Alton Elementary School

Alton Elementary School Parental Engagement Policy 2013-2014 Parent Signature______Teacher Signature______

Vision-Parents are their children’s first and most important teachers. Alton is a research driven school and research tells us that parental involvement makes a difference in student achievement. When schools welcome families, establish personal relationship among families and staff, help parents understand how the system works, and encourage family- stability and collaboration to improve student achievement, students do better in school— and the schools continue to get better.

School wide Plan Family Engagement Plan The Family Engagement Plan and Compact was jointly developed with parents to establish the expectations for parental involvement. This plan is written at the school level and has involved parents in an organized, ongoing, and timely way, in the planning, review and improvement of programs for parent involvement and the School Level Family Engagement Plan in conjunction with board policy #6156.

NCLB Family Engagement Plan

Alton is committed to being family-friendly and to working as partners with our families to help our entire student learn to high levels. Parents are encouraged to be active participants in the daily operations of the school in the following ways:  Attend Annual Title I meetings  Be teachers of their children at home  Supporters of our school and of public education  Advocates for their own and other children  Support school policies, programs and events  Be decision-makers in school policy and practice  Volunteer to serve as advisors, resource persons and committee members  Reply promptly to request for information and/or conferences  Remain alert to your child’s need for support  Encourage your child/children to exhibit responsible behaviors

Title I Involvement

The school administration and staff will develop and implement the School Improvement Plan and meet the federal guidelines expressed in the Title I program. We will inform parents of the curriculum, academic assessment and proficiency level testing in a timely manner. We will also share information about the school’s status and assessed needs. We will develop plans jointly with parents. Alton’s parents will have various opportunities to participate in parental professional development here and at the parenting center. Alton will announce and clarify Title I requirements, the Alton’s participation in Title I and goals. Alton will support the Memphis City School’s policy #6156 on Family Engagement. Alton ‘s school level family engagement plan describes how the Title I school has convened an annual meeting to which all parents have been invited, give parents timely information about programs under parent involvement and will also:

 Make parents aware of Annual Title I (NCLB) meetings and the school’s participation in meeting those goals  Friendly signs and people welcome visitors and explain how to get around the building  Provide parents with a copy of the Family Engagement Plan

Programs and activities to engage families in opportunities for regular meetings and their rights to be involve in improving student achievement:  Parents will formulate suggestions, to participate in decisions relating to the education of their children and respond to suggestions as soon as possible. Current student work is displayed throughout the building  Programs and activities help families understand what their children are learning and provide training so parents will understand: the curriculum, assessments and proficiency levels.  Workshops, learning kits, and other activities show families how to help their children at home—and respond to what families say they want to know about  The school reports to parents about student progress and how teachers, parents and community members can work together to make improvements on a weekly basis.

Strong relationships between teachers and families:  The school welcomes new families, offers tours, and introduces them to staff and other families. A mid-year Title I meeting give news parents information of our Title I programs at Alton.  Teachers and families can meet face to face and get to know each other, through class meetings, breakfasts, and class observations

Opportunities for families to develop their skills, self-confidence and contacts  Families are involved in planning how they would like to be involved at the school  School committees and the PTA actively recruit and welcome families from the community  Flexible scheduling for all parent meetings for mornings, afternoon as well as evening sessions meeting regularly for parents convenience  The school is open and accessible-it is easy for parents to meet with the principal, talk to teachers and counselors, and bring up issues and concerns.  Alton will post annual school report card and other assessment data  Parents develop school improvement projects and do action research-survey other families, observe in classrooms, review materials, and visit other schools and programs

Professional development for families and staff on how to work together productively:  Families learn how the school systems works and how to be effective advocates for their children  Families and staff can learn together how to collaborate to improve student academic achievement  The school reaches out to identify and draw in local community resources that can assist staff and families.  Alton will utilize partnership with community organizations, adopters and businesses.  Alton will offer parents professional development on campus, as well as at the parenting center.

A committee of parents, teachers, support staff, and community members has jointly developed this policy and the school-parent compact. This is what we did:

1. We conducted focus groups with families, staff and community members, and did a school climate survey to find out what was important to them. 2. We drafted a policy and distributed it widely for comment. 3. We also revise the parent/teacher compact as a team. 4. We revised the policy using the comments and had it ratified by the school site-based council, parent teams, and the faculty.

Revised: June 12, 2013