Saginaw, MI

Row 2 (L to R): Chirila Hamilton, Keva Clark, Christine Klein, Rebecca Wilkins, Amanda Kitterman-Miller, Martha Fordham, Jennifer Nichols, Delores Giles

GPS (Guided Planning Steps) to Effective Family and Community Engagement

Sometimes school teams hit road bumps and need to be rerouted.  District leaders in Saginaw Public Schools are working to ensure that all schools’ Action Teams for Partnerships (ATPs) and School Improvement Teams (SITs) are on the same path to increase student success.  The District’s Family & Community Engagement Specialist and the Director of State and Federal Programs worked together to pave the way for student success along with the engagement of family and community partners.

They agreed that there is no disconnect between the goals in the School Improvement Plans that describe how teachers work with students on academic and behavioral outcomes, and the goals in the ATPs’ Action Plans for Partnerships that engage families and community partners on activities to help student attain the same goals.  The leaders linked professional development to a visit by an NNPS Senior Program Facilitator who clearly connected the missions of the SIT and ATP.  At the workshop, members of the SITs and ATPs worked in small, mixed groups. Each group focused on academic, culture, and climate goals in their own School Improvement Plan.   The combined SIT and ATP subgroups brainstormed and selected family and community engagement activities that would help students reach those goals.

This activity is featured in Promising Partnership Practices 2018.

Youth & Family Leadership UnConference

The goal of the Youth & Family Leadership UnConference was to help students become stronger leaders, better students, and members of an accepting and equitable school community.  The District Family & Engagement Specialist reviewed feedback from families and other stakeholders from past conferences.  She recognized that most of the programming and attendance was for and by elementary students and their families.   With district goals for high school graduation in mind, the district leader for partnerships redirected the annual conference to focus on programs and activities for students in middle and high schools. If students increased their own investments in their education and future plans, and if families supported their adolescents, then more students might stay in school, do their best, and graduate from high school on time.

Middle and high school students and community partners provided input to the district leader on topics of importance to secondary school students.  Then district leaders planned the “unconference”—was just for older students and their families—or as some students explained, it was “for the bigger kids.”  There were sessions for students (alone), parents (alone), and students and parents together.  Students made some of the presentations, as did teachers and invited speakers.  Community partners and district departments were invited to create booths with resources on their programs and services. Middle and high school ATPs learned by example how they could develop productive family nights at their schools.

This activity is featured in Promising Partnership Practices 2018.