Keeping PACE

Every other week, Mary Beth will send out a newsletter highlighting work around the district PACE and Community Schools staff can replicate, as well as other best practices that can support your work in parent and community engagement. As always, please reach out to Mary Beth, at MaryBeth.Stapleton@hcps.org, for family engagement training and support, to share ideas, and/or requests for partnerships.

PACE will have an opportunity to check-in with Mary Beth the second week of December during level alike “office hours.” This will be time for us to share best practices, need for support, and any other topics of interest regarding parentships and parent engagement. In January, Mary Beth will also schedule feeder system meetings by region, so look for those calendar invitations from Joyce Jablecki.

Family Friendly School Awards will be announced at the end of each quarter this school year, based on a summary of the National PTA Family Engagement standards. Congratulations to Deerfield Elementary School for being the 2024-25 1st Quarter Family Friendly School Award recipient:

• Staff are trained to build positive relationships with parents as partners in their child's learning.
• Teachers receive guides for welcoming phone calls, positive notes, and outreach activities at the start of the school year.
• Open House and Back to School Night events are engaging and family-friendly, allowing families to connect with staff and each other in a relaxed atmosphere.
• Clear signage at the school's entrance welcomes parents and visitors.
• Inside the school, directional signs are clearly displayed.
• A designated space for parent networking and resources is available within the school.
• The school emphasizes beautification efforts, maintaining a clean and inviting environment, including a well-kept parking lot without restrictive signage.

• Consistent two-way communication exists between parents and teachers across all school staff.
• The school's website and social media are regularly updated.
• Parents have access to up-to-date HAC, progress reports, and report cards.
• Communication is available in multiple languages as needed.

Parent-Teacher Conferences

• Conferences are available for parents to discuss student progress.

Transition Support for Parents

• Workshops and information sessions are offered to assist parents with transitions, specifically from kindergarten to 1st grade, 5th to 6th grade, and 8th to 9th grade.

College and Career Readiness

• Resources and information on preparing for college and career paths are provided.

Future Learning Updates

• Teachers share updates on student learning through team newsletters.

Understanding Assessments

• Workshops are offered to help parents understand assessments, including MCAP ELA, MCAP Math, and Reading and Math inventories, along with their child's progress.

Parental Involvement in Lesson Planning

• Teachers engage parents and caregivers in the lesson planning and homework process.

• Include at least one parent/guardian on the School Performance and Achievement Team.
• Establish a PTA or parent leader organization at the school.
• Share school goals and the SPA plan with parents, incorporating their feedback.
• Conduct parent surveys, focus groups, and Chat and Chew sessions.

• Invite at least one Community Partner to join the School Performance and Achievement Team.
• Provide evidence of efforts to establish Community Partnerships.
• Acknowledge Community Partnerships through school communications, newsletters, social media, or websites.

Several schools have started hosting Parent Cafés this school year. Parent Café is a best practice from Be Strong Families, designed to create support and community among parents in your school. Learn more here: https://www.bestrongfamilies.org/. We have over a dozen trained facilitators in Harford County, and if you would like to host a Parent Café, please let Mary Beth know, and she will help set it up for your school. Usually, there is a dinner offered and then about 30 parents join the café. The café is an evidence-based practice to help create a supportive culture in your school community, and will develop parents’ efficacy in supporting their children’s positive development.

Harford Academy’s Parent Café, beautifully planned and facilitated by Shanita Richardson, PACE Liaison, and Alexis Frazier, Community Schools Specialist:

This is reminder that the Cook Center for Human Connection is offering to host a mental health workshop for your schools’ parents, providing dinner and incentives for parents who attend. Email Mary Beth if you haven’t already scheduled your event, and she will connect you with the Cook Center!

The November Parent Connection newsletter can be found here. Please take the time to review and share content with parents, as appropriate to your school’s level and needs. Feel free to cut and paste directly from the newsletter!

NOTE: There is a new resource for all HCPS parents Parent Coaching! Check out Mary Beth’s Top Tip and share this new resource with parents!

Many of you have asked, and yes, I have confirmed we are open and happy to have volunteers in our building – yes!

HCPS supports a comprehensive and effective system of parent and community involvement in our schools, and parents/caregivers and community members are encouraged to participate in family-friendly events, parent education classes, and classroom and school event volunteer opportunities (Per Board Policy, Parent Community Involvement).

Volunteers working with or chaperoning students should be always monitored by HCPS staff. No volunteer should be left alone with a student without first securing a background check through the Office of Internal Investigations (paid for by the volunteer).

Many of our schools have a robust orientation process in place. If you need assistance with expanding your school’s volunteer program, or securing a partnership with a volunteer organization, please reach out to Mary Beth.

Event Details:

📅 Date: December 6, 2024
🕒 Time: 6:30 8:00 p.m.
📍 Location: Edgewood EPICENTER, 1918 Pulaski Hwy, Edgewood, MD

Highlights:

• Discover scholarships, internships, and volunteer opportunities!
• Workshops on college essay writing and conducting a college search.
• Information about a summer tour to Towson University.

Please help spread the word! Feel free to share the event flyer with your community and students.

Registration: Students can register here: https://forms.gle/6A1LR3CUJ1QGY6Gm7.

Thank you for your continued support in helping us provide these essential resources to students!

New resources from Dr. Steven Constantino's Engage Every Family have been uploaded to SharePoint – https://hcps365.sharepoint.com/sites/FamilyandCommunityPartnerships2.

• The National Association for Family, School, and Community Engagement is a great resource for you to learn more about best practices in parent engagement, join their listserv or become a member: https://nafsce.org/.

• National PTA’s Center for Family Engagement– check it out! https://www.pta.org/the-center-for-family-engagement

• Ohio Statewide Family Engagement Center: https://ohiofamiliesengage.osu.edu/resource/educators/

• The Collaborative Action for Family Engagement (CAFE) Center (Maryland and Pennsylvania): https://maec.org/cafe/

Shout out to Bel Air Middle School and PACE Liaison Sandra Castellano for their awesome Family Night. Community partners and speakers provided much-need information to help parents prepare their scholars for high school and beyond!

Mary Beth Stapleton,

Manager of Family and Community Partnerships

410-588-5263

Website: https://www.hcps.org/parents/ParentAcademy/Default.aspx
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/HCPSParentAcademy