LCFF Priority 3 Statement of Model Practices

Desired Results: Local educational agencies (LEAs) ensure all parents and families of students in preschool through grade 12 are assured culturally appropriate and linguistically accessible supports and resources needed to take advantage of opportunities to provide input and participate in school planning and decision-making. Educators within the LEA have the capacity to provide such opportunities to parents and families. Parents and families utilize these opportunities to learn about their children’s schools and to participate meaningfully.

An LEA provides training and opportunities for parents and families to learn about LEA and school plans, programs, and activities. LEAs include parents, students, and families in developing LEA and school site strategies to improve academic achievement and the social, emotional, and physical well-being of all students.

Model Practices: Model practices for promoting parental and family involvement in preschool through grade 12 in decision-making may include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Intentionally build and sustain respectful and trusting relationships between staff, educators, and families by creating and sustaining a welcoming and inclusive environment at all schools, including preschools:
  • Provide adequate, ongoing staffing, resources, and infrastructure to develop and sustain systemic parent and family engagement. Examples include hiring front office staff that can communicate in the languages of the families in the school community; engaging in conversations about equity and differences in student outcomes; and inviting parents and families to school meetings and activities.
  • Provide staff with ongoing interactive professional learning using adult learning strategies. Include practice through self-reflection and role-playing to develop the cultural competency to effectively engage parents and families.
  • Provide parents and families with ongoing interactive learning opportunities using adult learning strategies. Include practice through role-playing to build the knowledge, understanding, skills, and confidence to meaningfully participate in LEA and school programs and contribute to the design, implementation, evaluation and revision of plans to improve student outcomes.
  • Annually assess the effectiveness of current parent and family engagement strategies and update parent and family engagement plans.
• Expand and improve promotion of what is unique and successful about each school.
• Ensure that LEA and school advisory groups reflect the diversity and demographics of the LEA and school communities. Adopt practices that make all families feel welcome and respected at their child’s school.
• Provide opportunities and supports for parents and families to organize and sustain active advisory groups and other parent groups, including, but not limited to: Parent Advisory Committee, English Learner Parent Advisory Committee, LEA wellness councils, and other LEA/site level councils and advisory committees responsible for planning and implementing training, fundraising, and other activities for parents.
• Integrate parent and family engagement as a core component of all LEA and school improvement initiatives and align all LEA and school family engagement plans.
• Use data, research, and input from parents and families to plan and implement effective outreach to parents and families who may have unique barriers to participation, such as those for whom English is a second language, immigrants, migrants, foster youth guardians, families in poverty, homeless families, individuals with disabilities, and families of incarcerated youth.
• Provide translation, especially simultaneous translation when possible, for parents and families with a primary language other than English and include opportunities for questions.
• Provide parents of students with disabilities information for local Family Empowerment Centers and Parent Training Information Centers.
• Ensure that the parents/family with a child with special needs understands the proceedings at the Individualized Education Program (IEP) meeting, including but not limited to arranging for an interpreter for parents who are deaf or whose home language is other than English.
• Schedule opportunities for parents and families to participate in school and LEA-supported activities and training at times and places conducive for full participation. Invite parents of preschool children residing in the LEA to these events to create an inclusive environment that promotes a positive transition into transitional kindergarten or kindergarten.
• Provide supports, such as transportation and child care, when possible, to enable parents and family members to participate in school and LEA activities and training.
• Develop effective partnerships with the greater school community; effectively use community resources to support families' needs to enable parents to actively participate in the school.
• Seek parent/family input and contributions from parent advisory groups, such as a Parent Advisory Committee, English Learner Parent Advisory Committee, Head Start Policy Committee, LEA wellness councils and other LEA/site level councils and advisory committees, to inform LEA and school decisions.
• Beginning with families of preschool-aged children, foster meaningful two-way communication between schools and families.
• Build capacity of educators and family leaders to jointly plan and lead family engagement activities by ensuring that they receive training that enables them to:
  • Be knowledgeable and confident in their ability to work as partners and share responsibility for student learning
  • Be culturally responsive and reach out to families to build partnerships.
  • Use linguistically accessible communication methods, accessible to and used by parents, including, but not limited to social media, e-mail, printed letters, telephone and face-to-face communication, and visual aids such as charts and diagrams. This communication can cover a variety of topics, as appropriate, that are related to students’ needs and interests such as:
    • Student physical, social/emotional, and learning needs;
    • Academic progress;
    • Attendance;
    • Risk factors;
    • Strategies for improvement;
    • Available resources;
    • College and career pathways.
• Establish ongoing processes to gather information through regular surveys, workshop evaluations, interviews, home visits, observations, and focus groups. Acknowledge the contributions and current relationships of parents and families and communicate understanding of their needs and expectations for their students.
• Educators communicate regularly to parents and families about ongoing opportunities to provide feedback in convenient and accessible ways, including but not limited to:
  • Family resource centers;
  • Accessible technology;
  • Dedicated email addresses for input;
  • Principal and teacher office hours that provide an opportunity for parents and family members to meet with school site administrators.

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