuss the components outlined above along with the Title I process, funding and goals.

B:FLEXIBLE NUMBER OF MEETINGS

FAC will offer a flexible number of engagement opportunities at convenient times for families, such as meetings during the day and evening.

 C: JOINTLY DEVELOPED

FAC will provide parents of participating children with information about the Title I programs, flexible number of meetings, and, if requested by parents, opportunities for regular meetings to formulate suggestions and participate in decisions relating to the education of their children and respond to any such suggestions as soon as possible.  Some of the ways we communicate with our parents is through the use of our school website and the student planner given out to all students each year. Messages are posted periodically and updated as needed to our website (updated by Technology Administrator), and the school and individual teachers use School Status messages sent directly to parents. In addition, AIM messages via phone calls and the FAC Facebook page will be utilized to communicate pertinent information to parents.  All communications with parents will be sent home in parent friendly language.

D: COMMUNICATION

FAC will provide training to educate the faculty and staff, with the assistance of parents, on the value of the potential  contributions of parents, and in how to reach out to, communicate with, and work with parents as partners, implement and coordinate parent programs, and build ties between parents and the school. 

Such training will occur during district mandated professional development days, all staff are trained on how to communicate and work with parents as partners.  This communication will be by way of School Status messages and phone calls.

FAC will provide other reasonable support for parent and family engagement activities under Section 1116 as parents will be provided...

● On Site Counseling for students (when school counselor is available) with possible referral of parents to Life Core therapist.

● Various ways to contact the school and receive information from the school and school district via School Status, school email (fac_office@itawambacountyschools.com), and in person parental visits to the school for activities and functions.

● Announcements via School Website

E: DISSENSION PROCESS

FAC will submit any comments/concerns to the Itawamba County School District’s office if the schoolwide plan and/or parent and family engagement policy is not satisfactory. 

F: SCHOOL-PARENT COMPACT

FAC will implement a district-wide school-parent compact that outlines how parents, the entire school staff, and students will share the responsibility for improved student academic achievement and the means by which the school and parents will build and develop a partnership to help children achieve the state’s high standards.

The Title I Parent Meeting is held each year to allow parents the opportunity for review and provide input into the Parent and Family Engagement Policy and School Parent Compact. This year’s meeting was held on December 1, 2020, and posted on the school website for parents to review virtually..

G: BUILDING CAPACITY OF PARENTS

FAC will build the parents’ capacity for strong parent and family engagement to ensure effective  involvement of parents and to support a partnership among the school and the community to improve student academic achievement through the following:

1. Providing parents with a description and explanation of the curriculum in use at the school, the forms of academic assessments used to measure student progress, and the achievement levels of the challenging State academic standards;

2. Materials and training to help parents to work with their child to improve their child’s achievement, such as literacy training and using technology to foster parent and family engagement;

3. Providing assistance to parents of participating children, as appropriate, in understanding topics such as the following:

a) The challenging State’s academic standards

b) The State and local academic assessments including alternate assessments

c) The requirements of Title I, Part A

d) How to monitor their child’s progress

e) How to work with educators to improve the achievement of their child

During Back to School Night/Annual Title I Meeting, we provide parents with information regarding the Title I programs, State and local assessments and standards as well as how to monitor their child’s progress. Report Card Conferences are available upon request to give parents an additional opportunity to learn how to monitor their child’s progress and to work with educators to improve achievement.

For the 2020-2021 school year the following Parent and Family Engagement Meetings are currently planned:

●       Districtwide Title I Meeting – details about Title I services, the Parent and Family Engagement Policy, the school compacts and the district’s Comprehensive Federal Programs plan will be discussed and attendees will be asked to provide feedback.

●      LBPA information regarding Kindergarten and 3rd grade requirements..

●      Student Assessment – the Director of Curriculum will be asked to present information for parents about the state and district’s assessment program for students.

●      Virtual Kindergarten Registration in the Spring to coordinate with local Headstarts and Daycares for widespread dissemination of information

●      District Resources – a list of district resources appears on the district’s website at www.itawambacountyschools.com under the tab “For Parents” as well as a dedicated website for Virtual Learning, CANVAS.

●      ICSD also maintains social media pages to highlight events in the school district.

H: ACCESSIBILITY

Itawamba County School District in carrying out the parent and family engagement requirements of this part, to the extent practicable, shall provide full opportunities, for the participation of parents and family members (including parents and family members with limited English proficiency, parents and family members with disabilities, and parents and family members of migratory children), including providing information and school reports required under section 1111 in a format, and to the extent practicable, in a language such parents understand.

Parent meetings will be offered at flexible times throughout the school year. All announcements, to the extent practical, will be available through the district website and Facebook pages in a language that can be understood by parents. Progress reports, Report Cards, state assessment results and other information regarding student achievement will be sent to parents in a timely manner. ICSD will also maintain a district data site for parents to access student grades at any time. All schools, as well as, the district office maintain normal business hours and welcome feedback in the form of personal visits, conferences, emails and phone calls. Please note, appointments are preferred so that parents may be offered our full attention. In addition to ICSD Title I Parent Meetings, we will also hold parent meetings for parents of students that are also in the English Learner Program. Due to “Social Distancing” meetings may be recorded or held virtually this school year.