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PARENT/GUARDIAN AND FAMILY ENGAGEMENT

ADMINISTRATIVE REGULATION - 6020

The following administrative regulation outlines opportunities for parents/guardians and family members to engage with their local schools and school district and is aligned to the legal requirements for districts and schools receiving federal funding.
 

Active Participation

The District values and incorporates input and suggestions from parents/guardians and family members into the District and school improvement plans each year. Parents/guardians are encouraged to provide feedback, share ideas, and offer suggestions in order to assist the District and schools in supporting student learning and wellbeing.
 

Examples of utilizing parent/guardian leadership in governance and advisory roles include:

  • Participation in District/school needs assessment, including the Local Control Accountability Plan (LCAP)
  • Participation in District and site-level parent advisory committees
  • Participation in the District annual survey

Effective Communication

Irvine Unified School District (IUSD) actively solicits feedback through surveys, parent/guardian-teacher-student study teams, and through site and District level advisory committees. IUSD utilizes different communication vehicles and translates messaging into multiple languages. Parent Square, websites, mailings, newsletters, and social media. Interpretation and translation is provided for parents/guardians to the extent that is required and feasible. 
 

Accessibility

To support parental involvement, local educational agencies and schools, to the extent feasible, shall provide opportunities for the participation of parents/guardians and family members with limited English proficiency, with disabilities, and parents/guardians and family members of migratory children. Information and school reports pursuant to 20 USC 6311 shall be provided to families in a format and, to the extent feasible, in a language they can understand.
 

Professional Learning for Staff

IUSD coordinates and provides technical assistance, and other supports as necessary to assist schools in planning and implementing effective parent/guardian and family engagement activities.

  1. Training for principals, school staff, and advisory committees includes:
    1. Reviewing the requirements for parent/guardian involvement and the inclusion of these requirements in school plans
    2. Planning, implementing, and evaluating parent/guardian and family engagement activities
    3. Educating school staff regarding Professional Learning Communities (PLCs) and the use of performance indicators, assessment and data analysis
  2. Educating teachers, student services personnel, principals, and other staff, with the assistance of parents/guardians and families, involves:
    1. Recognizing and valuing the assets and contributions of parents/guardian and families
    2. Reaching out to, inviting, and communicating with parents/guardians and families as equal partners to strengthen the ties between home and school
    3. Implementing and coordinating parent/guardian and family programs
  3. Extending opportunities for community-based organizations and businesses to participate in parental-involvement activities

Parent/Guardian and Family Engagement Activities

To establish partnerships with all families, the District and school sites employ engagement strategies addressing the unique needs of our students and diversity of our families. These strategies are intended to:

  1. Provide a welcoming environment that is supportive and safe for all students and their families. Given the diverse cultural and linguistic backgrounds of IUSD families, it is crucial that families feel welcome on campus and know that there is a role for them at school
  2. Provide materials and training to help parents/guardians and families work with their children to improve their children’s achievement
  3. Assist parents/guardians and families in understanding:
    1. State standards for student achievement and assessments
    2. District curriculum, adoption processes, and program options
    3. Systems to monitor a child’s progress, work completion, and attendance
    4. Strategies for supporting learning, behavior, and social/emotional needs at home
    5. Process and strategies for communicating to schools regarding their expectations and concerns for their children
    6. Volunteerism
  4. Make referrals to community agencies and organizations that offer literacy training, parent education programs, and/or other services that help to improve access for parents/guardians and families

Compliance Requirements

IUSD will ensure that school-level policies on parent/guardian and family engagement address the role of school site councils and other opportunities for parents/guardians and families to participate in the development and review of school plans.  IUSD will provide training and information to members of district and school site councils and advisory committees to help them fulfill their functions and tasks as pursuant to 20 United States Code 6318.
 

District Strategies for Title I Schools

To ensure that parents/guardians and family members of students participating in Title I programs are provided with opportunities to be involved in their children's education, the District shall:

  1. Involve parents/guardians of participating students in the joint development of the Title I Local Educational Agency (LEA) plan pursuant to 20 USC 6312, 6318(a)(2), and in the development of school support and improvement plans pursuant to 20 USC 6311 and California Education Code 11500-11504, 51101 (b); 20 USC 6318 (a)(1), 6318 (a)(2).

The Superintendent or designee shall:

  1. In accordance with Education Code 52063, establish a district-level parent advisory committee and, as applicable, an English learner parent advisory committee to review and comment on the District Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP) in accordance with the review schedule established by the Board of Education
  2. Invite input on the plan from other District committees and school site councils
  3. Communicate with parents/guardians through the District newsletter, website, or other methods regarding the plan and the opportunity to provide input
  4. Ensure that school-level policies on parent/guardian and family engagement address the role of school site councils and other parents/guardians as appropriate in the development and review of school plans

2. Distribute an LEA-level written parent/guardian and family engagement policy to the parents/guardians and family members of participating children (20 USC 6318 [a][2][B]).

3. Provide coordination, technical assistance, and other support necessary to assist Title I schools in planning and implementing effective parent/guardian and family engagement activities to improve student academic achievement and school performance.

The Superintendent or designee shall:

  1. Assign staff in the District office to serve as a liaison to the schools regarding Title I parent/guardian and family engagement issues
  2. Identify funding and other resources, including community resources and services, that may be used to strengthen District and school parent/guardian and family engagement programs
  3. Provide training for the principal or designee of each participating school regarding Title I requirements for parent/guardian and family engagement, leadership strategies, and communication skills to assist in facilitating the planning and implementation of related activities

4. To the extent feasible and appropriate, coordinate and integrate Title I, Part A parent/guardian and family engagement strategies with parent/guardian and family engagement strategies of other relevant Federal, State, and local laws and programs (20 USC 6318 [a][2][C]).

The Superintendent or designee shall integrate Title I, Part A parent/guardian and family engagement strategies and training with District parent/guardian and family engagement activities previously outlined in these Administrative Regulations and of other departments of the District such as:

  1. Language Development Programs
  2. Career and Technical Education
  3. Special Education
  4. Expanded Learning Opportunities Program (ELOP)
  5. Early Childhood Education
  6. Academics
  7. Any LEA programming deemed appropriate

5. Conduct, with involvement of parents/guardians and family members, an annual evaluation of the content and effectiveness of the parent/guardian and family engagement policy in improving the academic quality of the schools served by Title I.

The Superintendent or designee shall:

  1. Ensure that the evaluation includes the identification of barriers to greater participation in parent/guardian and family engagement activities, with particular attention to parents/guardians who are economically disadvantaged, are disabled, have limited English proficiency, have limited literacy, or are of any racial or ethnic minority background (20 USC 6318 [a][2][D][i])
  2. Use the evaluation results to identify the needs of parents/guardians and family members, so they can better assist with their children’s learning and engage with school personnel and teachers (20 USC 6318 [a][2][D][ii])
  3. Identify strategies to support successful school and family interactions (20 USC 6318 [a][2][D][iii])
  4. Use a variety of methods, such as surveys and workshops, to evaluate the satisfaction of parents/guardians and staff with the quality and frequency of District communications
  5. Gather and monitor data regarding the number of parents/guardians and family members participating in District activities and the types of activities in which they are engaged
  6. Use the findings of the evaluation conducted to design evidence-based strategies for more effective parent/guardian and family involvement and, if necessary, to revise the parent/guardian and family engagement policy (20 USC 6318 [a][2][E])
  7. Involve parents/guardians in activities of schools served under Title I, Part A to adequately represent the needs of the population served by Title I for the purposes of developing, revising, and reviewing the parent/guardian and family engagement policy (20 USC 6318 [a][2][F])

School-Level Policies for Title I Schools

The Superintendent or designee shall ensure that each school receiving Title I funds develops a written policy on parent/guardian and family engagement. School-level policies shall be developed jointly with and agreed upon by parents/guardians and family members of participating students. The school policy shall describe the means by which the school will:

  1. Engage parents/guardians and family members positively in their children’s education by providing assistance and training on topics such as state academic standards and assessments to develop knowledge and skills to use at home to support their children’s academic efforts at school and their children’s development as responsible future members of our society.
  2. Inform parents/guardians that they can directly affect the success of their children’s learning, by providing parents/guardians with techniques and strategies that they may utilize to improve their children’s academic success and to assist their children in learning at home.
  3. Build consistent and effective two-way communication between family members and the school so that parents/guardians and family members may know when and how to assist their children in support of classroom learning activities.
  4. Train teachers, school administrators, specialized instructional support personnel, and other staff to communicate effectively with parents/guardians as equal partners.
  5. Integrate and coordinate parent/guardian and family engagement activities with the Local Control and Accountability Plan (LCAP), as applicable, with other programs.
  6. When the District’s Title I, Part A allocation exceeds the amount specified in 20 USC 6318, the Board shall reserve at least one percent of the funding to implement parent/guardian and family engagement activities. Title I sites shall involve parents/guardians and family members of participating students in decisions regarding how the District’s Title I funds will be allotted for parent/guardian and family engagement activities. 
  7. Expenditures of such funds shall include at least one of the following:
  8. Support for schools in providing professional development for District and school staff regarding parent/guardian and family engagement strategies (20 USC 6318 [a][3][D])
  9. Support for programs that reach parents/guardians and family members at home, in the community, and at school (20 USC 6318 [a][3][D][ii])
  10. Dissemination of information on best practices focused on parent/guardian and family engagement, especially best practices for increasing the engagement of economically disadvantaged parents/guardians and family members (20 USC 6318 [a][3][D][iii])
  11. Collaboration with community-based or other organizations or employers with a record of success in improving and increasing parent/guardian and family engagement (20 USC 6318 [a][3][D][iv])
  12. Any other activities and strategies that the District determines are appropriate and consistent with this policy (20 USC 6318 [a][3][D][v])


Non-Title I Schools

The Superintendent or designee shall develop and implement strategies applicable for schools that do not receive federal Title I funds to encourage the involvement and support of parents/guardians in the education of their children, including, but not limited to, strategies describing how the District and schools will address the purposes and goals described in Education Code 11502.

Title III

The Superintendent or designee must implement outreach activities for parents/guardian and families of English learners that include:

  1. Notification of and facilitation of regular ELAC (English Learner Advisory Committee) and DELAC (District English Learner Advisory Committee) meetings for the purpose of formulating and responding to the parent’s/guardian’s recommendations for programs and services;
  2. Training activities for parents/guardians of English Learner students on how they can be involved and become active participants in assisting their children to:
    1. Attain English proficiency
    2. Achieve at high levels in core academic subjects
    3. Meet challenging state academic content and achievement standards expected of all students

Classroom Observations

As a means to understand the instructional environment and support their student’s learning, parents/guardians have the right to observe instruction or other school activities. In order to prevent undue interference with instruction and other activities, the following conditions shall apply to parent/guardian observations:

  1. A written request shall be presented at least two (2) school days in advance of the requested observation
  2. Parent/guardian observers shall be expected to control their movement and their remarks so that no teaching or learning is interrupted
  3. The duration of any observation shall not exceed one (1) hour
  4. The frequency of observation by the parents/guardians of any individual student shall not exceed three (3) times per year, nor more than once per month unless otherwise authorized by the Superintendent or designee
  5. Parents/guardians observing in the classrooms will maintain confidentiality about the learning environment

 

Policy Adopted: June 5, 1991

Revised: June 27, 2006

Revised: June 5, 2012

Revised: November 13, 2018

Revised: September 10, 2024