A New School Year – What Now?

It is hard to believe the new school year is here.  Many school districts have already started!!!  The summer has flown by!

The beginning of the school year is hectic for principals and Federal Program Directors.  I know I have to try and walk a delicate tightrope in getting out the information and reminders of what the school needs to be doing for federal program requirements and not overwhelming principals.  Since the beginning of the school year is an opportune time to get parents engaged and informed, I have to take the opportunity to provide the principals with information.

Several mandatory parent notifications need to be distributed.  Districts share these notifications in different ways.  A few ways to share notifications are through registration packets, sent home with students, posted on social media, and provided at the Title I Annual Meeting.  So, what are these notifications?

• Parent-Right-to-Know – Transact has an ESSA-approved Parent-Right-to-Know in a pdf-fillable form that can be completed and printed with the school name and contact information. In addition, it can be printed in multiple languages.
• Parent Compact – Be sure your compact includes the required statements:
  • Provide parent-teacher conferences, at least annually, during which the compact shall be discussed as the compact relates to the individual child’s achievement.
  • Provide frequent reports to parents of their children’s progress.
  • Provide reasonable access to staff,  opportunities to volunteer and participate in their child’s class, and observe classroom activities.
  • Ensure regular, meaningful two-way communication between family members and school staff, and to the extent practicable, in a language family members can understand.
• Parent and Family Engagement Plan – Parents should be provided the school’s plan that has been reviewed and revised with parental input.  The plan should contain the required components as outlined by ESEA and amended by ESSA.  These components are included as part of the monitoring instrument.  You can find many templates by googling ESSA School Parent and Family Engagement Plan.

In addition to parent notifications, the school should hold training for all faculty and staff on the following topics.

• FERPA/Personal Identifiable Information (PII)
• McKinney-Vento Homeless
• English Learner (EL) enrollment policies, procedures, and services

Is this enough yet? One more thing, the schools need to start planning for the Title I Annual Meeting.  I will address this topic in a little more detail next time.

Oh yes, don’t forget that the district also has documents that must be board-approved annually.  These include the district’s Parent and Family Engagement Policy and the EL Handbook.

May this be the best school year yet!!!