West Seattle Elementary Parent Involvement Policy and Procedures 2023-24

West Seattle Elementary is committed to the goal of providing quality education for every child in this district:

• We will establish partnerships with parents and the community. 
• We will support and promote high achievement success for all students

With our Title 1 Program we recognize that some students may need extra assistance and with parent involvement we can help them reach the state’s high academic standards. West Seattle Elementary will include parents in all aspects of the school’s Title I program.  The goal is a school-home partnership that will help all students to succeed.

PART I-School Parental Involvement Policy Required Components

A. West Seattle Elementary will jointly develop/revise with parents the school parental involvement policy/procedures and distribute it to parents of participating children and make available the parent involvement policy/procedures to the local community with monthly informational meetings. 

Parent information meetings are scheduled monthly.

B. Convene an annual meeting, to which all parents of participating children shall be invited, to inform parents of their school’s participation and to explain the requirements of this part, and the right of the parents to be involved.

West Seattle Elementary Open House and Title I Parent Meeting is scheduled for Thursday, August 31st from 1:30-3pm

C. West Seattle Elementary offers flexible meetings, such as meetings in the morning or evening.

D. Involve parents, in an organized, ongoing, and timely way, in the planning, review, and improvement of the school plan under Section 1112, schoolwide under Section 1114, and the process of the school review and improvement under Section 1116.

This plan will be available on our website.  Parents are invited to provide input.

E. Provide parents of participating children.

a. Timely information about programs.

b. A description and explanation of the curriculum in use at the school, the forms of academic assessment used to measure student progress, and the proficiency levels students are expected to meet.

c. If requested by parents, opportunities for regular meetings to formulate suggestions and to participate, as appropriate, in decisions relating to the education of their children, and respond to any such suggestions as soon as practically possible.

PTO Meetings:

PTO Board Meetings: 1st Thursday of each month

Community PTO Meetings: 2nd Monday of each month

First General community PTO Meeting: Oct 2, 6pm

Dates:

Open House for all families August 31

Pre-k and Kinder family orientation September 11

Pre-k and Kinder family orientation on Oct 6 at 5 pm (West Seattle Elementary)

Kinder – 5 Curriculum night November 7

Meet/greet volunteer roles & PTO November 7

Parent teacher conferences November 20-22

5th grade middle school applications January 11

Tour for incoming families February 6

Tour for incoming families February 8

Community concerns- streets/parking February 6

Using the SOURCE/Advanced Learning March 21

Literacy Night/Health Fair on April 18

Data review- End of year Potluck June 13

F. If the schoolwide program plan is not satisfactory to the parents of participating children, they may submit any parental comments on the plan before the school makes the plan available to the district.  

Parents spoke out about their concern about sex education and the use of district gender book kits when very little information has been shared with them.

G. West Seattle Elementary will inform parents and parental organizations of the purpose and existence of the Parental Information and Resources Center (PIRC) in Washington.

PART II-Required Shared Responsibilities for High Student Academic Achievement

As a component of the school-level parental involvement policy, each school shall jointly develop with parents for all children served under this part, a school-parent compact that outlines how parents, the entire school staff, and students will share the responsibility for improved student academic achievement.

-Conduct a parent/teacher conference in elementary schools, annually (at a minimum), during which the compact shall be discussed as the compact relates to the individual child’s achievement.

-Provide frequent reports to parents on their child’s progress.

-Provide parents with reasonable access to staff, opportunities to volunteer and participate in their child’s class and observation of classroom activities.

Parent compacts will be reviewed and disseminated during parent teacher conferences from Nov 20-22, 2023.

Building Capacity Requirements for Involvement

To ensure effective involvement of parents and support a partnership among the school involved, parents, and the community to improve student academic achievement, each school and district under this part-

a. Shall provide assistance to the parents of children served by the school or district, as appropriate, in understanding such topics as the state’s academic content standards and state student academic achievement standards. State and district assessments, the requirements of this part, and how to monitor a child’s progress and work with educators to improve the achievement of their children.

This will happen during parent teacher conferences, curriculum night MAP and SBA family sessions listed above.

b. Shall provide materials and training to help parents work with their children to improve their children’s achievement, such as literacy training and using technology, as appropriate, to foster parental involvement.

We are hosting meetings on applying to middle school and how to access information on the district online program, The Source (listed above).

c. Shall educate teachers, pupil services personnel, principals, and other staff, with the assistance of parents, in the value and utility of contributions of parents, and in how to reach out to, communicate with, and work with parents as equal partners, implement and coordinate parent programs, and build ties between parents and the school.

Occurring during above listed parent meetings

d. Shall to the extent feasible and appropriate, coordinate and integrate parent involvement programs and activities with Head Start, Early Learning, Even Start, the Home Instruction Programs for Preschool Youngsters, the Parents as Teachers Program, and public preschool and other programs, and conduct other activities that encourage and support parents in more fully participating in the education of their children.

Addressed at the pre-k and kinder family orientation on Sept 11.

e. Shall ensure that information related to school and parent programs, meetings, and other activities is sent to the parents of participating children in a format and, to the extent practicable, in a language parents can understand.

Published in our monthly newsletter

f. Shall provide such other reasonable support for parental involvement activities under this part as parents may request.

We currently staff 6 parent liaisons that represent a language group from our community. The parent liaisons do outreach and translate during our meetings. The parent liaisons also work in the building helping the community assimilate to the public school system. We also have 2 family connectors that focus on ELA.

g. May involve parents in the development of training for teachers, principals, and other educators to improve the effectiveness of such training.

h. May provide necessary literacy training from funds received under this part if the district has exhausted all other reasonably available sources of funding for such training.

i. May pay reasonable and necessary expenses associated with local parental involvement activities, including transportation and childcare costs, to enable parents to participate in school-related meetings and training sessions.

j. May train parents to enhance the involvement of other parents.

k. May arrange school meetings at a variety of times with parents who are unable to attend such conferences at school, in order to maximize parental involvement and participation.

l. May adopt and implement model approaches to improving parental involvement.

m. May establish a district parent advisory council to provide advice on all matters related to parental involvement in programs supported under this section.

n. May develop appropriate roles for community-based organizations and businesses in parent involvement activities.

Part III Accessibility Requirements

In carrying out the parental involvement requirements districts and schools, to the extent practicable, shall provide full opportunities for the participation of parents with children with limited English proficiency, parents with children with disabilities, and parents of migratory children, including providing information and school reports in a format and, to the extent practicable, in a language such parents can understand.

Our social worker works with families to navigate the online system with enrollment, applications and other requirements. Our parent liaisons also translate documents for families if needed.

PART IV-Adoption

This West Seattle Elementary Parental Involvement Policy/Procedures have been developed/revised jointly with, and agreed upon with, parents of children participating in Title I program, as evidenced by meetings listed above.

The Parent Involvement Policy/Procedures were developed /revised by West Seattle Elementary on 09/28/23 and will be in effect for the period of the school year. The school will distribute these Parent Involvement Policy/Procedures to all parents of participating Title I children and make it available to the community on or before 10/31/2023.

Pamela McCowan-Conyers, Principal

These parents were involved with the development of this document: