Traci L. Calhoun, Thankfulness May Consist Merely of Words
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Local District West Parent and Community Engagement Fall Newsletter November 2018 Inside This Issue: Greetings ! Greetings from 1 “Thankfulness is the beginning of gratitude. Gratitude is the completion of thankfulness. Traci L. Calhoun, Thankfulness may consist merely of words. Gratitude is shown in acts.” Administrator - Henri Frederic Amiel School Experience 2 Survey November is a time to give thanks and show gratitude! One of the many things What’s Due 3 that I am thankful for is our hard working Parent and Family Center Direc- tors for their commitment to making a difference in the lives of the students LCAP Study Group 4 and families they serve every day. As you know, the work of engaging our Parents of African 5 families and communities and support with creating welcoming environments American Students could not be done without this group of wonderful human beings. Please con- Study Group tinue to show your appreciation and support for our fabulous PFCDs and do ELAC Study Group 6 not forget to schedule time to meet so they can share what they are learning with you. Thank you for supporting their growth by allowing their attendance District ELAC 7 at the cohort meetings. Convening Title I Parent Study 8 Group Thank you to all who have submitted names of parents for our various study groups. Included are pictures of our parents in action! The goal is to have Conversation with the 9 Superintendent each of our schools represented on the different study groups. There is still time to submit names to our office. SSC Training of 10 Officers LD West Parents 11 It is SURVEY time! You should have received your School Experience Surveys Present to Board of during the week of 10-28-18. Be sure to submit paper surveys by December 5, Education 2018 and online surveys by December 7, 2018. See: 2018-19 School Experience Choices Fair 12 Survey, REF-5714.7 https://achieve.lausd.net/cms/lib/CA01000043/Centricity/ Domain/405/SES-REF-5714.7-Guide-1819.pdf Cohort Meetings 13 SSC Certification 14 Consider joining our Schoology group to ensure that you have access to LD West Parent and Community Engagement resources and information. Go to: ELAC Certification 15 http://lms.lausd.net Use your LAUSD Single Sign-On, Select Groups, Join us- ing Access Code: Z4PWT-V9PVB, Select Join again. Study Group 16 Representation Finally, our thoughts and prayers go out to any of our families impacted by the Study Group 17 fires. Representation Enjoy a wonderful holiday with your friends and family! Available Workshops 18- 19 Parent Portal Update 20 With gratitude, Contact Information 21 Traci L. Calhoun School Experience Survey Window Friday, October 29th through Friday, December 7th, 2018 Recommendations for a successful SES administration: Schools with high response rates for surveys in past years engaged in a number of practices that could be helpful to your school as you administer these surveys. The following suggestions are based on these best practices: Announce the Parent Survey at staff and parent meetings (e.g., ELAC) and write announcements in parent newsletters, bulletins, and on the school webpage. Include a reminder about the survey when communicating to parents. Send a Connect-Ed message on the day surveys are sent home encouraging them to complete the survey. Set a date for parents to return the survey to school. Follow up with another Connect-Ed call on the day before they are due reminding them about how important their voices are and urging them to complete and return their surveys. Have your Parent Center and/or computer lab open for parents who wish to take the survey online during parent conferences. Ensure that the front office staff is prepared to answer questions about the survey, especially from parents. Offer incentives to students for returning parent surveys. If parents complete the survey online, they can print the thank you page displayed after they hit the submit button to verify completion. It is our goal to support you in your effort to increase parent participation. Please click on the link to access additional resources for a successful SES implementation: https://achieve.lausd.net/Page/14038 including the 2018-2019 School Experience Reference Guide REF- 5714.7. Principal Portal Certifications Required Documents Due Dates Title I Requirements: *Annual Meeting Certification *District Title I PFEP November 30, 2018 *School Title I PFEP *Title I School-Parent Compact *Staff Training REF-6749.2 Principal’s Portal Certification Principal’s Portal Required Documents * Importance of Attendance ELAC Training of Officers * A-G /Graduation Requirements Flyer Flyer Agenda Agenda Sign-In Sign-In Minutes Minutes Handouts distributed at the meeting Handouts distributed at the meeting Page 4 Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) Study Group The LCAP Study Group will continue to meet through February 2019 to review and develop comments for the Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP). Parents will learn about District programs, funding and data to support the six LCAP goals: 100% Graduation, Proficiency for All, 100% Attendance, Parent and Community Engagement, School Safety and Basic Services. Members for the Parent Advisory Committee (PAC) will be elected from the participants at the culmination of the LCAP Study Group in February 2019. The next LCAP Study Group meeting is Thursday, January 10, 2019 at Johnnie L. Cochran Middle School. Thank you to Mr. Gilberto Samuel and the Cochran MS team for their continued hospitality! Contact Anthony L. Williams via email at [email protected] or by phone at (310) 914-2124. Page 5 Parents of African American Students Study Group The opening session of the Parents of African American Students Study Group was held on October 12th at Wilshire Crest Elementary. Thank you Principal Gayle Robinson for hosting. This session included parents representing 19 schools... and there is still room for more! The purpose of the AAPSG is to discuss strategies to increase academic achievement for our African American students and address topics of interest to the parents. During October’s study group parents received important information about college as well as discussed how creating a college going culture must start in elementary school. Parents received and reviewed the Senior College Booklet which discusses the path to college. Other topics covered were: preparing to apply for college and financial aid. The Parents of African American Students Study Group meets once a month at Wilshire Crest ES. Each session is from 9:30 a.m. – 11:30 a.m. Future meeting dates are: Friday, November 16, 2018, December 14, 2018, January 11, 2019, February 15, 2019, March 15th, 2019, April 12, 2019, and May 17, 2019. If you have parents interested in attending the study group please email Marisol Castro at [email protected] Page 6 English Learner Advisory Committee Study Group The LD West ELAC Study Group has met twice this semester. On October 9th, 2018, 80 parents and EL Designees representing over 49 schools met at West Los Angeles City. Topics included: Purpose of ELAC Conducting Effective ELAC meetings Roles of ELAC Officers Greene Act/Robert’s Rules of Order Participant comments included: “The study group expanded my knowledge of the programs and services for EL students.” “I now understand my role as an ELAC member.” “As president, I feel better able to lead the ELAC meetings at my school.” Bravo to Principal Adiekweh and team at Fairfax HS for hosting the ELAC Study Group on November 1, 2018 in which participants took a deep dive into the Executive Summary of the Master Plan. Addi- tional topics included: Purpose of the LPAC and how it is administered Understanding the LPAC student report Resources Evaluation comments included: “I learned that the Executive Summary of the Master Plan 2018 includes English Learners and the Standard English Learners” “I learned that after English Learners are reclassified, they are monitored for four years to determine their academic progress” The next meeting date is January 16, 2019 at Johnnie L. Cochran MS 9:00 a.m.- 12:00 p.m. New participants are welcome to attend! Contact Edith Perez at [email protected] for more details. Page 7 District English Learner Advisory Committee Convening Thumbs up to Dr. Miranda Conston-Raoof of Pio Pico MS for hosting the LD West ELAC Convening on October 19, 2018. Congratulations to the following ten members who were elected to serve and represent LD West on the District English Learner Advisory Committee (DELAC)! 59th Street ES—Patricia Rodriguez Arlington Heights ES—David Ruiz Gonzalez Carthay Center—-Maria Diaz (alternative) Cheremoya ES—Monica Arrazola Harvard ES—Rocio Elorza Hollywood HS—Olga Tseshkovska (alternative) Horace Mann MS—Omara Gonzalez Kingsley ES—Pedro Tot Marvin ES—Rosalba Jacinto Mid-City Magnet—Adela Salazar Page 8 Title I Parent Study Group The Local District West Title I Study Group is off to a great start with enthusiastic parents who are eager to study, discuss, and review the implementation of the District’s Title I Parent and Family Engagement Policy. They started the process of providing input for the Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) Federal Addendum regarding the use of Title I parent involvement funds. Parent, Mark Winkler, from Baldwin Hills Elementary Pilot & Highly Gifted Magnet shared, “I really enjoyed the study group. It was informative and extremely interactive. Looking forward to the next meeting.” Schools are encouraged to send parents to participate if you have not already done so. Names can be submitted to Jill O’Brien, Parent Educator Coach via email at [email protected] or by phone at (310) 914-2124. The next Title I Parent Study Group meeting will be Thursday, November 29, 2018.