Title 1 Parent and Family Engagement Policy

2022-2023 

Miller Junior High

Title I Family Involvement Policy and Procedures 

Miller Junior High is committed to the goal of providing quality education for every child. To this end, we want to establish partnerships with parents/guardians, families, and the community. Everyone gains when students, parents/guardians, family members, school, and the community work together to promote student success. Families play an extremely important role as children’s first teachers. Support for their children and for the school is critical to children’s success at every step along the way. Families bring a unique insight and understanding of their child’s strengths, weaknesses, and interests.

Miller Junior High recognizes that some students may need the extra assistance available through the  Title I program to reach the rigorous Common Core State Standards.  Miller Junior High intends to include families in all aspects of the school’s Title I program. The goal is a school-home partnership that will help all students succeed. 

Part I  

SCHOOL FAMILY INVOLVEMENT POLICY REQUIRED COMPONENTS 

1.    Miller Junior High will partner with families to develop and revise the School Family Involvement Policy and Procedures and distribute it to families of participating children and also make it available to the local community via: 

·         Web page 

·         Student Handbook 

2.            Yearly meeting to review the Title I Parent Involvement Policy and Student Family-School Compact for the following school year. 

·         Annual Title 1 Online Survey 

·         Parent/Guardian surveys at Student-Led Conferences

3.            Convene annual meetings, at a convenient time, to which all families of participating children shall be invited and encouraged to attend. The intent is to inform families of their school’s Title 1  participation and to explain the requirements, and the right of the families to be involved. 

·         Families’ Guide and right to be informed documents are shared during yearly Title 1 PTO meetings.

·         Student-Led Conferences in October and March with afternoon  and evening  times available for families to attend 

·         Teachers willing to schedule meetings with families as needed 

·         Title 1 families guide, and right to be informed information is available on the school website, at the office, in the newsletter, and during conference week family engagement activities. 

·         Open House at the beginning of the school year 

4.            Offer flexible meetings, such as meetings in the morning or evening as such services relate to family involvement. 

·         The principal, counselor, and/or Connections Team provide home visits as needed. 

·         Parent / Teacher conferences in October and March with afternoon and evening times available for families to attend. 

·         Teachers are willing to meet with families at any scheduled times, as needed. 

·         For families, unable to attend virtual scheduled meetings, conferences via telephone, email, or notes home are made available. 

·         These opportunities are available in English and in Spanish 

5.            Involve families in an organized, ongoing, and timely way, in the planning, review, and improvement of the school plan under Section 1112, school-wide under Section 1114, and the process of the school review and improvement under Section 1116.   

·         A copy of the School Improvement Plan is available to families online. 

·         A copy of our OSPI School Report Card is available to families online. 

6.            Provide families of participating children– 

·         Timely information about programs under this part. 

·         A description and explanation of the curriculum in use at the school, the forms of academic assessment used to measure student progress, and the proficiency levels students are expected to meet. 

·         If requested by families, opportunities for regular meetings to formulate suggestions and to participate, as appropriate, in decisions relating to the education of their children, and respond to any such suggestions as soon as practically possible. 

7.            During Open House

·         Families are given a description and explanation of the curriculum that is used at the school. 

·         Information about the Title 1 program is shared. 

8.            During Student-Led conferences 

·         Teachers share assessment data with families. 

·         Provide information about the proficiency level that students are expected to meet. 

·         Inform them of extra support provided through Title 1 / LAP programs. 

9.            Families are invited to Guided Pathways to Success (GPS) meetings when there are additional  academic concerns. 

10.          If a school-wide program plan is not satisfactory to the families of participating children, families may  submit any comments on the plan when the school makes the plan available to the district.  

·          Input from families is gathered informally on an ongoing basis by the yearly Title 1 survey online 

·         Input will be collected in October and March  via a formal survey during Student Led Conferences

Part 2  

REQUIRED SHARED RESPONSIBILITIES FOR HIGH STUDENT ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT  (SCHOOL/PARENT/STUDENT COMPACT) 

1.    As a component of the School Family Involvement Policy, each school shall jointly develop with  families, a school-family-student compact. This compact outlines how families, the school staff, and  students will share the responsibility and develop a partnership for improving academic achievement,  and achieving the Common Core State Standards. 

·         Annual Monthly Parent/Guardian meetings for discussion, input, and feedback for Miller Junior High/ Family /Student Compact. 

·         Student Led conferences in October, during which the compact shall be  discussed as the compact relates to the child’s academic achievement.  

·         Miller Junior High will provide translation services for Spanish-speaking families during these  conferences and meetings. 

·         Provide frequent reports to families on their children’s progress. Report cards are provided to  families at each marking/grading period.   There are family conferences in October and  March to go over report cards/student progress  

BUILDING CAPACITY REQUIREMENTS FOR INVOLVEMENT  

To ensure effective family engagement and to support a partnership among the school, families, and the  community, to improve student academic achievement, each school and district under this part 

1.    Shall provide assistance to the families of children served by the school or district, as appropriate, in  understanding such topics as the state’s academic content standards and state student academic achievement standards. State and district assessments, the requirements of this part, and how to monitor a child’s progress and work with educators to improve the achievement of their children. • Families are made aware of the OSPI website and its resources 

2.    Common Core Standards and assessment data.  

3.    School report card.

4.    On the Aberdeen School District website, families can access what their child is expected to  learn at each grade level. 

5.    Shall provide materials and training to help families work with their children to improve their  children’s achievement, such as literacy training and using technology, as appropriate, to foster  family involvement.  

·         Miller Junior High provides an after-school program during which students can receive help in completing homework, as well as other enrichment activities. 

·         Families have available on line material that they can use with their children at home that will further  reinforce the children’s learning. 

·         Title 1 Family Engagement Library of high interest fiction and nonfiction  readers for families to check out, along with activities and ideas to support learning at home (available at elementary schools) 

·         Provide families with reasonable access to staff and opportunities to volunteer and participate  in their child’s class. There is a formal process in place for screening parent volunteers in the district. families are encouraged to participate as chaperones on field trips and volunteer in  classrooms as requested by teachers or families.

6.            Shall educate teachers, pupil services personnel, principals, and other staff, with the assistance of  families, in the value and utility of contributions of families, and in how to reach out to, communicate  with, and work with families as equal partners, implement and coordinate parent programs, and build  ties between families and the school.  

·         Miller Junior HIgh implements Second Steps curriculum in Advisory lessons to promote conflict resolution with students and  families. 

·         The McKinney-Vento Homeless liaison coordinates training and information for the staff  regarding how to best serve homeless families and families in transition. 

7.            Shall ensure that information related to school and parent programs, meetings, and other activities is  sent to the families of participating children in a format and, to the extent practicable, in a language  families can understand.  

·         The Bobkitten newsletter is sent home in both English and Spanish once a month.

·         All correspondence is sent home to families in both English and Spanish. 

·         Miller Junior High has a Spanish translator onsite for parent communication support.

8.            Shall provide such other reasonable support for family involvement activities under this part as  families may request.  

·         Parent/Guardian requests are solicited informally through incidental conversations and formally through monthly parent/guardian meeting settings. 

·         Conferences and family engagement activities have extended schedules when possible to meet  the needs of busy families. 

9.            May involve families in the development of training for teachers, principals, and other educators to  improve the effectiveness of such training. 

10.          May provide necessary literacy training from funds received under this part if the district has  exhausted all other reasonably available sources of funding for such training. 

11.          May pay reasonable and necessary expenses associated with local family involvement activities. 

·         Family engagement library materials for families to support learning at home   

12.          May arrange school meetings at a variety of times, or conduct  between teachers  or other educators, who work directly with participating children, with families who are unable to  attend such conferences at school, in order to maximize family involvement and participation.

·         Miller Junior High has two days with afternoons and evening for student led conferences

·         Home visits (as needed) 

·         Counselor contacts families to provide support

·         Back-to-School open house night

13.          May adopt and implement model approaches to improving family involvement. May establish a district parent advisory council to provide advice on all matters related to family involvement in programs supported under this section. 

14.          May develop appropriate roles for community-based organizations and businesses in parent  involvement activities. 

Part 3 

ACCESSIBILITY REQUIREMENTS 

In carrying out the family involvement requirements, districts and schools, to the extent practicable, shall  provide full opportunities for the participation of families with children with limited English proficiency,  families with children with disabilities, and families of migratory children, including providing information  and school reports in a format and, to the extent practicable, in a language such that families can understand.  

1.    All letters sent to families are sent in both English and Spanish. 

2.    Bilingual paraeducator is available during school hours to  facilitate communication with Spanish-speaking families and students. 

3.    Interpreters are provided for meetings when needed. 

This Miller Junior High Family Involvement Policy/Procedures has been developed/revised jointly with,  families of children participating in the Title I program, as evidenced by meeting minutes on 3/4/22 &  the survey at conferences on 3/15 and 3/16/22 and will be in effect for the remainder of the 2021-2022 school year and the Fall of the 2022-2023 school year.  The school will make this Parent Involvement Policy/Procedures available to all families of participating Title I children and the community on or before 8/31/22.