CTHSS developed its own Promising Partnership Practices for Engaging Families collection.

Middletown, Connecticut

Top left to right: Robert Axon – Principal Oliver Wolcott Technical High School, Dr. Nivea Torres-Superintendent of Connecticut Technical High Schools, Dr. Brian Mignault-principal Harvard H. Ellis THS, Dr. Nikitoula Menounos-Principal Norwich THS, Sandi Casberg-District Co-coordinator, Jill Dymczyk-District key contact and co-chairperson, Marie Burlette-Coordinated Health CoordinatorBottom left to right: Penny Finlayson-District Technical Advisor, Dr. Kenneth Hilliard-District Co-Chairperson, Barbara St. Onge – District Professional LearningNot Pictured: Carrie Leib-District Climate, Javette Giannelli-Allen – Principal Vinal Technical High School 
 

CTHSS Promising Partnership Practices for Engaging Families

CTHSS developed its own Promising Partnership Practices for Engaging Families collection.  Because the district’s 16 high schools are located all around the state of Connecticut, the collection is a way to share best practices that other high schools may adopt or adapt as they work to improve their Action Plans for Partnerships.  All Action Teams for Partnerships (ATPs) enthusiastically received this resource and expressed interest in having their own practices added in the future.

The district’s Leaders for Partnerships gathered and drafted the schools’ practices, including information that would help other schools duplicate or customize the activities.  The reports were placed in a binder to permit additions to the collection in the future.  Two copies of the binders were given to each school at the End-of-Year-Celebration Dinner.

Each activity in CTHSS’s Promising Partnership Practices for Engaging Families includes: school name and contact, activity name and goal, a brief description of the activity, type of involvement, resources and details needed, challenges and advice to another school implementing the activity.  The book also assists the District’s Leaders for Partnerships to share and celebrate each team’s progress and to support ATPs that are struggling to find goal-linked ideas for engaging families and community partners at the high school level.

Common Core State Standards for Parents

As teachers in the Connecticut Technical High School System (CTHSS) began to work with students on the Common Core State Standards (CCSS), families became increasingly eager to learn what the standards mean for the schools, families, and students’ learning.  Teachers wanted assistance from the CTHSS Leaders for Partnerships on how best to address parents’ questions about CCSS, whether and how the district’s curriculum would change to address the standards, and how parents could support their teen’s schoolwork in particular subjects.

With information from each ATP on their parents’ questions and concerns, the Leaders for Partnerships designed a presentation on CCSS for high schools.  At a dinner meeting (with dinner prepared by a school’s Culinary Arts students), the district leaders demonstrated the presentation so that each school’s ATP could make the same presentation to their students’ parents and family and community partners.  The presentation included a humorous You Tube video to capture attention, a summary of research on why the CCSS are important for increasing students’ knowledge and skills, and a Common Core Jeopardy Game that included ways that families can support students on high school reading standards.  Each team also was introduced to booklets and websites on CCSS that they could use and share with parents.

Common Core State Standards for Parents is featured in Promising Partnership Practices 2014.