KIRKSVILLE ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PARENT & FAMILY ENGAGEMENT POLICY:
TITLE 1 SCHOOL WIDE PROGRAM
All students at Kirksville Elementary School are Title 1 students. Kirksville teachers and staff are committed to building a strong family-school partnership that will allow us, as parents and teachers, to work together to achieve success for all students. “Parent” is defined as: A parent, stepparent, or foster parent of a student; or a person who has legal custody of a student pursuant to a court order and with whom the student resides (KRS 160.345 1.c). We recognize that you, the parent, are your child’s first and most important teacher. Research shows that a parent’s continued involvement is essential for student success. Therefore, Kirksville has adopted the following Parent and Family Engagement Policy. It has been developed with the help of parents to support the building and strengthening of this partnership between families and the school.
I. At the beginning of the year, parents will receive information concerning the instructional objective involving Title 1 and the Parent and Family Engagement Policy. A copy of the School-Family Compact is included in our school handbook, which parents receive upon enrollment of student(s) at Kirksville.
II. Title One staff will offer an annual meeting, at the beginning of the year, to inform parents of their child’s participation in our school-wide Title program. All parents are invited and encouraged to attend. Important information will be passed out and there will be a question and answer time offered. The meeting will cover:
- Explanation of the Title 1 program, services provided with Title 1 funds, history of Title 1, and funding and regulations
- Expectations and standards for raising test scores and student achievement
- Parents’ right to be involved
- Particular attention will be given to reach those parents who need assistance (i.e. home visits, language translation)
- Role of our Title para educators
- Reviewing the School-Family Compact for Learning
- Materials and methods used to reach all our students
- What our school academic need(s) are and how they were identified
III. Kirksville Elementary School will provide flexible meetings and activities throughout the year and ongoing communication between school and home.
- Two parent-teacher conferences - One in the fall and one in the spring. Child care may be provided by Title 1 staff. Transportation and a language interpreter may be provided upon request. Parents can request additional conferences at any time.
- Home visits
- Progress reports
- E-mails, newsletters, phone calls, Blackboard texts, Monday folders, and school web page
IV. Parents will be provided:
- Timely information and opportunities to attend regular meeting
- School performance reports and their child’s individual assessment results including an explanation of what the results mean
- Description and explanation of Kirksville’s curriculum and the types of assessment used to measure students’ progress
- Additional opportunities for parents to offer suggestions and to participate in decisions about the education of their children
V. At the end of the school year, parents will be asked for help in assessing the effectiveness of the Title 1 program, using our Annual Parent Involvement Evaluation. Parents will be invited to help in the planning, reviewing and improving of Kirksville’s parent involvement program using this information. All comments and suggestions indicating parent dissatisfactions with the Title 1 Parent Involvement Policy will be collected and submitted along with the plan to the Kentucky Department of Education.
VI. Kirksville’s Parent Involvement Policy encourages strong parent involvement and supports partnerships among schools and community by:
- Appreciating and supporting all the ways in which parents encourage their child’s learning (i.e. monitoring attendance, helping with homework, volunteering in the classroom/PTO, attending parent-teacher conferences, etc…)
- Providing materials, activities and training to parents offered through our Family Resource Center to help parents improve their child’s achievement (i.e. Confidentiality training, Grandparents Tea, etc…)
- Sending home information in the language used at home to the best of our ability. For parents who are visually impaired, provide information in Braille or large print, whichever is applicable
- Involving parents, when and where appropriate, in the development of training for teachers and other staff that improves instruction
- Coordinating and integrating, as appropriate, parent involvement programs/activities with Head Start, Even Start, and public preschool programs
- Providing a Lending Library through the Family Resource Center and parenting classes offered each semester
- Help parents become full partners in the education of their child
- Developing appropriate roles for community –based organizations and businesses, and encouraging partnerships with our school (i.e. E.K.U., Madison County Public Library)
Printable Version
KVParentandFamilyEngagementPolicy.pdf