SWEETWATER ELEMENTARY SCHOOL Title I, Part A Parental Involvement Plan

I, Janet Olivera , do hereby certify that all facts, figures, and representations made in this application are true, correct, and consistent with the statement of assurances for these waivers. Furthermore, all applicable statutes, regulations, and procedures; administrative and programmatic requirements; and procedures for fiscal control and maintenance of records will be implemented to ensure proper accountability for the expenditure of funds on this project. All records necessary to substantiate these requirements will be available for review by appropriate state and federal staff. I further certify that all expenditures will be obligated on or after the effective date and prior to the termination date of the project. Disbursements will be reported only as appropriate to this project, and will not be used for matching funds on this or any special project, where prohibited.

Assurances

  • The school will be governed by the statutory definition of parental involvement, and will carry out programs, activities, and procedures in accordance with the definition outlined in Section 9101(32), ESEA;
  • Involve the parents of children served in Title I, Part A in decisions about how Title I, Part A funds reserved for parental involvement are spent [Section 1118(b)(1) and (c)(3)];
  • Jointly develop/revise with parents the school parental involvement policy and distribute it to parents of participating children and make available the parental involvement plan to the local community [Section 1118 (b)(1)];
  • Involve parents, in an organized, ongoing, and timely way, in the planning, review, and improvement of programs under this part, including the planning, review, and improvement of the school parental involvement policy and the joint development of the schoolwide program plan under section 1114(b)(2) [Section 1118(c)(3)];
  • Use the findings of the parental involvement policy review to design strategies for more effective parental involvement, and to revise, if necessary, the school’s parental involvement policy [Section 1118(a)(E)];
  • If the plan for Title I, Part A, developed under Section 1112, is not satisfactory to the parents of participating children, the school will submit parent comments with the plan when the school submits the plan to the local educational agency [Section 1118(b)(4)];
  • Provide to each parent an individual student report about the performance of their child on the state assessment in at least mathematics, language arts, and reading [Section 1111(h)(6)(B)(i)];
  • Provide each parent timely notice when their child has been assigned or has been taught for four (4) or more consecutive weeks by a teacher who is not highly qualified within the meaning of the term in 34 CFR Section 200.56 [Section 1111(h)(6)(B)(ii)]; and
  • Provide each parent timely notice information regarding their right to request information on the professional qualifications of the student's classroom teachers and paraprofessionals [Section (h)(6)(A)].

 

Signature of Principal or Designee

Date Signed

 

Mission Statement



Parental Involvement Mission Statement (Optional)

Response: Sweetwater Elementary strives to involve parents in the education of their children via active participation in the Parent-Teacher Association, EESAC, and various outreach activities.

Involvement of Parents



Describe how the school will involve parents in an organized, ongoing, and timely manner, in the planning, review, and improvement of Title I programs including involvement in the decisions regarding how funds for parental involvement will be used [Sections1118(c)(3), 1114(b)(2), and 1118(a)(2)(B)].

Response: Sweetater Elementary will involve parents in the planning and implementation of the Title I Program and extend an open invitation to our school's parent resource center or parent area in order to inform parents regarding available programs, their rights under No Child Left Behind and other referral services.



Sweetwater Elementary will increase parental engagement/involvement through developing (with on-going parental input) our school's Title I School-Parent Compact; our school's Title I Parental Involvement Plan; scheduling the Title I Annual Meeting; and other documents/activities necessary in order to comply with dissemination and reporting requirements.



We will conduct informal parent surveys to determine specific needs of our parents, and schedule workshops, Bilingual Outreach Program, etc., with flexible times to accommodate our parents. This impacts our goal to empower parents and build their capacity for involvement.

Complete Title I Administration Parental Involvement Monthly School Reports (FM-6914 Rev. 06-12) and the Title I Parental Involvement Monthly Activities Report (FM-6913 06-12), and submit to Title I Administration by the 5th of each month as documentation of compliance with NCLB Section 1118. Additionally, the M-DCPS Title I Parent/Family Survey, distributed to schools by Title I Administration, will be completed by parents/families annually in May. The Survey's results are to be used to assist with revising our Title I parental documents for the approaching school year.

Coordination and Integration



Describe how the school will coordinate and integrate parental involvement programs and activities that teach parents how to help their children at home, to the extent feasible and appropriate, including but not limited to, other federal programs such as: Head Start, Early Reading First, Even Start, Home Instruction Programs for Preschool Youngsters, the Parents as Teachers Program, public preschool, Title I, Part C, Title II, Title III, Title IV, and Title VI [Section 1118(e)(4)].

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Program

Coordination

1

Title I Voluntary Pre-Kindergarten

Supervised by the Early Learning Coalition and DCPS Early Childhood staff, Sweetwater Elementary provides support to the parents of Pre-Kindergarten students with meaningful activities to assist them in acquiring the necessary skills to prepare their children for school.

2

Migrant Education Program

Sweetwater Elementary school provides services and support to migrant students and parents. The District Migrant liaison coordinates with Title I and other programs and conducts a comprehensive needs assessment of migrant students to ensure that the unique needs of migrant students are met. Students are also provided extended learning opportunities (before-school and/or after-school, and summer school) by the Title I, Part C, Migrant Education Program.

3

Homeless Assistance Program

The Homeless Assistance Program seeks to ensure a successful educational experience for homeless children by collaborating with parents, schools, and the community.

4

Counselor Chats

Sweetwater Elementary School's counselor provides monthly chats on a variety of topics geared toward assisting parents with the development of the skills they need to better assist their children in school, and at home.

5

Principal's Meetings

The principal conducts annual, grade level specific meetings for parents regarding Curriculum, Instruction , and Assessments; providing parents with important information regarding the academic programs that are offered to their children.

Annual Parent Meeting



Describe the specific steps the school will take to conduct an annual meeting designed to inform parents of participating children about the school’s Title I program, the nature of the Title I program (schoolwide or targeted assistance), Adequately Yearly Progress, school choice, supplemental educational services, and the rights of parents. Include timeline, persons responsible, and evidence the school will use to demonstrate the effectiveness of the activity [Section 1118(c)(1)].

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Activity/Tasks

Person Responsible

Timeline

Evidence of Effectiveness

1

Prepare Flyers

Principal

Completed 09/12/14

Attendance at Event

2

Powerpoint presentation

Media Specialist

Completed 09/12/14

Sign in rosters

3

Marquee

Asst. Principal

Completed 09/12/14

Attendance at Event

4

Brochure Copies

CIS

Completed 09/12/14

Number of Brochures given

5

Meeting with Teachers

AP

Completed 09/08/14

Classroom Sign in Logs

Flexible Parent Meetings



Describe how the school will offer a flexible number of meetings, such as meetings in the morning or evening, and may provide with Title I funds, transportation, child care, or home visits, as such services related to parental involvement [Section 1118(c)(2)].

Response: Sweetwater offers parental activities immediately following the student's scheduled arrival time; alternate meetings are offered in the evenings Students are provided with structured activities in order to allow their parents to attend. Home visits are conducted on a regular basis in coordination with school's Community Involvement Specialist.

Building Capacity



Describe how the school will implement activities that will build the capacity for strong parental involvement, in order to ensure effective involvement of parents and to support a partnership among the school involved, parents, and the community to improve student academic achievement [Section 1118(e)]. Describe the actions the school will take to provide materials and training to help parents work with their child to improve their child’s academic achievement [Section 1118(e)(2)].Include information on how the school will provide other reasonable support for parental involvement activities under Section 1118 as parents may request [Section 1118(e)(14)].

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Content and Type of Activity

Person Responsible

Anticipated Impact on Student Achievement

Timeline

Evidence of Effectiveness

1

Grade Level Workshops

Administration

Grade level specific information regarding the curriculum and assessment of students

Annual

Student Achievment

2

Florida Standards Workshops

Administration

Information regarding Standards and Assessment

Annual

Student Achievement

3

Counselor Workshops

Counselor

Topics to support parents with strategies for working with their children.

Monthly

Student Achievement

4

Bilingual Outreach Meetings

CIS

Strategies for supporting students in their academic progress

Monthly

Student Achievement

Staff Training



Describe the professional development activities the school will provide to educate the teachers, pupil services personnel, principals, and other staff in how to reach out to, communicate with, and work with parents as equal partners, in the value and utility of contributions of parents, and in how to implement and coordinate parent programs, and build ties between parents and schools [Section 1118(e)(3)].

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Content and Type of Activity

Person Responsible

Anticipated Impact on Student Achievement

Timeline

Evidence of Effectiveness

1

Annual Title I Meeting

Principal

Strategies for supporting students in their academic progress

August 2014

Increased student achievement

2

CIS Training

CIS

Strategies for supporting students in their academic progress

Monthly

Increased student achievement

3

Student Services

Counselors

Support for the academic program

Monthly

Increased student achievement

4

Faculty Meetings

Assistant Principal

Dissemination of information to support academic progress and parental involvement

Monthly

Increased student achievement

5

Parent Academy

CIS

Assist parents with information on how to help their students in school.

Quarterly

ncreased student achievement

Other Activities



Describe the other activities, such as parent resource centers, the school will conduct to encourage and support parents in more fully participating in the education of their children [Section 1118 (e)(4)].

Response: Sweetwater Elementary will continue to highlight student generated projects, books, art work, etc at each meeting as an incentive for parents to attend more meetings and have greater involvement.



The counselor will conduct parent workshops in both English and Spanish throughout the year to inform parents of school-wide concerns and to share best practices on assisting students to be successful in their academic progress.



Teachers will promote the benefits of participating in parent conferences to review student progress throughout the year. In addition, the principal promotes this constant communication at various meetings providing information to the parents regarding student success.

Communication



Describe how the school will provide parents of participating children the following [Section 1118(c)(4)]:

  • Timely information about the Title I programs [Section 1118(c)(4)(A)];
  • Description and explanation of the curriculum at the school, the forms of academic assessment used to measure student progress, and the proficiency levels students are expected to meet [Section 1118(c)(4)(B)];
  • If requested by parents, opportunities for regular meetings to formulate suggestions and to participate, as appropriate, in decisions relating to the education of their children[Section 1118(c)(4)(C)]; and
  • If the schoolwide program plan under Section 1114 (b)(2) is not satisfactory to the parents of participating children, the school will include submit the parents’ comments with the plan that will be made available to the local education agency [Section 1118(c)(5)].

Response: The school utilizes the Connect-Ed system regularly to inform parents of the activities at the school site in both English and Spanish, Additionally, the marquee is used to keep parents abreast of upcoming events. The school administration maintains an open door policy and is readily available to discuss student progress and any other concerns that parents may have. The student services personnel also maintain an open door policy to quickly address any concerns that parents may have. The CIS is highly visible and active in the community assisting in providing parents with the latest information on resources available, especially recently arrived families.



Teachers are committed to meeting with parents as needed and communicate in a timely manner to parent concerns and questions via e-mail, telephone, letters or face to face conferences at the convenience of the parents.



Translators are always made available for parents who need to meet with a teacher that does not speak Spanish.

Accessibility



Describe how the school will provide full opportunities for participation in parental involvement activities for all parents (including parents with limited English proficiency, disabilities, and migratory children). Include how the school plans to share information related to school and parent programs, meetings, school reports, and other activities in an understandable and uniform format and to the extent practical, in a language parents can understand [Section 1118(e)(5) and 1118(f)].

Response: All materials and information provided to parents are translated into Spanish. Meetings and student events are hosted in both languages. All students, regardless of background, or special needs are welcomed and provided accommodations, as needed, for all presentations at the school site.

Discretionary Activities



Discretionary School Level Parental Involvement Policy Components Check if the school does not plan to implement discretionary parental involvement activities. Check all activities the school plans to implement:

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Activity

Description of Implementation Strategy

Person Responsible

Anticipated Impact on Student Achievement

Timeline

1

Maximizing parental involvement and participation in their children’s education by arranging school meetings at a variety of times, or conducting in-home conferences between teachers or other educators, who work directly with participating children, with parents who are unable to attend those conferences at school [Section 1118(e)(10)];

Scheduled Meetings at a variety of times and days of the week

Administration

Strengthen the relationship between parents and school to improve student achievement.

Ongoing

2

Adopting and implementing model approaches to improving parental involvement [Section 1118(e)(11)]; and

Collaboration with community business partners to increase parental involvement throughout the year.

ENLACE Liaison and administration

Strengthen the relationship between parents and school to improve student achievement.

Ongoing

3

Developing appropriate roles for community-based organizations and businesses, including faith-based organizations, in parental involvement activities [Section 1118(e)(13)].

CIS trainings provide resources for parents within the community

CIS

Improve student achievement through community based partnerships.

Ongoing

Upload Evidence of Input from Parents



Upload evidence of parent input in the development of the plan.

Upload Parent-School Compact



Note: As a component of the school-level parental involvement policy/plan, each school shall jointly develop, with parents for all children served under this part, a parent-school compact that outlines how parents, the entire school staff, and students will share the responsibility for improved student academic achievement Section 1118(d)].

Upload an electronic version of the Parent-School Compact.

Upload Evidence of Parent Involvement in Development of Parent-School Compact



Note: As a component of the school-level parental involvement policy/plan, each school shall jointly develop, with parents for all children served under this part, a parent-school compact that outlines how parents, the entire school staff, and students will share the responsibility for improved student academic achievement Section 1118(d)].

Upload evidence of parent input in the development of the compact.

Evaluation of the previous year's Parental Involvement Plan

Building Capacity Summary



Provide a summary of activities provided during the previous school year that were designed to build the capacity of parents to help their children [Section 1118 (e)(1-2)]. Include participation data on the Title I annual meeting.

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Content and Type of Activity

Number of Activities

Number of Participants

Anticipated Impact on Student Achievement

1

Grade Level Workshops

5

349

Improve student achievement

2

FCAT Workshops

5

397

Improve student achievement

3

Counselor Workshops

10

135

Improve student achievement

4

Bilingual Outreach Meetings

4

50

Improve student achievement

5

Annual Title I Meeting

1

492

Improve student achievement

Staff Training Summary



Provide a summary of the professional development activities provided by the school during the previous school year to educate staff on the value and utility of contributions of parents; how to reach out to, communicate with, and work with parents as equal partners; the implementation and coordination of parent programs; and how to build ties between parents and the school [Section 1118 (e)(3)].

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Content and Type of Activity

Number of Activities

Number of Participants

Anticipated Impact on Student Achievement

1

Annual Title I Meeting

1

100

Strategies for supporting students in their academic progress

2

CIS Training

9

1

Strategies for supporting students in their academic progress

3

Student Services

4

1

Strategies for supporting students in their academic progress

4

Faculty Meetings

10

70

Strategies for supporting students in their academic progress

Barriers



Describe the barriers that hindered participation by parents during the previous school year in parental involvement activities. Include the steps the school will take during the current school year to overcome the barriers (with particular attention to parents who are economically disadvantaged, are disabled, have limited English proficiency, have limited literacy, or are of any racial or ethnic minority background) [Section 1118(a)(E)].

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Barrier (Including the Specific Subgroup)

Steps the School will Take to Overcome

1

Poor attendance at academic events.

Continue the incentive program for students to encourage their parents to attend academic events.

2

Poor attendance due to work schedules

Continue to provide sessions of the same workshop at different times to accomodate parent work schedules.

Best Practices (Optional)



Describe the parental involvement activity/strategy the school implemented during the previous schoool year that the school considers the most effective. This information may be shared with other LEAs and schools as a best practice. (Optional)

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Content/Purpose

Description of the Activity