Title I, Part A Parent and Family Engagement

Title I, Part A, of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, as reauthorized by the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), requires local educational agencies (LEAs) conduct outreach to all parents and family members and implement programs, activities, and procedures for the involvement of parents and family members. Such programs, activities, and procedures shall be planned and implemented with meaningful consultation with parents of participating children (ESSA Section 1116[a][1]).

LEAs and schools receiving Title I, Part A funds are required to do the following:

1. The LEA must develop a Parent and Family Engagement Policy as outlined in ESSA Section 1116(a).
   
   
2. The LEA must reserve funds to assist schools with Parent and Family Engagement requirements as outlined in ESSA Section 1116(a).
   
   
3. The School(s) must develop a Parent and Family Engagement Policy as outlined in ESSA Section 1116(b).
   
   
4. The School(s) must adhere to the Parent Involvement Requirements as outlined in ESSA Section 1116(c).
   
   
5. The School(s) must develop a shared responsibility for a School-Parent Compact as outlined in ESSA Section 1116(d).
   
   
6. The LEA and School(s) must build capacity for involvement as outlined in ESSA Section 1116(e).
   
   
7. The LEA and School(s) must provide accessibility to parents and family member opportunities to participate as outlined in ESSA Section 1116(f).

LEA Parent and Family Engagement Policy

An LEA that receives Title I, Part A funds shall develop jointly with, agree on with, and distribute to, parents and family members of participating children a written Parent and Family Engagement Policy. The Policy shall be incorporated into the LEA’s plan developed under ESSA Section 1112, establish the agency’s expectations and objectives for meaningful parent and family involvement, and describe how the agency will (ESSA Section 1116[a][2]):

1. Involve parents and family members in jointly developing the LEA plan under ESSA Section 1112, and the development of support and improvement plans under paragraphs (1) and (2) of ESSA Section 1111(d).
2. Provide the coordination, technical assistance, and other support necessary to assist and build the capacity of all participating schools within the LEA, in planning and implementing effective parent and family involvement activities to improve student academic achievement and school performance, which may include meaningful consultation with employers, business leaders, and philanthropic organizations, or individuals with expertise in effectively engaging parents and family members in education;
3. Coordinate and integrate parent and family engagement strategies under Title I, Part A with parent and family engagement strategies, to the extent feasible and appropriate, with other relevant Federal, State, and local laws and programs;
4. Conduct, with the meaningful involvement of parents and family members, an annual evaluation of the content and effectiveness of the parent and family engagement policy in improving the academic quality of all schools served with Title I, Part A funds, including identifying:
   1. Barriers to greater participation by parents in activities authorized by ESSA Section 1116 (with particular attention to parents who are economically disadvantaged, are disabled, have limited English proficiency, have limited literacy, or are of any racial or ethnic minority background);
   2. the needs of parents and family members to assist with the learning of their children, including engaging with school personnel and teachers; and
   3. strategies to support successful school and family interactions;
5. Use the findings of such evaluation in ESSA Section 1116(a)(2)(D) to design evidence-based strategies for more effective parental involvement, and to revise, if necessary, the parent and family engagement policies described in ESSA Section 1116; and
6. Involve parents in the activities of the schools served with Title I, Part A funds, which may include establishing a parent advisory board comprised of a sufficient number and representative group of parents or family members served by the LEA to adequately represent the needs of the population served by the LEA for the purposes of developing, revising, and reviewing the parent and family engagement policy.

Single School Districts (SSD), including Direct-Funded Charter Schools, may develop one policy that includes the requirements of both the LEA Title I, Part A Parent and Family Engagement Policy and the School Title I, Part A Parent and Family Engagement Policy requirements.

LEA Reservations

Each LEA that receives more than $500,000 in Title I, Part A funds shall reserve at least one percent of its allocation to assist schools to carry out the parental engagement activities. Funds reserved by an LEA shall be used to carry out activities and strategies consistent with the LEA’s Parent and Family Engagement Policy. Parents and family members of children receiving services shall be involved in the decisions regarding how the funds reserved are allotted for parental involvement activities. Not less than 90 percent of the funds reserved shall be distributed to schools served with priority given to high-need schools (ESSA Section 1116[a][3][A-C]).

Title I, Part A funds reserved by an LEA shall be used to carry out activities and strategies consistent with the LEA’s Parent and Family Engagement Policy, including not less than one of the following:

1. Supporting schools and nonprofit organizations in providing professional development for LEA and school personnel regarding parent and family engagement strategies, which may be provided jointly to teachers, principals, other school leaders, specialized instructional support personnel, paraprofessionals, early childhood educators, and parents and family members.
2. Supporting programs that reach parents and family members at home, in the community, and at school.
3. Disseminating information on best practices focused on parent and family engagement, especially best practices for increasing the engagement of economically disadvantaged parents and family members.
4. Collaborating, or providing subgrants to schools to enable such schools to collaborate, with community-based or other organizations or employers with a record of success in improving and increasing parent and family engagement.
5. Engaging in any other activities and strategies that the LEA determines are appropriate and consistent with such agency’s Parent and Family Engagement Policy (ESSA Section 1116[a][3][D]).

School Parent and Family Engagement Policy

Each school served under Title I, Part A shall jointly develop with, and distribute to, parents and family members of participating children a written Parent and Family Engagement Policy, agreed on by such parents, that shall describe the means for carrying out the requirements of ESSA Section 1116(c-f). Parents shall be notified of the Policy in an understandable and uniform format and, to the extent practicable, provided in a language the parents can understand. Such Policy shall be made available to the local community and updated periodically to meet the changing needs of parents and the school (ESSA Section 1116[b][1]).

If the school has a Parent and Family Engagement Policy that applies to all parents and family members, such school may amend that policy, if necessary, to meet the requirements of the School and Parent and Family Engagement Policy (ESSA Section 1116[b][2]).

If the LEA involved has an LEA Parent and Family Engagement Policy that applies to all parents and family members in all schools served by the LEA, such agency may amend that Policy, if necessary, to meet the requirements of ESSA Section 1116(b)(3).

If the LEA plan under ESSA Section 1112 is not satisfactory to the parents of participating children, the LEA shall submit any parent comments with such plan when such LEA submits the plan to the State (ESSA Section 1116[b][4]).

SSDs, including Direct-Funded Charter Schools, may develop one policy that includes the requirements of both the LEA Title I, Part A Parent and Family Engagement Policy, and the School Title I, Part A Parent and Family Engagement Policy requirements.

School Parent Involvement Requirements

Each school served with Title I, Part A funds shall:

1. Convene an annual meeting, at a convenient time, to which all parents of participating children shall be invited and encouraged to attend, to inform parents of their school’s participation under Title I, Part A, and to explain the requirements of Title I, Part A, and the right of the parents to be involved;
2. Offer a flexible number of meetings, such as meetings in the morning or evening, and may provide, with funds provide under this part, transportation, child care, or home visits, as such services relate to parental involvement;
3. Involve parents in an organized, ongoing, and timely way, in the planning, review, and improvement of programs under Title I, Part A, including the planning, review, and improvement of the school Parent and Family Engagement Policy, and the joint development of the schoolwide program (SWP) plan under Section 1114(b), except that if a school has in place a process for involving parents in the joint planning and design of the school’s programs, the school may use that process, if such process includes an adequate representation of parents of participating children;
4. Provide parents of participating children:
   1. Timely information about programs under Title I, Part A;
   2. a description and explanation of the curriculum in use at the school, the forms of academic assessment used to measure student progress, and the achievement levels of the challenging State academic standards; and
   3. 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 such suggestions as soon as practicably possible;
5. If the SWP plan under ESSA Section 1114(b) is not satisfactory to the parents of participating children, submit any parent comments on the plan when the school makes the plan available to the LEA (ESSA Section 1116[c]).

School-Parent Compact

As a component of the school-level Parent and Family Engagement Policy developed under ESSA Section 1116(b), each school served under Title I, Part A shall jointly develop with parents for all children served under Title I, Part A, a school-parent compact that outlines how parents, the entire school staff, and students will share the responsibility for improved student academic achievement and the means by which the school and parents will build and develop a partnership to help children achieve the State’s high standards (ESSA Section 1116[d]).

Such compact shall:

1. Describe the school’s responsibility to provide high-quality curriculum and instruction in a supportive and effective learning environment that enables the children served under Title I, Part A to meet the challenging State academic standards, and the ways in which each parent will be responsible for supporting their children’s learning; volunteering in their child’s classroom; and participating, as appropriate, in decisions relating to the education of their children and positive use of extra-curricular time; and
2. Address the importance of communication between teachers and parents on an ongoing basis through, at a minimum:
   1. Parent-teacher conferences in elementary schools, at least annually, during which the compact shall be discussed as the compact relates to the individual child’s achievement;
   2. Frequent reports to parents on their children’s progress;
   3. Reasonable access to staff, opportunities to volunteer and participate in their child’s class, and observation of classroom activities; and
   4. Ensuring regular two-way, meaningful communication between family members and school staff, and to the extent practicable, in a language that family members can understand (ESSA Section 1116[d][1-2]).

Building Capacity for Involvement

To ensure effective involvement of parents and family members and to support a partnership among the school involved, parents, and the community to improve student academic achievement (ESSA Section 1116[e]).

Each LEA and School assisted with Title I, Part A funds:

1. Shall provide assistance to parents of children served by the LEA or school, as appropriate, in understanding such topics as the challenging State academic standards, State and local academic assessments, the requirement of this part, and how to monitor a child’s progress and work with educators to improve the achievement of their children;
2. Shall provide materials and training to help parents to work with their children to improve their children’s achievement, such as literacy training and using technology (including education about the harms of copyright piracy), as appropriate, to foster parental involvement;
3. Shall educate teachers, specialized instructional support personnel, principals, and other school leaders, 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;
4. Shall, to the extent feasible and appropriate, coordinate and integrate parent involvement programs and activities with other Federal, State, and local programs, including public preschool 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. 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 the parents can understand;
6. May involve parents in the development of training for teachers, principals, and other educators to improve the effectiveness of such training;
7. May provide necessary literacy training from funds received under Title I, Part A if the LEA has exhausted all other reasonably available sources of funding for such training;
8. May pay reasonable and necessary expenses associated with local parental involvement activities, including transportation, and child care costs, to enable parents to participate in school-related meetings and training sessions;
9. May train parents to enhance the involvement of other parents;
10. May arrange school meetings at a variety of times, or conduct in-home conferences between teachers or other educators, who work directly with participating children, with parents who are unable to attend such conferences at school, in order to maximize parental involvement and participation;
11. May adopt and implement model approaches to improving parental involvement;
12. May establish a districtwide parent advisory council to provide advice on all matters related to parental involvement in programs supported under this section;
13. May develop appropriate roles for community-based organizations and businesses in parent involvement activities; and
14. Shall provide such other reasonable support for parental involvement activities under Title I, Part A as parents may request.

Accessibility for Parents and Family Members

The requirements for carrying out the parent and family engagement for LEAs and schools, to the extent practicable, shall provide opportunities for the informed participation of parents and family members (including parents and family members who have limited English proficiency, parents and family members with disabilities, and parents and family members of migratory children), including providing information and school reports required under ESSA Section 1111 in a format and, to the extent practicable, in a language such that parents and family members understand (ESSA Section 1116[f]).

Parents Right-to-Know

Each LEA at the beginning of each school year that receives Title I, Part A funds shall notify the parents of each student attending any school receiving Title I, Part A funds (ESSA Section 1112[e]) that the parents may request, and the LEA will provide on request (and in a timely manner) information regarding the professional qualifications of the student’s classroom teachers, including the at a minimum, the following (ESSA Section 1112[e][1][A]):

1. Whether the student’s teacher:
   1. has met the State qualification and licensing criteria for the grade level and subject areas that the teacher provides instruction,
   2. is teaching under an emergency or other provisional status through which State qualification or licensing criteria have been waived, and
   3. is teaching in the field of discipline of the certification of the teacher.
2. Whether the child is provided services by paraprofessionals and, if so, their qualifications.

In addition to the information that parents may request under ESSA Section 1112(e)(1)(A), a school that receives Title I, Part A funds shall provide to each individual parent of a child who is a student in such school, with respect to such student (ESSA Section 1112[e][1][B]):

1. Information on the level of achievement and academic growth of the student, if applicable and available, on each of the State academic assessments required under Title I, Part A, and
2. Timely notice that the student has been assigned or has been taught for four (4) or more consecutive weeks by, a teacher who does not meet the applicable State certification or licensure requirements at the grade level and subject area in which the teacher has been assigned.

At the beginning of each school year, an LEA that receives Title I, Part A funds shall notify the parents of each student attending any school receiving Title I, Part A funds that the parents may request, and the LEA will provide the parents on request (and in a timely manner), information regarding any State or LEA policy regarding student participation in any assessments mandated by ESSA Section 1111(b)(2) and by the State or LEA, which shall include a policy, procedure, or parental right to opt the child out of such assessment, where applicable (ESSA Section 1112[e][2][A]).

Subject to the requirements of ESSA Section 1112(e)(2)(C), each LEA that receives Title I, Part A funds shall make widely available through public means (including by posting in a clear and easily accessible manner on the LEA’s website and, where practicable, on the website of each school served by the LEA) for each grade served by the LEA, information on each assessment required by the State to comply with ESSA Section 1111, other assessments required by the State, and where such information is available and feasible to report, assessments required districtwide by the LEA, including (ESSA Section 1112[e][2][B]):

1. The subject matter assessed;
2. The purpose for which the assessment is designed and used;
3. The source of the requirement for the assessment; and
4. Where such information is available:
   1. The amount of time students will spend taking the assessment, and the schedule for the assessment; and
   2. The time and format for disseminating results.

In the event that an LEA does not operate a website, the LEA shall determine how to make the information described as widely available, such as through distribution of that information to the media, through public agencies, or directly to the parents (ESSA Section 1112[e][2][C]).

Each LEA using Title I, Part A or Title III funds to provide a language instruction educational program as determined under Title III, shall not later than 30 days after the beginning of the school year, inform parents of an English learner (EL) identified for participation or participating in such a program, of (ESSA Section 1112[e][3][A]):

1. The reasons for the identification of their child as an EL, and in need of placement in a language instruction educational program;
2. The child’s level of English proficiency, how such level was assessed, and the status of the child’s academic achievement;
3. The methods of instruction used in the program in which their child is, or will be, participating and the methods of instruction used in other available programs, including how such programs differ in content, instructional goals, and the use of English and native language instruction;
4. How the program in which their child is, or will be, participating will meet the educational strengths and needs of their child;
5. How such program will specifically help their child learn English and meet age-appropriate academic achievement standards for grade promotion and graduation;
6. The specific exit requirements for the program, including the expected rate of transition from such program into classrooms that are not tailored for EL, and the expected rate of graduation from high school (including four-year adjusted cohort graduation rates and extended-year adjusted cohort graduation rates for such program), if Title I, Part A funds are used for children in high schools;
7. In the case of a child with a disability, how such program meets the objectives of the individualized education program of the child, as described in Section 614(d) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (20 United States Code 1414[d]); and
8. Information pertaining to parental rights that includes written guidance:
   1. Detailing the right that the parents have to have their child immediately removed from such program upon their request;
   2. Detailing the options that parents have to decline to enroll their child in such program, or to choose another program or method of instruction, if available; and
   3. Assisting parents in selection among various programs and methods of instruction, if more than one (1) program or method is offered by the eligible entity.

For those children who have not been identified as ELs prior to the beginning of the school year but are identified as ELs during such school year, the LEA shall notify the children’s parents during the first two (2) weeks of the child being placed in a language instruction educational program consistent with ESSA Section 1112(e)(3)(A) (ESSA Section 1112[e][3][B]).

Each LEA that receives Title I, Part A Funds shall implement an effective means of outreach to parents of ELs to inform them regarding how the parents can (ESSA Section 1112[e][3][C][i]):

1. Be involved in the education of their children; and
2. Be active participants in assisting their children to:
   1. Attain English proficiency;
   2. Achieve at high levels within a well-rounded education; and
   3. Meet the challenging State academic standards expected of all students.

Holding and sending notice of opportunities for regular meetings for the purpose of formulating and responding to recommendations from parents of students assisted under Title I, Part A or Title III (ESSA Section 1112[e][3][C][ii]).

Students shall not be admitted to or excluded from any federally assisted education program on the basis of a surname or language-minority status (ESSA Section 1112[e][3][D]).

The notice and information provided to parents under ESSA Section 1112(e), Parents Right-to-Know, shall be in an understandable and uniform format and, to the extent practicable, provided in a language that the parents can understand (ESSA Section 1112[e][4]).

Templates associated with the Parents Right-to-Know are located on the following California Department of Education (CDE) web pages:

• Initial and Annual Parent Notification Letters
  Information, letter templates, and other resources to assist local educational agencies regarding identification & parent notification requirements once a student has been identified as an English learner or initially fluent-English proficient student.
• Parents' Right to Know Letter Regarding Teacher Qualifications (DOC)
  Federal law requires that parents be notified at the beginning and/or when appropriate anytime during each year of their right to know the professional qualifications of their child's teacher(s).
• Teacher Requirements Four-week Notice (DOC)
  Federal law requires that parents be notified when their child has been taught for four or more consecutive weeks by a teacher who has not met State certification or licensure requirements at the grade level and subject area in which the teacher has been assigned.

Templates

LEAs and Schools may use CDE sample Title I, Part A parent and family engagement templates or they may design their own based on the requirements of ESSA Section 1116.

• Sample Title I, Part A LEA Parent and Family Engagement Policy Template (DOCX)
• Sample Title I, Part A School-level Parent and Family Engagement Policy Template (DOCX)
• Sample Title I, Part A School-Parent Compact Template (DOCX)
• Sample Title I, Part A Single-School LEA Parent and Family Engagement Policy Template (DOCX)

Resources

Family Engagement Framework: A Tool for California School Districts-English (PDF; 3MB)
Guidance for educators, districts, schools, families and communities as they plan, implement, and evaluate strategies across multiple programs for effective family engagement to support student achievement.

Family Engagement Framework: A Tool for California School Districts-Spanish (PDF; 3MB)
Orientación para educadores, distritos, escuelas, familias y comunidades a medida que planean, implementan y evalúan estrategias en múltiples programas para una participación familiar efectiva para apoyar el logro de los estudiantes.

Parent/Family
Information for educators, parents and family members to assist in Parent and Family Engagement in education.

Quality Schooling Framework
The California educator's destination for timely tools and practices to guide effective planning, policy, expenditure, and instructional decisions at all schools and districts.

ESSA
The U.S. Department of Education's Information regarding California's plan to implement the Federal ESSA