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The Importance
of Parent Involvement
A primary objective of the Florida PTA, in cooperation with the Florida
Department of Education, is to encourage greater involvement of parents with their children and in their school.
Parent
Involvement Recipients
Susan
Walton
Florida
Department of Education
Florida
PTA Consultant
The
following Parent Involvement programs were recognized by the
Florida PTA. These exemplary programs are examples of how
schools across the state are seeking to include parents in the
educational process. The Parent Involvement Award program is
cosponsored by the Florida Department of Education and the
Florida PTA.
Region I Winner - Elementary
ESCAMBIA
Report Card Night
Hallmark Elementary
Pensacola
Mission: To enhance parent
interaction.
Hallmark Elementary’s Report
Card Night has been bringing the school and its parents
together as a family every nine weeks since 2005. In a program
that encourages support from home, students are reaping the
benefits of getting their parents involved in their academic
success. Initially, the program was designed to remedy the
continual lack of interest from home that resulted in poor
motivation on the part of the students, poor grades, and equally
poor morale among students and teachers. Now, a tremendous line
of communication has been opened between parents and teachers
that is fostering renewed motivation among students. During the
first half of the evenings the parents are welcomed, food is
served by Partners in Education, and parent workshops are
conducted. Afterwards, parents are able to have mini conferences
with their child’s teacher to discuss their child’s strong
points and the areas in need of improvement. The ability to
talk one on one with a teacher has achieved several positive
goals. Students are able to see the importance of their
academics to their parents. Teachers are getting to know the
families of their students on both a professional and personal
level thereby learning how better to serve their students.
Morale has increased exponentially and students are showing a
heightened interest in learning. Every Report Card Night
offers a warm and comfortable atmosphere where parents are
supported in discussing their child’s performance. Staying true
to their name, Hallmark Elementary’s hallmark program is
successfully boosting their students’ interest in learning by
promoting continuous support from home.
Region I Winner – Middle/High
OKALOOSA
Academic Excellence Society
Fort Walton Beach High School
Fort Walton Beach
Mission: To improve
academic achievement for all students.
Fort Walton Beach High School is
making great strides to ensure that their community as a whole
takes on an active role in the education of their students. A
collaborative effort between the School Advisory Council (SAC),
other local schools, parents, and the district has been
established to implement a plan for strengthening the academic
experience of the school’s students and to assist in closing the
achievement gap as defined by NCLB. This innovative program is
known as the Academic Excellence Society (AES). Through monthly
AES meetings members of local schools, churches, parents, and
community/civic leaders communicate and work together in a
united effort to create a vision for “Educational Excellence” in
Okaloosa County. Several educational outgrowths have occurred
as a result of AES. An Educational Summit for Narrowing the
Achievement Gap in Okaloosa County was held that identified
seven target areas of focus for assisting the variance in
academic performance. These include elementary, middle, and
high school remediation, mentoring, post-secondary education,
parental involvement, and a Summer Bridges program to motivate
students to take honors and advanced placement classes. Another
development from AES is a strong emphasis on professional
development for teachers. Teachers in the district participate
in ongoing professional training to analyze student sub-group
data as a means for identifying effective strategies to increase
academic performance. Fort Walton Beach High School values the
essence of fostering a positive relationship between the parent,
school, student, and community. Their wonderful dedication to
this principal has been a component of the school’s success and
continues to be fruitful in raising the performance of their
students by leaps and bounds.
REGION II Winner – Elementary
DUVAL
BUDS Club
Chets Creek Elementary
Jacksonville
Mission: To increase male
involvement and visibility at Chets Creek and to provide
opportunities for male community members to be involved in
school activities.
Men and women alike have unique
abilities that promote wonderful mentoring relationships with
children. Chets Creek Elementary understands the special
qualities of male mentors and has taken a proactive approach in
providing males within the community the opportunity to get more
involved in the success of their students. The BUDs Club
(Brothers, Uncles, Dads, etc.) offers men the chance to join in
a variety of fun, service-oriented and educational activities.
Preplanning week activities quickly became one area where BUDs
Club members were able to help out tremendously. The
participating men helped prepare the school for a complete
repainting and the arrival of portable classrooms. They
tirelessly emptied and refilled closets, moved furniture, and
installed everything from bulletin boards to mailboxes on the
freshly painted walls. Some of these events include a Pancake
Pig Out in September, their BUDding Readers program in October,
BUDs Family Movie Night, and a family outing to a Jacksonville
Suns baseball game. Whenever there is an opportunity to help
out the school the BUD members are sure to take the lead. When
the school’s Physical Education department needed new fitness
equipment that was quite expensive the BUDs Club decided to
design and build the equipment themselves. Many of the
members are working parents, grandparents, or guardians of
students who, in a short amount of time, have become an integral
part of the team of decision makers at Chets Creek Elementary.
The BUDs Club has representatives on both the PTA Board and SAC
who have provided fresh perspectives in representing the needs
of the students and their families. It is not just the gifts of
time and effort that BUDs members have brought to the school
that is so inspiring, but how they interact with the students
and the entire school community.
REGION II Winner – Middle/High
ST. JOHNS
FCMS Dancing with the Stars
Fruit Cove Middle School
Jacksonville
Mission: To build school
spirit and parent involvement.
The teachers may not be
wearing fancy dresses and heels, but FCMS’s Dancing with
the Stars program is raising school spirit and scoring
perfect tens among parents and students. To achieve the goal of
promoting parental involvement, the faculty and parents of FCMS
have constructed an evening of the arts. Both parents and
teachers collaborate with students to sing, dance, and perform
sketches in what has become a wonderful night of entertainment
and fun. More than 500 parents and students attended the event
held this year on November 9th and over 2000 parents
and students viewed the subsequent video broadcast. FCMS
received a number of positive comments from teachers, staff,
parents, students, and community members. Having the students
perform together with teachers and parents supported the common
goals of engaging parents in the activities of their students at
school and cultivating an alluring atmosphere that supported
school spirit and enthusiasm. The event required no funding
from the school or community and donations were taken up at the
door to benefit the school’s Drama Club. Research has suggested
that school spirit and belonging is one of the indicators
correlating with high achievement and superior conduct. Through
their Dancing with the Stars program, Fruit Cove
Middle School is nurturing an enjoyable and compelling
environment that is motivating their students towards higher
academic successes and a love for their school.
REGION III Winner – Elementary
ORANGE
“Bump Up” Saturday
Ventura Elementary School
Orlando
Mission:
To enrich and enhance the lives of the school’s
children and families.
For years
schools have been proclaiming to students “don’t drink, don’t do
drugs, and stay in school.” But how do you take these
statements and re-energize them to continue to get families and
their children to value education? When faced with this
question, Ventura Elementary decided to develop a questionnaire
and distribute it to the families in their community. The
results showed that a majority of the families (68%) would be
interested in Saturday morning enrichment opportunities, thus
providing them a chance to participate in their child’s
education. All of the parents wanted a relaxing learning
environment for these Saturday morning activities with a simple
message supported by parent-friendly strategies that they could
implement at home. This information was used to initiate the
school’s “Bump-Up” program. As a Saturday program the school
needed to capitalize and leverage the relationships between
teachers and their students and students and their families in
order to succeed. Teachers worked hard to form a curriculum
while students enthusiastically convinced their parents to
participate. Using district mid-term individual student
assessment data, the school developed a comprehensive curriculum
designed to support underachieving students in the areas of
math, reading, and writing. About 162 students registered for
the program and on average 120 students participated each
Saturday. The first session was informational and was delivered
in both English and Spanish. Subsequent Saturdays brought
messages ranging from school technologies to strategies that
parents could use at home with their child to improve upon their
academic success. Ventura Elementary surpassed their goal of
having 40 parents attend and saw at least 100 parents in
attendance throughout the program. Parents gained the skills
and support they needed to effectively assist their child. This
was an excellent experience for everyone involved and
established a framework that will be used for years to come.
Region III
Winner – Middle/ Senior
VOLUSIA
Wildcat
Geographic Society
T. DeWitt Taylor
Middle-High School
Pierson
Mission:
To get parents and students working together and
getting involved in a program that is challenging, fun, and
educational.
In a world that
seems to be getting smaller and smaller through globalizing
businesses and technology, it’s never too early to brush up on
geography. For the fourth year in a row, students at Taylor
Middle School were given the opportunity to participate in “The
Wildcat Geographic Society,” a program that encourages learning
and parental participation. Every week, during the second
nine-week period, students were challenged with two geographic
questions, such as “Which country is bordered by Nicaragua and
Panama?” or “In what country is the Serengeti Plain located?”
Students who wished to participate had to answer the questions
and locate their answers on a map. Parents were invited and
encouraged to help their children as they learned new and
interesting facts about countries all over the world. At the
end of each week the answers were revealed and students with the
correct answers had a chance to win prizes and a Wildcat
Geographic Society T-shirt. Even other core class teachers and
the media center staff join in, using the program to encourage
use of research materials and computers to search for the
answers. Several sponsors from the community joined in to raise
the funds used to purchase these treats for the students. In
January, selected Taylor Middle School students compete in the
finale, “The Wildcat Geographic Team Challenge.” Patterned
after the TV show Jeopardy, students are asked questions
from categories ranging from American History, Asia, Africa,
Australia, Europe, North America, South America and
Miscellaneous. The teams that compete are “The Global
Explorers,” “The Globe Trotters,” and “The World Travelers.”
The teams are coached by the middle school history/geography
teachers and the Assistant Principal plays the role of Master of
Ceremonies. The program has been a huge success in involving
parents. They are always keen on cheering on the contestants
and are helping their children at home to find the answers and
study for the team challenge. Each year, involvement from both
students and parents continues to increase. Not only are the
students learning valuable and relevant information, they are
learning along with their parents and having lots of fun.
Region IV Winner – Elementary
LEE
Reading Nights
Pinewoods Elementary School
Estero
Mission:
To demonstrate enjoyable ways for parents to
assist their children in developing an excitement for reading
and to see the connection of reading to the rest of the
curriculum.
Rather than
provide short spurts of activity without long-term follow
through, Pinewoods Elementary is committed to encouraging
parents to participate through constant involvement in their
Literacy in Action program. Throughout the year the
literacy series offered repeated opportunities for families to
come to the school and have fun while becoming acquainted with
simple techniques to improve reading and math skills. The
attitude of working to make learning part of an enjoyable family
time was the foundation for the development of each of the
events. Knowing that there are many obstacles that often keep a
family from finding time to spend together, Pinewoods Elementary
scheduled their activities at various times of the day and
evening as a method for attracting the broadest range of parents
possible. Branching out from the literacy series, Family
Reading Nights became a quick success. Held once
monthly, the evenings gave parents a chance to come together
with their child to read aloud and take Accelerated Reading
quizzes. Literature was promoted through story-telling, art
projects, and a reading corner filled with several old
favorites. Each evening had a different theme including a
“Sledding into Math” night that featured math-related read-alouds
and an “Out of This World” night that included a Star Lab. The
computer lab was always kept open during these events so that
parents could watch their child take AR quizzes and see the
connection between the AR program and the rest of the
curriculum. Another aspect of the nights included sixty-one
teachers and thirteen education interns working individually
with families to demonstrate how parents could best assist their
children in developing an excitement for reading at home. The
parents agreed that Family Reading Nights helped
them better understand the school’s goals for reading progress,
but ultimately it was the time spent with their children that
proved the most rewarding. They saw their child’s reading
skills progress first hand and witnessed their reinvigorated
enthusiasm for learning.
Region IV Winner – Middle/Senior
HILLSBOROUGH
“24 Style”
Benito Middle School
Tampa
Mission:
To find a way to get parents into school and to
build connections with each family.
The following
takes place between 6:00 p.m. Monday night and 6:00 p.m. Tuesday
night. Sounds like an episode of Fox Network’s hit television
show “24” doesn’t it? Benito Middle School has put a clever spin
on the way they are approaching parental involvement and has set
up a series of activities with all the excitement of a Jack
Bauer mission. The school’s administration, faculty, staff,
PTSA and SAC members were all apart of the plan. With the help
of volunteers from each of these groups, the school tapped into
the intelligence of the Benito population by first holding a
Family Technology Night Workshop. This event was held in
conjunction with another local middle school, USF College of
Engineering, and the host location Bowers Whitley Career Center.
Computer animation, technology updates and a laser light show
complimented the barbeque sponsored by Benito’s IBM business
partner. The next operation was to have families attend “Visit
your Child in School” breakfast and lunches. Nearly 100 parents
attended the breakfast purchased at Panera’s and Publix Super
Market for a minimal cost. The setting of parents and students
milling around the patio was refreshing as bonding and school
spirit transpired all at once. Those family members that could
not come for breakfast were invited to bring a lunch to share
with their child at school. In this way the school tried to
reach as many parents as possible no matter what their usual
schedule. The final installment in the “24 STYLE”
program was the teacher conference night. Conferences were set
up by appointment and covered topics ranging from the importance
of school attendance to the goals of Benito’s School Improvement
Plan for increasing performance in math and science on the FCAT.
Benito’s approach offers a “package deal” by combining a
technology night, family breakfast/lunches, and teacher
conferences all within a 24 hour period. The “24 STYLE”
program is something any school can emulate to bring more
attention to at-school activities and parental involvement.
Benito Middle School is definitely achieving a success that
even Jack Bauer would be hard pressed to beat.
Region V Winner – Elementary
MONROE
Weekend Wizards
Stanley Switlik Elementary School
Marathon
Mission:
To create an excitement for science through
engaging students in enrichment activities.
There are no spells involved, but
magic is happening through Stanley Switlik Elementary’s
Weekend Wizards program. Teachers and parents
collaborate to hold these weekend events for the benefit of all
fifth graders. The school’s goals are to give students an extra
boost before the science FCAT and to support higher FCAT science
achievement as part of their School Improvement Plan. Held on
Saturdays during the months of January and February,
Weekend Wizards presents several motivating and
appealing lessons and experiments designed to spark an interest
in science. The three main areas of study include Simple
Machines, Force and Motion, and Our Earth. Various businesses,
along with parents, donated common household items and funds
needed for these hands-on science experiments. The Marathon
Fire Department participated with safety lessons as the students
built and launched rockets during their study of Force and
Motion. In another lesson the state biologist shared his
expertise with the students as they made models of the earth’s
layers, volcanoes, earthquakes, and erosion. Parents get the
chance to learn more about the Sunshine State Standards as they
work side-by-side with their child to create simple machines
such as pulleys over the monkey bars, inclined planes on the
slides, and catapults on the field. Each Saturday session
lasted about four hours and saw at least 30 students in
attendance. In addition, teacher planning time was volunteered
to prepare lesson plans, handouts, materials, and the
communication to parents, volunteers, and businesses that was
required. Strong parent involvement was an important key to the
success of the program and the support from the community
strengthened the school/community ties and brought positive
recognition to the school. All in all, Stanley Switlik
Elementary has found the right combination of fun and excitement
to create their own kind of learning magic.
Region V Winner- Middle/High
PALM BEACH
Parent Involvement
John F. Kennedy Middle School
Rivieria Beach
Mission:
To increase parental involvement and community
support.
John F. Kennedy Middle School’s
Parent Involvement program offers an array of events
and services while promoting friendships among all of its
partners. By not limiting themselves to one particular area,
the school is committed to nurturing the whole student through
various types of activities. As part of the Parent
Involvement program, “Honor Roll Breakfasts,” held on
three separate occasions throughout the year, commend students
in the presence of their families for their high marks of
academic achievement. The school also offers “Most Improved
Breakfasts” each semester to encourage improvement and
excellence in academics and behavior. John F. Kennedy also
makes sure it provides parents with the training and information
that they need to promote student progress and improvement at
home. Parents involved in the program receive student
assessment literacy training, quarterly and monthly news
bulletins, and workshops for FCAT strategies in reading,
writing, mathematics, science, and character education.
Technology has also grown as a component of the series.
Parents are able to communicate with teachers through the
Edline Internet communication portal that is available 24/7.
The numbers of participants in this exceptional program have
grown steadily since its initiation. Half of the school’s
parents came to this year’s “Parent Involvement Night” and
between 50%-65% of parents came to “Report Card Pick-Up Night”
to discuss their child’s areas of success and improvement
one-on-one with their teacher. The program is funded through
federal funds which are provided through Title I. The receipts
of in-kind donations are items which can contribute to assisting
students in building rockets, robotics, and mousetrap cars for
participation in engineering and aeronautic related projects. Parent
Involvement is providing a support system for the
students by forging deeper connections between the school and
parents. By ensuring that their students receive the support
they need, John F. Kennedy is raising up generations that value
education and the rewards of hard-work and perseverance.
Congratulations to
all the winners!
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