Location
Hellgate Elementary School
2385 Flynn Lane
Missoula, MT 59802

Contact
Bruce Whitehead, Principal
Phone: 406/549-6109
Fax: 406/728-5636

Description
For more than 15 years, parent involvement has been a critical component of successful education at Hellgate Elementary, which serves 400 third-, fourth-, and fifth-graders. Known as the Parent Partnership Program, the program at Hellgate involves over 100 parent volunteers each week, who are called "parent aides." Principal Bruce Whitehead feels that the program is the backbone of the school, calling it "the most important thing a school can do." He notes that if a school has a successful parent-involvement program, all other things will fall into place.

The program is codirected by a parent-aide coordinator and a teacher coordinator. Its primary focus is to put parents directly into classrooms. The program operates by only a couple of rules, and even they are not necessarily strictly enforced. First, parents should not be placed in their own child's class and, second, parents should be placed in a class that is a grade level above where their child currently is. These restrictions are in place for a few reasons: 1) to free up parents from tending specifically to their own children and instead focus on their role as an aide to the school; 2) to help teachers feel more comfortable with their day-to-day work (they are less likely to feel "on display" or scrutinized if the volunteers in their classroom are not parents of current students); and 3) to familiarize parents with the curriculum their child will have during the subsequent year.

At the beginning of each school year, parent-involvement forms are sent out to all school families. The form is the tool the school uses to match parent interests, preferences, and skills with teacher and school needs. Coordinators sort through returned forms and make the best matches between parents and teachers, keeping in mind skills, needs, and personalities. Once matched with a teacher, all new parent aides are shown how to operate school equipment (e.g., the copy and fax machine). There is no requirement set for the amount of time aides are to spend in the school each week. The roles of parent aides vary from classroom to class-room. In some rooms, they grade papers and put up bulletin boards, while in others they work with small groups of children or tutor individual students.

A few months into the school year, the school surveys the parent aides. This allows them to ensure that placements are working well for both parents and teachers. In the event that a parent signs up to be a parent aide but does not show up as regularly scheduled, teachers are instructed to set aside work that is not urgent and can be done at any time. This way, if the parent does come in at some point, there is work set aside for them. The volunteer feels useful, the teacher gets certain projects out of the way, and it remains a positive experience for everyone involved.

At the end of the year, each aide is recognized individually with a celebration hosted by the teacher and students he or she assisted. The parents are given small tokens of appreciation by the school and the children.

Observed Outcomes

• The Parent Partnership Program not only helps teachers and students, but it also helps many of the parents involved to rediscover themselves and their talents. For many, the experience is very empowering and provides them with newfound confidence in themselves
• Most parents that are involved with the school as aides become active advocates for the school and its mission
• One in four parents at Hellgate are involved in the Parent Part-nership Program

Keys to Success

• Work to ensure that the experience is positive for everyone involved-parents, teachers, and students
• Openly communicate expectations with parents
• Provide volunteers with recognition-it is important that they know how valued they are as members of the school community

Location
Roosevelt School
503 Edith Street
Missoula, MT 59801

Contact
Joe Stauduhar, Principal
Phone: 406/542-4075
Fax: 406/542-4076

Description
Three goals guide the education of Roosevelt School's 225 students. One goal focuses on student literacy, one targets technology, and one stresses the importance of parent involvement in the school. All are viewed with equal importance, but it is the parent-involvement goal that pervades instruction, family activities, and other school functions.

The school uses three different types of outreach to involve parents and families. These include the Parent Teacher Association (PTA), the site-based council, and the Family Resource Center (FRC). Each is different in scope and function, yet all share the common theme of parent involvement. This commitment to parent involvement is reflected in the school's mission statement:

Each outreach effort and the activities it sponsors are described below.

1. Parent Teacher Association. The PTA meets monthly and pro-duces a monthly newsletter, sponsors activities, and organizes other schoolwide events, including:
   • The Spring Fling: Featuring student art displays and band and orchestra performances, the Spring Fling is devoted to recognizing the more than 200 volunteers who donate time annually at Roosevelt
   • The Annual Open House: A time for all parents and families to come together at the school and get to know children's teachers and school routines
2. Site-Based Council. Composed of three teachers, one classified staff person, the building principal, and four parents, the Site-Based Council addresses school and district issues that affect the day-to-day operations of the school, such as school closures or the hiring of new administrators. The council meets on a monthly basis and is the school's main liaison to the school board.
3. Family Resource Center. The FRC at Roosevelt is one of eight such centers operating in Missoula County Public Schools. Six of the centers are in K-5 elementary buildings, while two are located in middle schools. Each of the FRCs has a unique "flavor" due to the neighborhood, school, staff, and parents who shape the role the center plays in the school community. The eight centers are the result of a unique collaborative effort between Missoula County Public Schools and other outside organizations. This five-year funding partnership involves the integration of education and human services, and began with the center at Roosevelt in early 1993.

   Roosevelt's FRC is staffed part-time by a Family Advocate (social worker) and two part-time Family Outreach Specialists. It oper-ates with Title I funds as well as other public funding. The pur-pose of the FRC is to provide families with support, informa-tion, and social activities, in a comfortable, no-pressure setting. It operates under the assumption that all families have strengths and the capacity to determine their own needs. They work to increase parental participation in children's education by pro-viding opportunities for involvement. The ultimate goal of all Missoula's centers is to help children succeed in school. Activities such as those described below strive to meet that goal each day.

   • Parent-Child Luncheons: Once a month, parents of students in a selected grade are invited in to the FRC to have lunch with their child. Parents may bring their lunch with them or order one from the school the morning of the luncheon. Luncheons are held during the selected grade's regularly scheduled lunch period and feature a story and a craft pro-ject to work on. The luncheons have been very popular, as evidenced by the 50 to 70 percent of parents who attend each time
   • Parent Readers: Parents have the opportunity to go to their child's classroom on a short- or long-term basis and read sto-ries to small groups of students. It is a very informal program that is left up to classroom teachers to initiate and tailor to their specific needs
   • Family Fun Nights: Every month the FRC sponsors a Fam-ily Fun Night. Parents, children, and any other interested family members are invited to the school to spend time par-ticipating in a variety of activities such as bingo, crafts, and other games. The focus of these nights is not specifically aca-demic, but instead to allow families to come together and have a good time in a positive, learning-focused environment
   • Adult Classes: The FRC offers computer and literacy class-es free of charge to interested parents. Instruction is provid-ed by a certified teacher and is based on individual need, so participants can begin at any time and come as often as desired
   • Family Activity Night: Offered once a year and similar to the Family Fun Nights, but with an academic focus, Family Act-ivity Night provides parents and students with structured literacy or math activities to work through together
   • Kindergarten Outreach: Each fall, families of next year's in-coming kindergartners are contacted by the FRC. Through these contacts, FRC staff set up home visits if needed, discuss resources available to families, inform parents about the school and it's routines, and, most important, welcome the families to the school
   • Hands At Work and Play: Offered weekly to families of kin-dergartners during lunchtime from October to December, the FRC's Hands At Work and Play Program provides parents with ideas for activities they can do with their children at home. It also works to assist young children in developing and refining fine motor skills
   • Home Visitations: During the school year, many Roosevelt families are contacted by FRC staff to schedule a home visit. Home visitations are done for several reasons, including to welcome families new to the school and to determine how the FRC can be of particular assistance to them. The visits are targeted at families who have been identified by school staff as having certain needs (e.g., families experiencing parenting difficulties or who are in need of community resources). The visits may be conducted at a family's home, in the resource center, or at another place and time convenient to the family. During the visits, families are provided with several pieces of information, including a packet that discusses the importance of literacy and suggests literacy activities parents can do with their children, and a packet of school-related information that details the services of the FRC. The visits are also a time for the FRC staff to provide children with a book, to further en-courage reading in the home

Observed Outcomes

• The school's parent-involvement efforts not only provide assis-tance to the school and educational reinforcement to students, but also offer social outlets where parents can get to know each other and the school staff, and learn more about other commu-nity resources
• Parent involvement gives Roosevelt a different feel-a positive, upbeat climate where everyone has a common interest in the education of children and the improvement of families
• The adult education program gives parents the opportunity to develop skills and make connections that they otherwise would not have had the opportunity to make
• School staff who weren't exactly sure how the FRC would fit with their school routines when it first opened now believe ful-ly in the mission of the FRC and see how it has benefited stu-dents and families. Referrals to the FRC from teachers have in-creased greatly in the past five years
• Parent involvement has increased every year since the FRC opened

Keys to Success

• Develop a school plan for parent involvement with teachers and then extend this planning to parents
• The plan should work to meet the unique needs of your commu-nity; it should be broad-based but focused
• Set school-involvement goals and reassess them annually
• Coordinate the involvement efforts of all stakeholders, includ-ing the PTA, the site council, and the FRC
• Have a central location for the FRC-someplace that is welcom-ing and easily accessible for parents

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This document's URL is: © 2001 Northwest Regional Educational Laboratory Date of Last Update: 09/19/2001 Email Webmaster Tel. 503.275.9500