LATEST ANNOUNCEMENTS:
- Coloring makes everything better! Download this FREE coloring book, It has many of your child's favorite cartoon characters.
- Our F.A.C.E. Chairperson, Beenish Iqbal, has written a message for our local PTA leaders regarding barriers to F.A.C.E.
WHY IS FAMILY AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT IS IMPORTANT?
Raising the next generation is a shared responsibility. When families, communities, and schools work together, students are more successful and the entire community benefits. For schools and districts across the U.S, family engagement is becoming an integral part of education reform efforts.
Check out the resources on this webpage it can help in supporting the framework for building stronger support PTA in schools, so ALL students can have the chance to succeed. Get ideas for how to bring your passion, talents, and energy to help students and to make your PTA stronger. YOU can make a difference and YOU can BE THE CHANGE…
See our Council F.A.C.E/DEI flyer for more information!
RESOURCES
NATIONAL PTA
Start your DEI journey in three steps! First, complete the diversity profile which asks you to reflect on who in your community is represented in the PTA and who is missing. Second, reach out and start talking with your community. The facilitator’s guide empowers leaders to start conversations with people who they have struggled to engage. Third, use the DEI action plan template to develop steps to become more inclusive (2021, National PTA website).
Click on the links to view/download these resources.
WSPTA RESOURCES
Well-informed, engaged parents make a difference for student success in school and beyond. Research shows that family engagement in a child’s education increases student achievement, improves attendance, and reduces dropout rates.
(2021, wspta.org)
For more information and resources visit:
MULTICULTURAL CALENDAR
The rich diversity in our communities is reflected in the observances celebrated by various cultures and populations. National PTA’s Center for Family Engagement has created this Multicultural Calendar to highlight and celebrate the diversity in our PTA and school communities! (2021, wspta.org)
2021 Multicultural Calendar
NATIONAL PTA
Start your DEI journey in three steps! First, complete the diversity profile which asks you to reflect on who in your community is represented in the PTA and who is missing. Second, reach out and start talking with your community. The facilitator’s guide empowers leaders to start conversations with people who they have struggled to engage. Third, use the DEI action plan template to develop steps to become more inclusive (2021, National PTA website).
Click on the links to view/download these resources.
WSPTA RESOURCES
Well-informed, engaged parents make a difference for student success in school and beyond. Research shows that family engagement in a child’s education increases student achievement, improves attendance, and reduces dropout rates.
(2021, wspta.org)
For more information and resources visit:
MULTICULTURAL CALENDAR
The rich diversity in our communities is reflected in the observances celebrated by various cultures and populations. National PTA’s Center for Family Engagement has created this Multicultural Calendar to highlight and celebrate the diversity in our PTA and school communities! (2021, wspta.org)
2021 Multicultural Calendar
TITLES ON FACE:
This is the time of the year when we all start planning for electing a Nominating Committee to find volunteers that helps in running PTA business effectively; Follow this link to a resource for achieving diversity in your Board!
Our F.A.C.E. Chairperson, Beenish Iqbal, has written a message for our local PTA leaders regarding Barriers to F.A.C.E.
- The World Cafe: Shaping Our Futures Through Conversations That Matter
- Handbook on Family and Community Engagement By: Sam Redding, Marilyn Murphy, Pam Sheley
- Origination Point
This is the time of the year when we all start planning for electing a Nominating Committee to find volunteers that helps in running PTA business effectively; Follow this link to a resource for achieving diversity in your Board!
Our F.A.C.E. Chairperson, Beenish Iqbal, has written a message for our local PTA leaders regarding Barriers to F.A.C.E.
PTA has the network to expand the use of transformative family engagement practices beyond pockets of excellence and innovation. The 24,000+ school-based PTAs, 55% of which are Title I schools, and over 16 million students, are an untapped resource in creating long-term systems change— from classroom to school to district, state, and federal policy—that leverages family engagement to ensure the success of each and every child. This is why we need more transformative approaches to our family engagement practices so every family is treated as a valuable partner in their child’s education(The center for family engagement, National PTA).
Click here to view/download the Transformative Family Engagement handbook.
Here is the tool kit that can help you bringing Dads in the PTA.
Many of our PTAs do fundraising to feed the local structure. All these funds help them to organize programs, grants to support classrooms, and other expenses. A strong marketing strategy helps in hosting successful fundraisers.
Identify your local footprint. There will be a wide variety of demographics to consider. Some are more concentrated in certain areas than others. Start by understanding your neighbors and your community. Provide fundraising materials in different languages can make a huge difference.
Use graphics representing all age groups, people with different skin colors, ethnicities, and children with special needs. It is evident that graphics make a powerful impact on the human brain than the written material.
All the answers are enclosed in this resource, prepared by National PTA.
Click here to view/download the document:
WHY to have a FACE/DEI chair or committee?
There are numerous benefits of having a FACE/DEI chair. If the PTA/PTSAs agree to have it as a board position then, the chairperson can overlook final decisions through a multicultural perspective. They can also help committee members to plan and transforming programs to open PTA/PTSAs platform for ALL members of the community.
If your PTA is planning to have a FACE/DEI chair and is not sure what would be his/her/them role in the organization then this document can help in identifying focus areas of this position.
Click here to view/download the document. Coming soon!
Click here to view/download the Transformative Family Engagement handbook.
- How to involve Dads?
Here is the tool kit that can help you bringing Dads in the PTA.
- How to do multicultural marketing?
Many of our PTAs do fundraising to feed the local structure. All these funds help them to organize programs, grants to support classrooms, and other expenses. A strong marketing strategy helps in hosting successful fundraisers.
Identify your local footprint. There will be a wide variety of demographics to consider. Some are more concentrated in certain areas than others. Start by understanding your neighbors and your community. Provide fundraising materials in different languages can make a huge difference.
Use graphics representing all age groups, people with different skin colors, ethnicities, and children with special needs. It is evident that graphics make a powerful impact on the human brain than the written material.
- How to plan meetings, engaging speakers, and address the needs of diverse communities?
All the answers are enclosed in this resource, prepared by National PTA.
Click here to view/download the document:
WHY to have a FACE/DEI chair or committee?
There are numerous benefits of having a FACE/DEI chair. If the PTA/PTSAs agree to have it as a board position then, the chairperson can overlook final decisions through a multicultural perspective. They can also help committee members to plan and transforming programs to open PTA/PTSAs platform for ALL members of the community.
If your PTA is planning to have a FACE/DEI chair and is not sure what would be his/her/them role in the organization then this document can help in identifying focus areas of this position.
Click here to view/download the document. Coming soon!
- What PTAs can do to support underprivileged students and families:
There is a lot PTAs can do to provide support and increase engagement of underprivileged families into the system by developing a structure to support afterschool cost-effective programs to enhance student’s learning.
These programs can support educational attainment and achievement, social, prevention, and wellness outcomes that contribute to in-school success. Planning programs and activities with minimum expenses is the key of increasing engagement for these disadvantaged students and families.
Some examples are:
Organizing clubs for reading, poetry writing, or drawing
Pottery/Candle/Origami classes
Grow your own food- where kids can learn and grow their own food.
Board / Math games
Preparing art from recycled materials
GRANT OPPORTUNITY
Everett PTSA Council now offers grants up to $150 to support local Everett PTAs in outreach and collaboration with families and community members who are traditionally underrepresented in PTA. Grants are available for hosting a FACE event, where family & community engagement is a primary goal & outreach efforts to diverse school populations are being utilized.
Download our Everett PTSA Council FACE Grant Application Packet.
COURSES AND TRAINING
National PTA
The first season of 10 Minutes to PTA the Transformative Way is dedicated to topics related to diversity, equity and inclusion! Tune in to learn from PTA leaders and experts in the field of ways you can make your PTA efforts more equitable. This page also has the training video for Diversity, Equity and Inclusion.
Click here to view the session and subscribe for more:
https://www.pta.org/the-center-for-family-engagement/training
PLTI – Parent Leadership Training Institute: Click this link to enroll in the upcoming session!
Check out the PLTI flyer (English) or Spanish version!
Online classes will begin on September 18, 2021 and end on December 18, 2021.
Parent Leadership Training Institute (PLTI) helps parents to build leadership skills. The twenty-week program teaches parents how to become practiced change agents for the next generation to improve the lifelong health, safety, and learning of children. PLTI host their classes on the property of Everett Community College. Each session is pilot by a team of local, experienced facilitators. Participation is at no cost to the parent. PLTI team provides breakfast, lunch, snacks and parking, depending on the timings of the classes. They keep tabs on attendance and prepare handouts for each student. The program solely depends on its donors. This twenty-week course strengthens connections among people of different backgrounds; it helps in understanding politics, policies, and the role of media. The graduation requirement is a local community project, which helps parents to get more involved in the community and work for the betterment of the people around them. This program also offers 5 college credits and a certificate of completion.
A leadership training program for participants' children, the Children's Leadership Training Institute (CLTI) is offered concurrently with the PLTI program. In this program, children learn about their responsibilities of being a community member. It sows the seed of community engagement from an early age. The grant will help the team in expanding their horizon.
Are you looking forward to hosting a FACE event? Or have you done one in the past? Are there creative ways you reach out to bilingual families, support them, and appreciate their differences?
E-mail FACE ideas and suggestions to Beenish Iqbal (she/her), FACE/DEI Chair: everettcouncilface@gmail.com
We would be keen on sharing examples of FACE ideas around our school district.
Region 7 FACE Chair: Vacant
WSPTA FACE Director: Shelby Reynolds - ptafacedir@wastatepta.org
MULTILINGUAL FAMILY SUPPORT
NATIONAL HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH:
September 15 to October 15 is celebrated nationwide as National Hispanic Heritage Month. It traditionally honors the cultures and contributions of both Hispanic and Latino Americans as we celebrate heritage rooted in all Latin American countries. During this month and throughout the year, we, and our partners, share history, heritage, and accomplishments of Hispanic and Latino Americans of past and present.
Hispanic refers to a person who is from, or a descendant of someone who is from, a Spanish-speaking country.
Latino/a or Latinx refers to a person who is from, or a descendant of someone who is from, a country in Latin America.
We encourage PTA leaders to watch this video about National Hispanic Heritage Month.
En español:
El 15 de septiembre al 15 de octubre se celebra en todo el país como el Mes Nacional de la Herencia Hispana. Tradicionalmente honra las culturas y contribuciones de hispanos y latinoamericanos mientras celebramos la herencia arraigada en todos los países latinoamericanos. Durante este mes y durante todo el año, nosotros y nuestros socios compartimos la historia, la herencia y los logros de los hispanos y latinoamericanos del pasado y del presente.
Hispano se refiere a una persona que es de, o un descendiente de alguien que es de un país de habla hispana.
Latino / a o Latinx se refiere a una persona que es de, o un descendiente de alguien que es de, un país de América Latina.
Alentamos a los líderes de la PTA a ver este video sobre el Mes Nacional de la Herencia Hispana.
STUDY SOUTH ASIAN LANGUAGES:
Language takes us beyond the world of apes and allows cultures to develop. Language frees us from the present, actually giving us a social past and a social future. That is, language gives us the capacity to share understandings about the past and to develop shared perceptions about the future. The language also allows us to establish underlying purposes for our activities. In short, language is the basis of culture. If you're willing to learn about the culture that inspires you, then begin by learning their language.
https://www.washington.edu/research/research-centers/south-asia-center/
https://jsis.washington.edu/southasia/programs/south-asian-languages/
https://jsis.washington.edu/southasia/people/nick-gottschall/
TRANSLATION SERVICES:
Information coming soon!
NATIONAL HISPANIC HERITAGE MONTH:
September 15 to October 15 is celebrated nationwide as National Hispanic Heritage Month. It traditionally honors the cultures and contributions of both Hispanic and Latino Americans as we celebrate heritage rooted in all Latin American countries. During this month and throughout the year, we, and our partners, share history, heritage, and accomplishments of Hispanic and Latino Americans of past and present.
Hispanic refers to a person who is from, or a descendant of someone who is from, a Spanish-speaking country.
Latino/a or Latinx refers to a person who is from, or a descendant of someone who is from, a country in Latin America.
We encourage PTA leaders to watch this video about National Hispanic Heritage Month.
En español:
El 15 de septiembre al 15 de octubre se celebra en todo el país como el Mes Nacional de la Herencia Hispana. Tradicionalmente honra las culturas y contribuciones de hispanos y latinoamericanos mientras celebramos la herencia arraigada en todos los países latinoamericanos. Durante este mes y durante todo el año, nosotros y nuestros socios compartimos la historia, la herencia y los logros de los hispanos y latinoamericanos del pasado y del presente.
Hispano se refiere a una persona que es de, o un descendiente de alguien que es de un país de habla hispana.
Latino / a o Latinx se refiere a una persona que es de, o un descendiente de alguien que es de, un país de América Latina.
Alentamos a los líderes de la PTA a ver este video sobre el Mes Nacional de la Herencia Hispana.
STUDY SOUTH ASIAN LANGUAGES:
Language takes us beyond the world of apes and allows cultures to develop. Language frees us from the present, actually giving us a social past and a social future. That is, language gives us the capacity to share understandings about the past and to develop shared perceptions about the future. The language also allows us to establish underlying purposes for our activities. In short, language is the basis of culture. If you're willing to learn about the culture that inspires you, then begin by learning their language.
https://www.washington.edu/research/research-centers/south-asia-center/
https://jsis.washington.edu/southasia/programs/south-asian-languages/
https://jsis.washington.edu/southasia/people/nick-gottschall/
TRANSLATION SERVICES:
Information coming soon!
Outreach Links:
WSPTA Family Engagement Webpage
National Diversity and Inclusion Page
National 2016 Diversity Toolkit
FAMILY AND COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT EXAMPLES
Does your school have a FACE example? Are there creative ways you reach out to school families to make them feel welcome and support them? Send it to Beenish Iqbal, FACE Chair, at everettcouncilface@gmail.com. We would love to share examples of FACE ideas around our school district.
Does your school have a FACE example? Are there creative ways you reach out to school families to make them feel welcome and support them? Send it to Beenish Iqbal, FACE Chair, at everettcouncilface@gmail.com. We would love to share examples of FACE ideas around our school district.
2020-2021 F.A.C.E. ACCOMPLISHMENTS
Everett PTSA Council: Book Drive
In partnership with Sno-Isle Libraries, and in cooperation with multiple schools and PTAs within Everett School District, we distributed over 3000 books for children in our community at the beginning of the 2020-2021 school year.
Everett PTSA Council: Book Drive
In partnership with Sno-Isle Libraries, and in cooperation with multiple schools and PTAs within Everett School District, we distributed over 3000 books for children in our community at the beginning of the 2020-2021 school year.
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F.A.C.E. ACCOMPLISHMENTS FROM PREVIOUS YEARS
Everett High School: Family and Community Engagement Evening
Everett High School staff, in collaboration with EHS PTA, hosted a Family and Community Engagement evening at the CRC to share school data, identify school needs, and brainstorm ideas from parents, students and community members on a variety of topics. Everett AVID students led small group discussions on ways that the school can make students and families feel welcome and strategies for partnering with community groups to create a strong, inclusive school community that supports student success.
Hats off to these AVID students for facilitating those discussions and sharing the ideas generated that night. What a terrific example of FACE in action within our schools.
James Monroe Elementary: Welcome Mat
Here is another great FACE example showing how schools welcome families from all different backgrounds and cultures. This welcome mat can be found as you enter James Monroe Elementary and includes the most common 20 languages spoken at their school. Working with staff and parents from the school, PTA Co-President, Jarucia Jaycox Nirula, used research from a Spring 2017 family literacy event to help design the welcome mat for roll out in August.
Jefferson Elementary School
A display was setup at Jefferson Elementary that says "Hello" in over 30 languages. Jefferson's Office Manager, Terry Tolpingrud, said "having this display hang in the entryway let's people know the different languages and diversity at our school."
James Monroe Elementary: Award Nomination Form
PTA Check out this Award Nomination Form at James Monroe Elementary PTA - in both English and Spanish! By providing materials in multiple languages you are reaching out to your families in the school community who may have English as a barrier to their participation. Need help in translating materials? Reach out to your school families to see if you might already have a PTA member who can help! Or if your school has a Natural Leaders program, those parents may also appreciate the opportunity to assist in this way to help connect your PTA with families from their home language.
Everett High School: Family and Community Engagement Evening
Everett High School staff, in collaboration with EHS PTA, hosted a Family and Community Engagement evening at the CRC to share school data, identify school needs, and brainstorm ideas from parents, students and community members on a variety of topics. Everett AVID students led small group discussions on ways that the school can make students and families feel welcome and strategies for partnering with community groups to create a strong, inclusive school community that supports student success.
Hats off to these AVID students for facilitating those discussions and sharing the ideas generated that night. What a terrific example of FACE in action within our schools.
James Monroe Elementary: Welcome Mat
Here is another great FACE example showing how schools welcome families from all different backgrounds and cultures. This welcome mat can be found as you enter James Monroe Elementary and includes the most common 20 languages spoken at their school. Working with staff and parents from the school, PTA Co-President, Jarucia Jaycox Nirula, used research from a Spring 2017 family literacy event to help design the welcome mat for roll out in August.
Jefferson Elementary School
A display was setup at Jefferson Elementary that says "Hello" in over 30 languages. Jefferson's Office Manager, Terry Tolpingrud, said "having this display hang in the entryway let's people know the different languages and diversity at our school."
James Monroe Elementary: Award Nomination Form
PTA Check out this Award Nomination Form at James Monroe Elementary PTA - in both English and Spanish! By providing materials in multiple languages you are reaching out to your families in the school community who may have English as a barrier to their participation. Need help in translating materials? Reach out to your school families to see if you might already have a PTA member who can help! Or if your school has a Natural Leaders program, those parents may also appreciate the opportunity to assist in this way to help connect your PTA with families from their home language.