Purpose of this Policy and Compact

Efforts will be made to clearly articulate the school’s intentions to engage with and involve parents/caregivers in the educational process.

Brookfield Elementary is a Title I school within Fairfax County Public Schools (FCPS) and utilizes the Title I grant to improve student achievement and help all students meet the objectives of the FCPS Program of Studies and the Virginia Standards of Learning. A partnership with families is essential to meeting this goal.

Under Title I, Part A of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act, schools that receive Title I funds are expected to collaborate with families to develop and maintain a parent and family engagement policy that describes the school’s approach to involve families in students’ learning and includes a compact expressing the partnerships among staff, caregivers, and students to reach high academic goals for every student.

Brookfield Elementary jointly developed this policy and compact with members of the school community and adopted it for the 2022-2023 school year. A number of the provisions specifically address state or federal expectations for the policy and compact.

This policy and compact is distributed to all caregivers in a language that families can understand. Caregivers have opportunities to provide comments and feedback on the policy and compact through online forms and comment boxes housed in the school office. Comments are submitted with the school’s policy and compact to FCPS central offices and the Virginia Department of Education (VDOE). This policy and compact are made available to the broader school community through the school website.

Important Dates   

Parent-Teacher Conferences                                             

• By Winter Break (December 16, 2022)

Progress Report Distribution

• November 2022
• February 2023
• April 2023
• June 2023

School Events

• New Family Tour: August 11
• Back to School Event and Title I Overview: August 19
• Family Resource Night: September 15
• Advanced Academic Overview for Families: September 28th
• Family Movie Night: September 30
• Portrait of a Graduate Curriculum Night and Book Fair: October 12 and 13
• Book Fair Night: October 12 and 13
• Pyramid Chorus Concert: October 26
• Family Fun Run: October 27
• Parent Coffee: October 31
• Level IV Screening Process Information Session November 2 
• Winter Carnival: December 3
• Bingo Night: January 20
• Goodies with Guardians: February 14
• Science Fair: March 9 and 10
• Pyramid Art Show: April 19
• Earth Day Clean Up: April 21
• Field Day: April 25
• Chorus Concert: April 26
• International Night and Art Show: April 28th

Building Capacity for Involvement

Efforts will be made to ensure parents/caregivers are actively involved in the development, implementation, monitoring, and evaluation of the school’s Title I program, including the following:

•  Provide family members a voice in decision-making on committees, such as School Innovation and Improvement Plan (SIIP) and PTA.
• Engage caregiver input when developing the School Innovation and Improvement Plan (SIIP), Title I Schoolwide Plan, the Title I Parent and Family Engagement Policy and Compact, and plans for use of Title I family engagement funding.
• Seek feedback from families on programs within the Title I Schoolwide Plan, offer multiple methods for caregivers to submit comments about programs they may not find satisfactory, and submit any such comments with the Title I Schoolwide Plan to FCPS central offices.
• Invite family members to help in organizing and executing a variety of school events to build collective ownership, such as Book Fair, International Night, Winter Carnival, Bingo, and Earth Day Clean Up.
• Provide opportunities for caregivers to volunteer within the school in various ways, such as Book Fair, Read Across America Day, home/school communication folders, and individual classroom opportunities.
• Encourage families to take part in the annual evaluation of the content and effectiveness of the division-level Title I parent and family engagement policy in order to identify:
  • barriers to greater family participation
  • ways to help family members be better able to assist in student learning
  • strategies to support successful school and family interactions

Effective Communication with Parents

Efforts will be made to ensure parents/caregivers receive meaningful communication in a timely manner, including the following:

• Use multiple methods of communication to families such as eNotify messages through email, phone calls (with United Language Group translations), and texts (Talking Points for language translations), News You Choose email, Twitter, Facebook, Tuesday folders for forms, notes, and event fliers, and regular web updates of school news, calendars, and parent resource links.
• Encourage all caregivers to attend an annual meeting to share information about Title I services, explain Title I grant requirements, and inform families of their right to be involved in the school.
• Share school and student performance data with families in ways that seek their ideas about how to improve performance toward Virginia’s challenging academic standards.
• Provide opportunities throughout the year for families to better understand the school’s goals for students and find ways to improve student learning at the Back To School Event, PTA meetings, parent resource workshops, and Portrait of a Graduate Night. Brookfield also offers the Loving Solutions program to families, a class taught in Spanish with the purpose of helping families understand how to navigate education in the United States.
• Maintain resources for caregivers to review student assignments and ongoing communication about student work, such as maintaining Schoology and parent-teacher conferences.
• Provide ongoing feedback on student progress through quarterly progress reports that show specific areas of proficiency and areas for continued growth.
• Hold parent-teacher conferences for all students at least annually in the first semester and, more often, as needed.

Shared Responsibilities for High Academic Achievement

Efforts will be made to ensure parents/caregivers receive materials, training, and benefits from school partnerships with social and academic services, community-based organizations, and businesses, including the following:

• Hold workshops connecting caregivers to tools and resources, such as Family Community Resource Night, It’s Never Too Early to Think College and Positive Parenting. 
• Offer regular opportunities for families to learn directly from school staff about the school’s academic, behavioral, and social programming through parent coffees, literacy/math evenings, and day events.
• Encourage participation in family learning events where caregivers learn strategies to support their child’s learning at home and have a chance to practice those strategies with their child, such as Portrait of a Graduate Night.
• Provide ongoing access to resources in the school, such as The Parent Resource Center Lending Library, which includes books and videos, information on upcoming parenting classes and workshops, Early Literacy classes and adult ESOL classes, and the Parenting Center.  
• Provide mentors for students through MentorWorks, Khalfani Mentors, and GrandInvolve.  
• Provide opportunities to donate and access supplies donated by others, such as school supplies and clothing.
• Leverage partnerships with local businesses and organizations to enhance school programs and events through volunteers, donations of materials, sponsorship for food, and guest speakers.
• Support parents in accessing county and community resources through Parent Liaisons, School Social Worker, and Neighborhood Networks.
• Offer outreach and training for targeted families through Multi-Disciplinary Delivery Team Meetings.

 

Welcoming All Families

Efforts will be made to ensure that all parents/caregivers are welcomed and provided opportunities to actively engage within the school, including the following:

• Create a welcoming atmosphere at the school with courteous faculty and staff, parent-friendly signs, student helpers/SCA representatives, and the availability of resources in multiple languages.
• Provide interpretation services for parent-teacher conferences, workshops, and meetings.
• Translate or provide interpretation of school documents and communication to make them accessible in the caregiver’s preferred correspondence language and for those with vision or hearing impairments.
• Support two-way communication between families and staff through the assistance of a parent liaison for Open House/Back to School Event, parent-teacher conferences, and parent resource workshops.
• Expand access for family participation in informational meetings and learning sessions through PTA meetings and parent resource workshops.
• Employ two Parent Liaisons to focus on making connections with parents and enhancing support and opportunities for a successful school experience. The staff will provide support in English and Spanish.

Compact Provisions

School staff, parents/caregivers, and students must work together to ensure student success.

The staff will:

Provide a high-quality curriculum and instruction that enables students to meet challenging academic standards through the following actions:

• Teach all students according to the state’s challenging standards, using approved curriculum resources.

• Provide ongoing professional development and support to all teachers to ensure effective instructional practices are used in all classrooms.

• Participate in professional development opportunities that improve teaching and learning.

• Actively engage students through interesting and challenging lessons that promote enhanced student achievement.

• Continually assess students to ensure they understand essential knowledge and are academically challenged.

• Differentiate learning experiences to meet a range of students’ needs and levels.

• Consistently work with families and school colleagues to make school accessible and welcoming places for families

Provide a supportive and effective learning environment for students through the following actions:

• Provide clear expectations for student behavior and academic learning.

• Offer a variety of resources to help students with their learning.

• Create a safe and positive learning environment by supporting the core values of being Respectful, Responsible, and Ready.

• Nurture our diverse community of learners by modeling and teaching respect for individual and cultural differences.

• Communicate regularly with each student’s parents and collaborate with other staff members to support each child.

Provide assistance to caregivers in understanding the school’s program through the following actions:

• Hold an annual meeting to present information on the school’s Title I programs, state and division curriculum and assessments, and the school’s state and federal accountability status.

• Provide multiple opportunities for caregivers to ask questions and give input into the Title I programs.

• Consistently work with families and school colleagues to make school an accessible and welcoming place for families.

Build caregivers’ involvement in the school’s Title I program through the following actions:

• Include caregivers as members of the School Innovation and Improvement Plan (SIIP) Committee, and Family Engagement Committee and as collaborators in developing the Title I Schoolwide Plan and plans for the use of Title I family engagement funds.

• Include caregivers in the Title I annual meeting.

The parents/caregivers will:

Demonstrate understanding that participation in my child’s education will help his or her achievement through the following actions:

• Participate in decisions related to school programs and my child’s education and share my questions or comments about the programs in my child’s school.

• Volunteer in my child’s classroom or in school activities, as my schedule allows.

• Encourage and support my child’s learning at home and at school. 

• Send my child to school daily, on time, well rested, and prepared with assignments.

• Talk with my child daily about school; set high expectations for academic achievement and respectful behavior.

• Monitor homework assignments and provide assistance if necessary.

• Review all school communications and respond promptly.

• Encourage reading, writing, and math activities at home.

• Support school activities and events to enhance the community and reinforce positive attitudes about education.

• Attend school events, workshops, and meetings, and when appropriate, participate in decision-making and leadership opportunities at school.

• Communicate with school staff and request assistance, as needed, to support my child’s progress.

The student will:

Share the responsibility to improve my academic learning to achieve the state’s challenging standards through the following actions:

• Get enough sleep every night.

• Come to school on time unless I am sick.

• Try my hardest and work with my classmates to complete learning tasks.

• Give my parents all notes and papers from my teacher.

• Come to school on time every day, prepared and ready to learn.

• Be responsible for my own work and behavior, always trying to do my best.

• Follow school rules, participate in classroom activities, and take responsibility for my learning.

• Communicate regularly with my parents and teachers about school experiences so that they can help me to be successful in school.

• Be respectful of school staff, other students, and school property.

• Complete my homework and class work assignments and turn them in on time.

• Be a cooperative learner and ask for help if needed.

If you have questions, thoughts, or ideas related to Brookfield’s Family Compact, please contact principal, Ellen Mukai, at @email