Community Engagement

Background

Community engagement is the inclusion of community members in school decisions, planning, activities, visioning, communication, and other school-related activities. Also known as public engagement, community collaboration, or community involvement, community engagement was derived from the notion that children whose communities are involved in their schooling have a richer educational experience.

Community engagement is more than just the inclusion of parents in aspects such as PTA or the school board. Community engagement also includes companies, those living in the area that do not have children attending the school, policymakers, students, and other educators. As administrators learn how to include all aspects of the community, they tap into a valuable resource that will help improve their schools.

Benefits

The workload and expectations of administrators have increased significantly over the years. As a result, administrators are "spread thin" and cannot be effective leaders in every educational aspect under their jurisdiction. With community engagement, this burden is lifted. As administrators learn to include the community in schools, members of the community may take the lead and contribute more time and energy to the school than is possible for administrators to do.

Furthermore, including the community in school planning, visioning, strategizing, and decision-making gives community members a sense of ownership. As a result, they are more interested in school reforms and implementation of new programs. They offer suggestions and resources to help improve their local schools and are even more inclined to vote on school propositions.

Examples

There are several ways administrators can encourage community engagement. Some schools set up a program where students spend a semester shadowing business leaders and working some days in their company. As a result, companies tend to be more interested in funding other school programs and activities.

In Nashville, Tennessee, one school allowed members of the community to attend meetings with school leaders who were deciding on the school budget. Community members voiced their opinions and offered various insights and suggestions. In the end, these community members were more supportive of their school because they felt like they knew where their money was going and how it was being spent.

Other schools encourage community engagement by setting up formal and informal meetings where community members meet and talk with the principals and superintendents of their local schools. Some schools even offer or host after-school programs for adults to learn new skills. This creates a stronger sense of cohesiveness and community members feel that the school is genuinely interested in their personal welfare. These community members also become more supportive of school activities and reforms.

Principals and superintendents who learn how to engage the community in their schools will have a wealth of energy, resources, time, and ideas at their fingertips.

Related Links

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What Is It?

Back to School for Collaborative Leadership

There is an increasing expectation that principals should have the ability to collaborate with the community to strengthen education. However, principals are rarely taught the skills they need in order to achieve this ideal. In this article, the author offers four basic principles administrators should learn and implement to ensure stronger school communities. (From American Association of School Administrators)

Community: Clear Connections

One of the most important alliances a school can foster is a partnership with parents. This article lists the skills educators should develop to encourage community involvement. (From Journal of Staff Development)

Engaging the Public to Improve Student Learning

Who is "the public" and how can administrators get them involved in the schools? This article answers these questions and provides a comprehensive overview of public engagement. (From Journal of Staff Development )

National Standards for Parent/Family Involvement Programs

The National Standards for Parent/Family Involvement Programs are "voluntary guidelines to strengthen parent and family involvement on behalf of children in schools and other programs." Endorsed by more than 30 professional education and parent/family involvement organizations, the standards embody practices shown to lead to success and high-quality parent involvement programs. (From National PTA)

Promoting Parent Involvement

Recently, a new approach to leadership is needed to help schools interact with parents as true partners in educating students. This article lists discusses several skills administrators can develop to facilitate greater parent involvement. (From American Association of School Administrators)

School/Community Relationships: A Vital Lifeline

Effective school/community relations are more vital to our education systems than ever before given the climate of public scrutiny that surrounds public education today. This article lists and discusses several questions administrators should ask themselves to ensure they are constantly reinforcing and building positive community relationships. (From American Association for School Administrators)

What is a Community School

This web-page discusses the elements that comprise a community school. A link is provided to an article that looks at community schools more in-depth.
Tools & Resources

A 10 Point Community Checklist on Public Engagement and School Accountability in My School District

This website lists 10 questions community members can use to measure the extent to which their school district is engaging the public. Leaders in education should consider these questions as they assess how they can involve the community more in their schools. (From Public Education Network)

Community Involvement Resources

This website provides a number of tools useful to encourage community involvement in schools. The categories on this website are as follows: volunteer networks, partnerships, general community involvement resources, a module, and a tool kit. (From National School Board Association)

Creating Partnerships, Bridging Worlds: Family and Community Engagement

For many students, particularly students from low-income families and students of color, a significant disconnect exists between the worlds of school, family, and community. A new guide helps schools and teachers bring these diverse worlds together and recognize the assets and strengths inherent in each. Such efforts help schools to be more successful in supporting and engaging students, resulting in higher student achievement. The guide provides resources, models, and tools to help schools create a framework for family and community engagement. The framework, based in part on the work of Dr. Joyce Epstein at the National Network of Partnership Schools, Johns Hopkins University, consists of: Parenting; Communicating; Volunteering; Supporting Student Learning at Home; Inclusive Decision Making; and Collaborating with the Community. Turning Points is a comprehensive school reform model designed to strengthen the academic core of middle schools and to establish challenging, caring, and equitable learning environments that meet the needs of young adolescents. (From Transforming Middle Schools. Turning Points.)

Family Strengthening Policy Center

The Family Strengthening Policy Center (FSPC) website is a clearinghouse of information and tools dedicated to family strengthening practices, programs and policy. The website draws from the knowledge and expertise of a broad array of professionals from service providers to researchers to bring visitors policy information, news from the field, funding opportunities, and resources and opportunities for engagement. Of particular interest to educators, is the Resources section, which contains links to organizations, publications, documents, tools and other materials relevant to "Connecting Schools, Families and Communities" and "Parental Involvement in Education." (From National Human Services Assembly)

How School Leaders Use Study Circles to Engage the Public

Focus on Study Circles is the free newsletter of the Study Circles Resource Center. Each issue contains articles on topics such as how to build and sustain study circle programs, and the role of face-to-face public deliberation in creating an active and democratic public life. This issue, focused on how educators are using study circles to engage parents and community members, provides many case examples of where study circles yielded positive results. (From Focus on Study Circles. Fall 2000. Volume 13, Number 2. Study Circles Resource Center)

The Partnership for Family Involvement in Education

This government website is a useful resource for administrators interested in boosting the involvement of families in education.

Together We Can

Developed by a group of researchers, administrators, and practitioners, this manual provides a practical guide for improving the coordination of education, health, and human services for at-risk children and families. Divided into three main sections, the guide leads readers through a five-stage process of group collaboration. The milestones in and obstacles to the process are portrayed through vignettes and case studies that describe the personal experiences of the group members. Together We Can remains one of the best guides to systems reform. (From Atelia I. Melaville, Martin J. Blank with Gelareh Asayesh. April 1993. )
Model Programs

5 Part Community Engagement Series to Develop an Action Plan

The Durham Public Education Network has developed a five-part initiative called "Closing the Achievement Gap through Community Action." This initiative is designed to involve the entire community, including business leaders, policy makers, parents, students, and educators, in every geographic area of Durham. (From Public Education Network)

Beyond the School Walls: A Case Study of Principal Leadership for School-Community Collaboration

This case study describes how one urban elementary school in a high-reform district and state has been able to develop strong connections with community businesses and organizations as part of its program of school, family, and community partnerships. The case study identifies four factors that allowed the school to build successful bridges to its community. These factors are: a) the school's commitment to learning; b) the principal's support and vision for community involvement; c) the school's receptivity and openness to community involvement; and d) the school's willingness to engage in two-way communication with potential community partners about their level and kind of involvement. Free registration is required to view the article. (From Mavis Sanders & Aida Harvey, 2002.)

Community Action Models

Some communities have successfully instituted civic action campaigns to increase community involvement and deepen the public's knowledge about crucial issues, such as teacher quality, school performance, and resource allocation. This article refers to Nebraska, North Carolina, and Tennessee as three states where community involvement is high. (From Public Education Network)

Obstacles to School-Community Collaboration

New Futures, the agenda of a collaborative reform launched in five cities, encountered many difficulties when embarking upon a collaborative initiative between the community, family, and school. This article shares these difficulties so that others can learn from the experiences of New Futures and benefit. (From NCREL)

School Change and Community Involvement Initiative

Parent Involvement/Community Engagement Project is a multi-year effort to explore the different ways to build family and community support of school reform. (From LAB)

Student Achievement in Math and Science: Putting Community Members into the Equation: The ARSI Community Engagement Implementation Manual

This manual was designed to help school facilitators increase community involvement in the education process. The Appalachian Rural Systemic Initiative (ARSI) aims to stimulate sustainable systemic improvements that enhance student performance in mathematics, science, and technology in 66 Appalachian counties characterized by persistent poverty. To support this aim, a major ARSI goal involves development of partnerships among families, communities, and schools.
Selected Research & Articles

Building Policy from Practice: District Central Office Administrators' Roles and Capacity for Implementing Collaborative Education Policy

This article by Meredith Honig defines district central office administrators' roles and capacity to support the implementation of school-community partnerships. Findings come from a strategic case study of central office administrators in Oakland, California (1990-2000). (From Education Administration Quarterly, 39(3), p. 292-338, August 2003.)

Community Permission: The Prerequisite for Change

This article is one man’s story about encouraging community involvement in education. He discusses the realities of this challenge and how best to solve these problems head-on. (From American Association of School Administrators)

Critical Issues: Establishing Collaboratives and Partnerships

Sharing leadership responsibilities with those in the community helps them to get involved. This article discusses the most effective way to include the community in education and provides audio- and video-clips of other principals and their opinions and ideas. (From North Central Regional Education Laboratory)

Parent, Family, and Community Involvement in the Middle Grades

A research project that focused on family and community involvement in comprehensive district-wide programs, school restructuring, and adult and child learning programs in the middle grades, provided an opportunity to examine nine local sites that presented unique challenges for family and community involvement. By synthesizing findings across all nine sites, researchers developed a set of eight "lessons" which enrich our understanding of the critical and complex nature of school-family partnerships in the middle grades. (From ERIC Digest, ED387273)

Supporting Parent, Family, and Community Involvement in Your School

This report gives detailed information administrators can use to increase public engagement in their schools. The report looks at how to encourage parent, family, and community participation, how to improve communication with the community, and how to improve community collaborations.

Thinking Differently: Recommendations for 21st Century School Board/Superintendent Leadership, Governance, and Teamwork for High Student Achievement

Schools need strong, collaborative leadership between the local school board and superintendents to ensure high student achievement. This article lists 7 ways to do this, as well as the roles and responsibilities of superintendents and school boards. (From American Association of School Administrators)