Notes from the November Board of Ed: family engagement

 report from the family engagement summit
Riley: "parents are more than ready to be involved...they are the sleeping giant in education"
Deputy Commissioner Robinson whose opening comments we entirely missed as we couldn't hear them

"vision casting"
every registration had to have families registered
"families were so encouraged to have the Commissioner present"
Rachelle Engler Bennett (Associate Commissioner): work to strengthen work in this realm
Department developed a cross-agency framework
Office of student and family support: team of 20 supports
Olga Lopez, Family Engagement Specialist
summit had 400 participants; 37 workshops offered; 29 districts participated

Mary Stewart "family engagement...is a strategy for school improvement, it's a strategy for student success"
"communication isn't the only thing" as how parents parent also matters
"incredibly positive experience"

Robinson: all gathered together, focused on student success
Stewart: practitioners to get that experience of having that with families; to share power with families

Hills: what do you want to see a year from now?
Lopez: families engagement, sitting down together, not afraid to share their ideas

Mohamed: what does access look like?
Lopez: different initiatives, outreach coordinators reaching different families
train a trainers, teach school districts how to engage with families

Canavan: communication and access
school council meetings during the workday: I had some flexibility but not everybody does
how do we share information and how to do we create pathways
Lopez: did a lot of focus groups before putting it together
"we did everything we had to know"
back and forth here about if the Friday was a criticism
Lopez: the school districts did the job of bringing the families
districts in some cases provided transportation
Robinson: "what do you need?"

Moriarty: school councils: to create more parent engagement
"I'm not sure after thirty years if this has come off as well as we'd hoped"
Engler Bennet: need to provide multiple vehicles for engagement
Stewart: site council finds under the purview of the school committee
"that's a big part of it"
Lopez: provide maximum opportunities to be successful

Plankey: love the fact this work is getting the spotlight that I think it deserves
certain point at which students can act as decision makers and advocates
to what extend were students participating?
Lopez: we tried to bring a group of youth; something we have to work on
Plankey: more opportunities
"I'd love to see students involved in this conversation"
notes expansion of statewide student voices: student advisory council; now also Mass Association of Student Reps, Mass Student Union 
would love to see actual student representation on school committees, back by a student advisory, as required by law 
Riley ties back to visioning committee

Stewart: parent involvement, engagement as envisioned by education reform law
would love to see student-led parent-teacher conferences
establish core beliefs, shared understanding from the start, bringing people to the table
notes her own seat is a result of long advocacy to ensure parent voice is at that table