Van Buren County Schools

Family and Community Involvement Plan

The Van Buren County School District has always valued and encouraged assistance in the important endeavor of educating this community’s youth. We realize the critical role that family involvement plays in helping students achieve their greatest potential. Family and community input is invited and encouraged so that the partnership between home and school is strengthened. There are many levels of involvement in the educational process. In the Van Buren County School District, we work hard at finding ways for everyone to play a role.

Utilizing all of its resources to implement the Family-Community Involvement Plan, the Van Buren County School District will strive to develop and promote activities that enrich meaningful involvement. The cultivation of involvement will be based on the identified needs of students, families and this community. It is common knowledge that when parents and community stakeholders support education the following student results are evident:

Ø Improved attendance;

Ø Increased motivation and better self-esteem;

Ø Higher grades, test scores and graduation rates;

Ø Decreased usage of drugs and alcohol;

Ø Fewer instances of violent behavior; and

Ø Fewer suspensions from school.

Family involvement means everything from helping your child with homework on a daily basis to volunteering in your child’s school. We encourage family involvement from preschool through grade 12.

Family Input in Developing the Family Involvement Plan

The following actions will take place to ensure family and community involvement in the development and revision of this plan:

• Develop the plan with the assistance of the Van Buren County District Advisory Committee.
• Distribute the plan to families and students annually at the beginning of the school year.
• Post the plan on the district website.
• Conduct an annual evaluation of the plan

Providing Assistance to Schools and Other Support for Parents

Van Buren County Schools will coordinate technical assistance and other support to assist schools in planning and implementing effective parent involvement activities by:

• Adding a “Parent Information” section to the district website
• Posting curriculum standards and the system report card on the district website
• Posting lesson plans on school websites
• Providing opportunities for the families and the public to become informed about educational and community issues
• Scheduling at least two family/teacher conferences yearly
• Providing opportunities for parents to inspect all learning materials

Communication with Families

In order to improve communication between the home and school, we will attempt to inform parents about school programs and student progress by:

• Holding Open House events in all schools
• Posting pertinent information on school and district websites
• Using email and letters home to communicate frequently
• Providing a school calendar that includes important dates and activities
• Providing translation services if needed
• Providing parents with copies of school handbooks, which contain information about grading scales, school rules, courses of study, etc.
• Sending progress reports or report cards home every three weeks

Family Involvement Activities

In order to build a strong relationship with families and schools, efforts will be made to recruit and organize family help and support for the school and individual classrooms by:

• Surveying families and community members to see who is willing to donate time, talents and resources to supplement the curriculum
• Notifying families and community members of volunteer opportunities-PTO activities, field trips, book fairs, Project Graduation, athletic programs, etc.
• Creating a “Wall of Fame” to display all those who have given a certain amount of time to the schools
• Encouraging families to participate in Family Reading Night

Development of Family and Community Capacity

The Van Buren County School District will work to broaden the support system for families and the community by:

· Providing parents with materials and training to help them work with their child

· Encouraging administrators and staff members to reach out, communicate and work with parents as equal partners

· Coordinate parent involvement activities with other community resources and programs

· Maintain our partnership with Head Start to assist in the transition process from Head Start into the mainstream school system

· Helping to educate families on the state’s achievement standards; NCLB requirements; Title I, Part A requirements; and how to monitor their child’s progress

Collaborating with the Community

Community resources will be used to strengthen schools, families and student learning by:

• Promoting school tours for business and community members
• Providing technology opportunities such as open labs and computer classes for the community
• Encouraging off-site tours for family, business and community members to visit other schools and communities to get ideas and see model programs in action
• Providing GED classes for all interested stakeholders
• Providing a district representative to participate in Leadership Van Buren
• Inviting community members to participate in the annual “Vocational Day”

Annual Evaluation of the Family Involvement Plan

The Van Buren County School District will conduct an annual evaluation of the family involvement plan at the end of each school year. The evaluation shall specifically look at barriers to parent involvement, level of parent involvement, and strategies to increase involvement of parents from all population segments. The evaluation shall comprise parent surveys and parent forum discussions. The district shall use information gathered from the evaluations to revise and update the actions and strategies to achieve a greater level of parent involvement.

Continuous Improvement Philosophy

In keeping with the Van Buren County School District’s on-going commitment to continuous improvement, this facet of the district’s endeavors will benefit from:

• Careful monitoring of activities
• Reflection on activities-what can we do to improve? What is working? What needs adjustments?
• Evaluation
• Recommendations for the future

Formalization of what had been occurring for many years in the Van Buren County School District is important and will only heighten our efforts. This Family and Community Involvement Plan will help us to continue to make a difference in the lives of students, their families and this community.