District Administration - June 2007 - (Page 41)

COMMUNITY RELATIONS At Longfellow Elementary School in the Pasco School District in Washington state, teachers speak with parents and students at a “Welcome Back” picnic. Action Teams BY ALAN DESSOFF Parents and communities partner to boost student achievement. PASCO SCHOOL DISTRICT IN Washington state and Saint Paul Public Schools in Minnesota are, at ﬁrst glance, very diﬀerent. Pasco, an agricultural community with roughly 46,500 residents but growing rapidly, had 12,516 students enrolled in 16 schools last fall. Saint Paul, Minnesota’s capital, with roughly 277,000 people, is the state’s second largest school district, with more than 42,000 students in 67 schools and special programs. But there are similarities. The poverty rates are high in both, with 68 percent of students qualifying for free or reducedprice meals in Pasco and 71 percent in Saint Paul. In Pasco, 65 percent of homes are non-English speaking or bilingual, and in these homes the ﬁrst language is usually Spanish. In Saint Paul, 42 percent of students have a home language other than English. Saint Paul students speak 103 languages and dialects. But what truly bonds Pasco and Saint Paul is their participation in the National Network of Partnership Schools (NNPS), part of the Center on School, Family and Community Partnerships at Johns Hopkins University. Founded in 1996 by Joyce L. Epstein, a professor of sociology who still directs it, NNPS invites schools, districts, states and organizations to join the network and use research-based approaches to organize and sustain programs of family and community involvement that will increase student success, including boosting attendance and doing homework. Until two years ago, 16 public schools in Pasco usually began the school year with an open house where parents and teachers could meet. Held a week or two after opening day, the events did not always satisfy parents’ needs for information and assurance about what their children could expect in the months ahead, says Deidra McCollum, a partnership network coordinator in the Pasco School District. In 2005, many schools tried something new. They replaced the open houses with more informal functions—barbecues, picnics, and ice cream socials—before the school year began. Students came with their parents, met their teachers and learned such basics as where buses would drop them oﬀ in the mornings and where they should line up—“those things that sometimes make the start of school June 2007 41 www.DistrictAdministration.com http://www.DistrictAdministration.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of District Administration - June 2007

Contents
Editor's Letter
Letters
News Update
Security Update
Technology Update
Curriculum Update
Inside the Law
Admistrator Profile
District Profile
Refreshing the ISTE Technology Standards
Action Teams
RE-Construction
Professional Development for the New Century
Multimedia LIT
New Products
Leadership Books
Problem/Solution
Online Edge
Speaking Out
Supervisor's Opinion
Professional Opinion
Research Corner
Calendar of Events
Understanding the Times

District Administration - June 2007