Remove participation barriers and use broad outreach to ensure fair representation on parent councils¶

Strategy · All strategies
Evidence · no claims cited

Description¶

The brief holds that all families in a community should have a fair opportunity to participate in a parent council, since broad representation brings different perspectives. It states that "Organizations and school districts can achieve this by ensuring they communicate through multiple channels and remove barriers to families by planning for childcare costs, making information accessible, and reimbursing participants for travel or time."

Design Implications¶

Context¶

Requirements¶

• Communication through multiple channels
• Planning for childcare costs
• Accessible information
• Reimbursement for travel or time

Constraints¶

Target Learners¶

• families across an entire school community
• school districts and organizations sponsoring councils

Target Learning Goals¶

• equitable participation in shared governance
• inclusive family engagement

Related Strategies¶

• Offering Multiple Options for Family Engagement
• Assume Support
• Targeted and Specific Communication with Families
• Provide training and jargon-free resources so council members can make informed contributions
• Maintain transparent, ongoing communication through consistent schedules, agendas, and multiple channels
• Remove language and participation barriers by communicating with families in multiple languages through varied channels with interpreters available

Examples¶

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Key Sources¶

• Building Better Parent Councils: A Research Brief. (2024). National Center for Families Learning. https://www.familieslearning.org