Two weeks into the fall term, Stamford schools superintendent Joshua Starr, Ed.M.�98, Ed.D.�01, welcomes 90 parents and community members to the year�s first monthly community forum. As a crew of teenage babysitters care for the children of single parents in one classroom, Starr discusses his vision of math instruction for elementary and middle school students, declaring that the district staff will do its utmost to make sure every Stamford child masters algebra...

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The district coordinators in the Pasco School District view training as key to building an effective partnership program. Still new to NNPS, the district�s School & Family Partnerships Office wanted to provide training for district staff and members of schools� Action Teams for Partnerships (ATPs) to help them focus on pertinent partnership issues...

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"Are you sure the principal will allow a parent to make that decision?" "Will the teachers want me to ask them for that information?" "What will the other parents think of me?" Five years ago when Ritchie County Schools, West Virginia, began our Parent Partner Program, parents asked those questions...

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This introductory guide is designed to help you understand the underlying theory, methodology and organizational management of ParentNet, a parent-directed program that helps parents understand how they can positively impact their child's growth and development...

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Parent activists in Spokane, Wash., want to ensure that school librarians get the respect -- and longevity -- they deserve. The parents want the education code to designate school librarians an essential part of every child's basic education...

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Just as all students are different, so are all parents. Research shows, however, that certain parenting styles can enhance student learning...

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School leaders interested in education reform can look to parents and their teenaged children for support. The Harvard Family Research Project has found that when parents and youth are engaged in community organizing, academic outcomes improve...

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Schools that strive to share student progress with family members may find that the simplest of tools often work best. In Huntsville, Ala., elementary and middle school students proudly present their Wednesday Folders to their parents for review. "Completed papers, grades, a weekly school newsletter, papers about upcoming events, and notes to parents -- all of this vital school information arrives at the parents' door in a convenient package," writes Cara Bafile, Education World...

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Many parental involvement programs are unfocused, and parents are still a largely untapped resource, education consultants Fay Brown and Valerie Maholmes have found. To address this problem, they suggest educators ask one critical, guiding question: Just what do you want parents to do when they are involved? To find answers, follow this link, then scroll down and read More Than a Clich�: Making Parental Involvement Meaningful...

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The fact that parents are a vital part of a child's education is an idea not lost on the youth. Consider, for example, these words from a fifth-grade student:
Parents are the number one key to unlocking the door to their children's success in school.

This observation was part of a winning essay, submitted for a national contest sponsored by General Mills...

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Want to help school leaders and teachers work more effectively with community resources to enhance student learning? Ask principals in your district to make use of an online tutorial developed for New Mexico educators. The tutorial is designed to help educators, in any state or district, use knowledge and insights from community members to enhance learning and create partnerships for life-long learning...

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Word was getting around about the new problem solver on campus. So the mother tracked her down one recent day in a makeshift office on the second floor of a Southeast Washington public school...

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Five Napa families and the Napa Valley Unified School District announced a settlement Friday of the lawsuit over the Redwood Middle School's "appropriate attire policy"...

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A Colorado Springs elementary school is banning the game of tag on its playground -- after some children complained that they'd been chased or harassed against their will...

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Are parents in your school district confused about the No Child Left Behind (NCLB) legislation? Here's a resource you can share: In the Empowering Parents School Box (September 2007) the U.S. Department of Education explains NCLB and helps parents understand their role in the education of their children...

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The first step in creating effective partnerships with families and community members is to check your attitude, advise the authors of Beyond the Bake Sale: The Essential Guide to Family-School Partnerships (2007, The New Press)...

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Schools want to communicate with parents and family members, but it can be a challenge. The Web can be a great tool, if teachers and school leaders know how to use it. Share these tips from a teacher in North Carolina with school leaders and teachers in your district...

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Student success is a shared interest of both school and family. Schools that believe this find innovative ways to activate that partnership, according to the Center for Comprehensive School Reform and Improvement (CSRI).

It's important for schools to develop programs "in response to a specific need in the school or its community and are both focused and flexible in addressing that need," writes in Meeting the Challenge: Getting Parents Involved in Schools (August 2005, CSRI, p. 3)...

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Education leaders in Michigan know too well how difficult it can be to secure more dollars for education from a voting public that already feels financially strapped. Education leaders in Michigan, as a result, also understand the importance of making a strong case for school funding. Here are some battle-tested strategies for keeping people informed -- and willing to support school funding initiatives...

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In many ways, parents are the most important teachers children will ever have. But drawing them into schools is often difficult. So is forging a constructive parent-school relationship. Teachers complain about parents who meddle too much and those who can't be found. Parents say that educators claim to want more involvement but that they belittle their suggestions...

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The National Association of School Psychologists is committed to increasing the academic, behavioral and social competence of all students through effective home-school collaboration. In essence, home-school collaboration refers to families and schools developing relationships as collaborative partners...

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All parents have witnessed their children doing things, good and bad, which remind them of themselves. These incidents serve as powerful reminders of the critical role parents play as teachers...

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One thing that all sides in the educational debate agree upon is that parents and local communities should be involved in education.
Many studies have shown that when parents and families are involved in their children's schools, their children do better...

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In the "old" days, if you forgot your lunch money, you were out of luck. Learn how to keep parents aware of their child's lunch balance...

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District leaders were asked to share their ideas for encouraging parents of middle and high school students to become more involved in the education of their children...

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