The Chester County School District shall be governed by the statutory definition of parent involvement as cited in the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), and shall carry out programs, activities and procedures in accordance with this definition.
The Chester County School District will put into operation activities and procedures for the involvement of parents in all of its schools. These programs, activities and procedures will be planned and operated with meaningful consultation with parents, teachers, administrators, and community representatives and will be incorporated into its Tennessee Comprehensive System wide Planning Process (TSCPP). The Chester County School District will provide technical assistance and support to assist schools in planning effective parent involvement activities to improve student academic achievement and school performance.
If the procedures and strategies for parent participation in the district’s schools are not satisfactory to the parents, the Chester County School District will submit any parent comments with the plan when it is submitted to the State Department of Education.
Ø Parents will have access to school policy on attendance, discipline, testing, grading, and parent involvement through registration packets, handbooks distributed to all K-12 students and through the Chester County Schools’ Web Site at www.chestercountyschools.org. Parents will be able to send comments and suggestions to teachers and administration through e-mail.
Ø Parents will be invited to PTO meetings, Parent Teacher Conferences, Open Houses, and Orientation meetings where state and local content standards and course of studies will be discussed. Parents will have access to all learning materials.
Ø Parents will be asked to serve on committees, which include but are not limited to School Improvement Plan committees, SACS committees, Family and Community Advisory Council, Career/Technical Committees, Special Educational Advisory Council, Title I Parent Advisory Council, and the Chester County Family Resource Center. Parents will discuss current programs, evaluate programs, and consider changes or additions to improve instruction. Parents will also be involved in booster clubs that sponsor sports and band, Beta Club, Community Service Club, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Future Farmers of America, and Family, Career, and Community Leaders of America. Parents will serve as chaperones on trips and competitions.
Ø Parents will review test data provided from the State Department of Education. TCAP Individual Student Profile reports with explanations of results pamphlets will be provided to parents. Test data will be discussed at Parent Teacher Conferences and PTO meetings. System wide test data may be reviewed on the State Department’s web site at www.state.tn.us/education or in local newspapers including the Chester County Independent and the Jackson Sun.
Ø Parents and other stakeholders will be asked to express ideas and concerns by responding to surveys and needs assessments administered by the school system and individual schools. Parent representatives from each school will make up the Family Engagement Committee. This committee will review surveys and needs assessments and will make suggestions for school review and improvement.
Ø The Family Engagement Committee will review data from surveys and the Chester County Comprehensive Needs Assessment. Barriers will be identified that prevent economically disadvantaged, disabled, limited English proficiency, limited literacy, racial, and ethnic minority parents from participating in activities. Parent Advisory Councils at each school will discuss possible solutions.
Ø Volunteers will work in classrooms under the direction of the classroom teacher. They will assist with learning centers and tutoring. Parents will serve as motivational speakers to the high school student body.
Ø Parents will be asked to attend transition meetings when students are promoted to a grade in a new school location. Students and parents will receive information pertinent to their new class assignments.
Ø Parents will be given the opportunity to visit classrooms.
Ø Parents will be encouraged to share specific talents to compliment and extend the instructional services of the classroom teacher.
Ø Teachers and/or principals will write newsletters to keep parents up to date on information about upcoming events at each school. In addition, each school will appoint a person to write a weekly article for the Chester County Independent newspaper, which will highlight activities at each school. Report cards and progress reports will be sent home at regular intervals.
Ø The Chester County School System will annually evaluate the content and effectiveness of the school improvement plan to improve the academic quality of the schools.
The Chester County School district will ensure Title I school wide schools are in compliance with the No Child Left Behind Act.
ü Each Chester County School wide Title I school, East Chester Elementary, Jack’s Creek Elementary, West Chester Elementary, and Chester County Middle School will design and implement it’s program in consultation with parents and the community of the children in the served attendance area.
ü Chester County Schools will coordinate and integrate transition activities with Head Start. An orientation meeting for parents of incoming kindergarteners will be held at each K-3 school.
ü Chester County Middle School, serving grades 4 – 6 will invite third graders from three, feeder schools, East Chester Elementary, Jack’s Creek Elementary, and West Chester Elementary to tour the building and meet the teachers. An orientation meeting will be provided for parents of third grade students.
ü Chester County School wide Schools shall annually convene a public meeting for all parents for the following purposes:
To discuss the programs and activities to be carried out with federal, state, and local funds.
To provide an opportunity to establish mechanisms for maintaining ongoing communication among parents, administration, teachers, and other school officials.
ü Each school wide school will jointly develop with parents, students, and teachers a Principal-Teacher-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. The Principal-Teacher-Parent Compact will be reviewed annually and revised as needed.
ü Information from needs assessments and school surveys will be used in the planning, design, and implementation of the Title I school wide programs.
ü Kindergarten – Third Grade Schools, East Chester Elementary, Jack’s Creek Elementary, and West Chester Elementary will provide regularly scheduled parent involvement sessions for parents and students. Teachers will provide materials and training to help parents to work with their children to improve their children’s achievement, and will emphasize the importance of reading to or listening to their children read. This program is coordinated through the Chester County Family Resource Center. Books, prizes, and T-shirts are provided as incentives for participation.
ü At Chester County Middle School, in addition to grade wide meetings, there will be two sessions at each grade level that focus on assisting the parents of at-risk students to work academically with children. At least one language objective and at lease one mathematical objective will be the focus of each of these sessions. Educators will share basic facts about the objectives with parents. Strategies for assisting at-risk students to master the objectives will be emphasized. Transportation will be provided to the parents of at-risk students if requested.
ü Parents of school wide students will receive education tips from newsletters and weekly news articles printed in our county newspaper.
The Chester County School district shall appoint a Family and
Community Advisory Council that will annually assess, through consultation with parents, the effectiveness of the Family and Community Engagement Program and determine what action needs to be taken, if any to increase parental and community participation. The council will be composed of representatives from parents of students in elementary, middle and high schools, community business leaders, a member of the school board, and representatives from our school district.
To the extent practicable, the Chester County School district and its schools shall provide full opportunities for the participation of parents with limited English proficiency, parents with disabilities, and parents of migratory children. Information and school reports will be provided in an understandable and uniform format and will include alternative formats upon request, and, to the extent practicable, in a language parents understand. Other barriers will be addressed as needed.