School Family Council

RPEMS School Family Council

The RPEMS School Family Council (formerly School Improvement Team) is comprised of Administration, Teachers, Parents and Community members of our Roland Park community. Its purpose is to create a collaborative environment where all stakeholders have the opportunity to work together in making decisions to improve academic performance for our students. Baltimore City Public Schools created the following policy and guidelines to follow:

School Family Council Policy (Slideshow)

School Family Council Administrative Regulations

Family and Community Engagement Policy

SFC.Composition and Procedures

Our School Family Council (SFC) meets every 3^rd Monday in our school’s library at 4:00pm from September – May. The meetings are open.

Members:

For those of you who wish to contact the members of the School Family Council you may do so in the following ways.

You may contact each representative individually at

sfc.elementaryschool@rolandparkpublic.org (Sandy Fink)

sfc.middleschool@rolandparkpublic.org (Robert Friedman)

sfc.specialneeds@rolandparkpublic.org (Lori Paine)

or you may contact all three members at the same time by writing to

sfc@rolandparkpublic.org

Family and Community Engagement is an integral component of the SFC. Every year, a plan must be developed to ensure effective and quality communication is present in our community. Below is the draft to our 2009-10 plan. Please review and provide any feedback or questions in the comment section at the bottom of this page.

Master Plan Goal #6: Effective management of systems will support student achievement. Priority #1: Communicating effectively and proactively with external stakeholders.Priority #2: Communicating effectively and proactively with internal stakeholders. Priority #3: Ensuring parental involvement in the development and implementation of the education policies and procedures in the City Schools. Priority #4: Documenting the involvement of external stakeholders.
School Objective: Between July 2009 and June 2010, all schools will support strong school, family and community engagement in all aspects of school programs and activities for measurable improvement in student achievement by implementing, monitoring and sustaining all components of Baltimore City Schools Family and Community Engagement Policy (FCE).
Assessment: By the end of the 4^th quarter, the FCE Binder will reflect the documentation that demonstrates progress for all activities in the Family and Community and Engagement Action Plan.
Strategy #1: Communication – Communicate with families about school programs and student progress through effective school-to-home and home-to-school communications.
Activities	Timeline	Person Responsible	Budget/Funding Sources	Evaluation / Monitoring / Evidence	Status Report
a. Distribute the Family and Community Engagement Action Plan on the Roland Park Public Website and place a hard copy in the office. Families will be informed in the Golden Rod and Roland Park List Serv of its availability for review.[Meets Title I, Sec. 1118(b)(1)]	October 2009	Family Engagement Team	n/a	Reporting to School Family Council and PTA.Evidence on Website
b. Inform parents of: Their rights as parents School expectations, policies and procedures in areas such as attendance, discipline, and school choices and transitions Parent involvement and other programs Title I requirements, where applicable Establish a structured system for regular communications with parents. Use the website as once stop resource hub for parents tor reference for all of the above information. Implement online Directory Classroomparent.com as a means of two way communication between parents, teachers, adminstration, and school groups. Discuss all of the above during back to school night.[Meets Title I, Sec. 1118(c)(1)]	Ongoing through out school year	School Administrators, house assistants, teachers, and PTA	Fair Student Funding Budget, PTA Budget	Evidence on website as it continues to receive input.Copies of GoldenrodEvidence of usage of the Classroom parent and website Surveys parents at the end of the year regarding effectiveness of communication.
c. The school will inform and educate parents on the following: Student progress data (e.g. testing such as Stanford 10, MSA, HSA) School data (e.g. Benchmarks, Unit Assessments) Title I requirements, where applicable By sending student results home to parents with explanation of results. School hosts forums/workshops for parents of students taking Stanford 10, MSA, or HAS to discuss relevance, preparation, and school data. [Meets Title I, Sec. 1118(e)(1)]	Ongoing throughout the year scheduled before testing and after results.	Administrators and teachers	n/a	Meeting Agendas and survey at the end of meeting
d. School will invite parents to participate in community budget meetings using all mediums of available communication: Golden Rod Website E-mail Blasts Banner/Bulletin Board in front of School	Winter 2009	Administrators	n/a	Copies of notice
e. School will regularly communicate with parents using the following methods: Golden Rod Newsletter Website (for resources and upcoming events) – the website is being updated as to be used as a resource for new parents, current parents, students, teachers, and community members. All teachers should use some form of online communication Classroom Parent Online Directory – this source promotes bilateral communication between teachers, parents, administration, school groups, and specific grades Grade and classroom parents should be identified to ensure effective communication on a grade and class level	Ongoing	PTA, Administrators, Teachers	n/a	Evidence on website as it continues to receive input.Copies of GoldenrodEvidence of usage of the Classroom parent and website Surveys parents at the end of the year regarding effectiveness of communication.
f. The School will provide materials and parent trainings/workshops to help parents improve their children’s academic achievement by: Send data home with students in folders Requesting teachers or counselors to host at least two workshops held at the school regarding improving academic achievement. Providing links to online resources for parents and students from BCPSS Parent Portal, National PTA Website, and other school and teacher approved sites. Informing parents of all of the resources available though Golden rod, e-mail blasts, and posters. [Meets Title I, Sec. 1118(e)(2)]	Winter and Spring	Administrators’, Teachers, and PTA	n/a	Evidence on website as it continues to receive input.Copies of GoldenrodEvidence of usage of the Classroom parent and website Surveys parents at the end of the year regarding effectiveness of communication. Sign in sheets. Evaluations of workshops
g. The School will make sure that information is presented in a format and language parents can understand (e.g. avoid acronyms, use large text, clear graphics, translate materials) by creating documents so that a 3^rd grader could understand.[Meets Title I, Sec. 1118(e)(5)]	Ongoing	PTA, Administrators, Teachers, SFC	n/a	Evidence on website as it continues to receive input.Copies of GoldenrodEvidence of usage of the Classroom parent and website Surveys parents at the end of the year regarding effectiveness of communication.
h. The school will solicit additional parent comments on this Family and Community Engagement Action Plan after it is submitted to the district via an online feedback form or a downloadable form that stakeholders could return to the SFC.[Meets Title I, Sec. 1118(c)(5)]	September	Family Engagement Team And PTA	n/a	Report submitted to SFC by Family Engagement Team
Strategy #2: Shared Decision Making – Include families as participants in school decisions, governance and advocacy through organized parent groups, the School Family Council, Engagement Team, Advisory Team, committees, action teams and other opportunities.
Activities	Timeline	Person Responsible	Budget/Funding Sources	Evaluation / Monitoring / Evidence	Status Report
Parents will be involved in jointly developing this Family and Community Engagement Action Plan by: All parents were invited to attend meetings to create the plan via list-serv, flyers, and posters A working lunch was provided during the meeting Two subsequent planning meetings were held at the school in the evening for writing the plan Parents were asked for feedback The newly elected family council will make any revisions to the document after submitted to the district and given any parental feedback for improvements. [Meets Title I, Sec. 1118(b)(1)]	June 2009 – November 2009	Family Engagement Team	n/a	Copies of Sign-in sheet, copies of flyers, e-mail transmissions, actual plan	Meetings held June and July. E-mail Feedback solicited based on meeting notes in July. Feedback compiled.
Parents will be involved in decisions regarding the spending of parent involvement funds by: All parents will be invited to budget forums Parents will be elected to serve on the Advisory council to provide input and approval All parents will be allowed to provide feedback and ask questions during budget forums. During forums, provide possible examples of ways to spend money e.g. hire an outside speaker or trainer to discuss parenting topics. [Meets Title I, Sec. 1118(3)(B)]	September 2009, December 2009	Advisory Council, SFC, Administration	n/a	Copies of logs, sign-in sheets, meeting agendas	Updates sent out on list-serv JulyNominations for SFC distributed September 09 to all parents. Elections held Back to school night 9/16 and 9/17.
The written School-Parent Compact that supports instructions will be jointly developed with parents and distributed to parents by: All parents will be invited to a School parent compact development meeting via letter in the mail over the summer. Employ Global Connect Send reminder on list-serv Place banners on fence [Meets Title I, Sec. 1118(d)]	July 2009	Administration	n/a	Copy of letter, agenda, and sign-in sheet	Completed August 2009
The school will invite parents to become members of the PTA by: Sending formal request to each student via folders. Making membership available online and paper Setting up membership tables during orientations, 1 st of school, Back to school nights, and other PTA events Informing parents of the importance of the PTA and its role Creating PTA website with specific information regarding joining, volunteering Meeting with Administration, faculty, and parents Ask Classroom parents to promote PTA	August – March 2009- 10	PTA	PTA Budget	Copies of correspondence, website, Classroomparent.com	Folder distributed 2^nd week of school. Tables set up on targeted days.
The school will support the election of three parents, at least one from the organized parent group, to serve on the School Family Council, and also the Engagement Team and the Advisory Team by holding an election back to school night the 1^st year; subsequent years the election will be held in May for the next school year. The PTA will distribute nominations and convene the elections.	September 2009May 2009	PTA	n/a	Copies of nominationResults of election	Nominations for this school year distributed. Elections held 9/16 and 9/17
f. The School Family Council will appoint two community members by majority vote during first SFC meeting.	October	SFC		Meeting minutes
The school will encourage parents to complete the Parent Climate survey by: Involving the kids to request parents to return the next day. Informing parents of importance and relevance of the survey Make announcement to kids over the PA system Promote on website, golden rod, and classroom parent	Spring 2009	SFC, Teachers	N/a	Evidenced by response
Strategy #3: Collaboration – Coordinate community resources and services for students and families with the school, businesses, agencies, and other groups, to maximize services provided to the school community.
Activities	Timeline	Person Responsible	Budget/Funding Sources	Evaluation / Monitoring / Evidence	Status Report
The school will use the School-Parent Compact as a tool that supports student achievement by: Use as a tool during parent conferences Place on the website as resource Inform parents how to effectively use the compact to help their child’s achievement	All year	Administration, Teachers	n/a
The school will continue to coordinate with community resources by: Continuing its relationship with Goucher, Towson, MICA, and Johns Hopkins Continuing its business relationships with Mamma’s Cucina Creating new business and community partners by allowing marketing to and sponsorships to help subsidize events and activities: i.e. May Mart, Folders etc. [Meets Title I, Sec. 1118(e)(4)]	All Year	PTA, Administrators, Teachers	n/a
The school will continue the current before and afterschool programs for parents. Options will be explored for providing childcare for evening parent only events. At a minimum, organized activities, games, or other activities so parents can attend evening meetings. [Meets Title I, Sec. 1118(e)(6-14)]	All Year	Administration	n/a
The school will, with the help of parents, educate school staff to work with parents as equal partners in their children’s education (e.g. group forum, staff development led by parents)? The School will sponsor parent teacher book discussion of: “Beyond the Bake Sale” which is a guide for effective communication. A chairperson must be identified to facilitate the discussion promote forward progress for implementing strategies. [Meets Title I, Sec. 1118(e)(3)]	Winter – Spring 2009-10	Family Engagement Team	PTA Budget and FSF	Sign-in sheets, logs, strategies
The school will provide parents and staff with training on effectively involving families and the community by: Promoting reading materials like Beyond the Bake Sale Encouraging open communication using e-mail, classroom parent, letters home, agenda books, and meeting flexibility	All year	Administration, Teachers, SFC	n/a
The School will utilize district resources and support, such as the Family Institute, Parent Portal, FCE staff, website, Command Center, and Summer Bridge? Sponsoring Summer Bridge for all grades each summer Placing links to BCPSS website on Roland Park Public Website	All year	Administration		Evaluations, student sign-ups
The school will use and recruit volunteers by: PTA will have a volunteer coordinator to recruit and keep track of all volunteers Teachers will personally request volunteers to classroom specific needs throughout the year	All year	PTA, Administration, Teachers
Strategy #4: Accessibility – Provide full opportunities for the participation of parents who are limited in English, parents with disabilities, parents of migrant children and parents of Special Education children .
Activities	Timeline	Person Responsible	Budget/Funding Sources	Evaluation / Monitoring / Evidence	Status Report
a. How will the school include parents who: Are limited in English Have disabilities Have migrant children Have children with special education needs [Meets Title I, Sec. 1118(f)]

Roland Park Elementary/Middle School

Roland Park Elementary/ Middle School

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School Family Council

RPEMS School Family Council

Members: