Title I District Parent Policy

Gateway School District

Title 1 Parent Engagement Policy

Part I. Expectations

The Gateway School District agrees to implement the following statutory requirements:

The school district will put into operation programs, activities and procedures for the involvement of parents in all of its schools with Title I, Part A programs, consistent with section 1118 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA). Those programs, activities and procedures will be planned and operated with meaningful consultation with parents of participating children.

Consistent with section 1118, the school district will work with its schools to ensure that the required school-level parental involvement policies meet the requirements of section 1118(b) of the ESEA, and each include, as a component, a school-parent compact consistent with section 1118(d) of the ESEA.

The school district will incorporate this district-wide parental involvement policy into its LEA plan developed under section 1112 of the ESEA.

In carrying out the Title I, Part A parental involvement requirements, to the extent practicable, the school district and its schools will provide full opportunities for the participation of parents with limited English proficiency, parents with disabilities, and parents of migratory children, including providing information and school reports required under section 1111 of the ESEA in an understandable and uniform format and, including alternative formats upon request, and, to the extent practicable, in a language parents understand.

If the LEA plan for Title I, Part A, developed under section 1112 of the ESEA, is not satisfactory to the parents of participating children, the school district will submit any parent comments with the plan when the school district submits the plan to the State Department of Education.

The school district will involve the parents of children served in Title I, Part A schools in decisions about how the one percent (1%) of Title I, Part A funds reserved for parental involvement is spent.

The school district will be governed by the following statutory definition of parental involvement, and expects that its Title I schools will carry out programs, activities and procedures in accordance with this definition:

Parental involvement means the participation of parents in regular, two- way, and meaningful communication involving student academic learning and other school activities, including ensuring — (A) that parents play an integral role in assisting their child’s learning; (B) that parents are encouraged to be actively involved in their child’s education at school; (C) that parents are full partners in their child’s education and are included, as appropriate, in decision-making and on advisory committees to assist in the education of their child; (D) the carrying out of other activities, such as those described in section 1118 of the ESEA.

Part II. District-Wide Parental Involvement Policy Components

The Gateway School District will take the following actions to involve parents in the joint development of its district-wide parental involvement plan under section 1112 of the ESEA:

The Gateway School District will involve parents in the process of school review and improvement under section 1116 of the ESEA.

The Gateway School District will provide the necessary coordination, technical assistance, and other support to assist Title I, Part A schools in planning and implementing effective parental involvement activities to improve student academic achievement and school performance.

The Gateway School District will coordinate and integrate parental involvement strategies in Part A with parental involvement strategies under the following other programs: Pre-K and local Head Start programs.

Part III. Policy Components

Gateway School District will take the following actions to conduct, with the involvement of parents, an annual evaluation of the content and effectiveness of this parental involvement policy in improving the quality of its Title I, Part A schools. The evaluation will include identifying barriers to greater participation by parents in parental involvement. The school district will use the findings of the evaluation about its parental involvement policy and activities to design strategies for more effective parental involvement, and to revise, if necessary (and with the involvement of parents) its parental involvement policies.

1. The Gateway School District will build the schools’ and parents' capacity for strong parental involvement, in order to ensure effective involvement of parents and to support a partnership among the school involved, parents, and the community to improve student academic achievement, through the following activities specifically described below:
   1. The school district will, with the assistance of its Title I, Part A schools, provide assistance to parents of children served by the school district or school, as appropriate, in understanding topics such as the following, by undertaking the actions described in this paragraph -
      • the State’s academic content standards,
      • the State’s student academic achievement standards,
      • the State and local academic assessments including alternate assessments, the requirements of Part A,
      • how to monitor their child’s progress, and
      • how to work with educators.
2. Gateway School District will, with the assistance of its schools, provide materials and training to help parents work with their children to improve their children’s academic achievement, such as literacy training, and using technology, as appropriate, to foster parental involvement.
3. The Gateway School District will, with the assistance of its schools and parents, educate its teachers, pupil services personnel, principals and other staff, in how to reach out to, communicate with, and work with parents as equal partners, in the value and utility of contributions of parents, and in how to implement and coordinate parent programs and build ties between parents and schools
4. The Gateway School District will, to the extent feasible and appropriate, coordinate and integrate parental involvement programs and activities with Head Start, public preschool and other programs, and conduct other activities, such as parent resource centers, that encourage and support parents in more fully participating in the education of their children
5. The Gateway School District will take the following actions to ensure that information related to the school and parent programs, meetings, and other activities, is sent to the parents of participating children in an understandable and uniform format, including alternative formats upon request, and, to the extent practicable, in a language the parents can understand:

Revised March 20, 2018