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Burks Middle School
Implementation Plan for Family Engagement
2005

Note: Burks Middle School has adopted the Putnam County Schools Family Engagement Plan.

BMS Vision Statement

The vision of BMS is to educate the mind, body, and spirit of every student.

To better meet the vision of Burks Middle School, it is imperative that we communicate and include our student’s parents in the planning of education, in the problem solving associated with being a middle school student and in celebrating successes all students are able to make.

The following items must be carried out in engaging families at BMS:

Communicate in every way with parents.

Phone calls from teachers and administrators in the family’s home language
Meetings with parents
Home visits with parents and students
Letters home in the family’s home language
Utilize newspaper and mass media to market school events
Teacher websites for homework help
Lesson Line for homework assignments
Academic planners for all students that include school rules and policies
Parent -Teacher Conferences

In order to follow the policy of Putnam County, the following school level standards must be met:

Standard 1 Family involvement is incorporated as a strategy to achieve any goal in the School Improvement Plan.

Parents will be involved in as many committees as possible throughout the SIP planning.
Family Involvement is evaluated in each goal of the SIP to see how that involvement can help the school to reach its SIP goals.

Standard 2 Everyone who works at the school strongly believes that family involvement is important to student’s success and academic achievement.

Teachers will invite families to visit classrooms.
School personnel will be given copies of the family engagement policy and will discuss ways they can better involve families.
Funding will be used to implement activities to engage families.
Teachers will be given opportunities to make home visits to families when needed.
School personnel will make a point to speak to all people that enter Burks Middle School, saying hello and offering directions or assistance. We want families to be comfortable coming into the school building.
The Guidance Counselor, Marcy Hensley will serve as the Family Involvement liaison.

Standard 3 School staff use creative ways of reaching out to families who have not been involved in their children’s education.

School personnel will partner with community stakeholders and businesses to distribute information regarding school functions and opportunities to celebrate student successes.
Family education will be made available through the 21st Century After School Program at times that are best for the most families to be involved.
Parents are recognized for school activity at Honor Roll functions.
Bi-Lingual educators will help in getting information to students and families of all languages represented at BMS, ie., Spanish and English.
The Burks Middle School Guidance Counselor will keep a library of resources available to parents in need of assistance. The Counselor will make those resources known through conferences, phone calls, and flyers.
The Guidance Counselor, Marcy Hensley will serve as the Family Involvement liaison.
The school is currently partnering with the area churches to spotlight the BMS band and choir. We continue to search for other venues for school meetings to meet the needs of the largest number of families.

Standard 4 There is a strong partnership among school staff, students, families and community members that increases student’s success and academic achievement.

Being in a small town, there are many connections that are already in place to aid in increasing student successes. We need to broaden that network by making sure all new families to the area are made to feel welcome, thus adding them to the support network for our children.
Community members are generous in coupons and gifts for students to celebrate success.
Teachers and administration are expected to treat parents and families with respect in all interactions.
We are currently surveying parents to see what talents they may be able to share with the faculty and staff of BMS to serve the students in the best possible way.

Standard 5 The principal and site council provide active leadership in increasing the level and quality of family involvement in children’s education.

The principal and Family Involvement Committee will help make funds available for family activities.
The principal and site council will keep a school calendar of activities to try to prevent overlaps in scheduling.
The principal and site council will serve as role models for the faculty of the school in promoting family engagement.
The principal and site council will trouble shoot and try to anticipate planning troubles to better help teachers and families.
The principal and site council will provide staff development to increase understanding in all cultures represented in the Upper Cumberland Area.
The principal is available to parents and community members at all times, but has set 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. Monday through Thursday as set hours he s available to see parents.
The principal and site council will be constantly looking for groups that need to be reached out to for better engagement.

Standard 6 The school is responsive to the needs of its families.

Correspondence between school and home will be in the family’s home language.
Meetings will be planned around parent’s work schedules to make it easier for them to attend.
Phone calls will be made at appropriate times and teachers will always include success information along with any possible areas of concern.
Parents will be made aware of ways students can increase successes at Burks Middle School.
The Family Liaison will keep an updated list of resources available for basic needs of families.

Standard 7 School staff, families and community members work together to plan, put into action, and evaluate family involvement efforts.

School staff must be comfortable taking criticism as well as accolades in evaluating family involvement efforts.
Planning teams must involve all needed school personnel as well as parents, students and community leaders.
Planning teams must be able to grow and change together as the face of the school changes, thus reaching out to all families in the community.
Training opportunities are available to all teachers to learn more about different cultures and family dynamics.
Teachers and families are able to make suggestions about needs for activities and outreach for and to families of BMS students.

Standard 8 Everyone who works at the school draws upon the knowledge and expertise of all families to support the school as a whole.

Teachers must make time to talk to families to get to know their strengths and talents.
Conferences should be planned often to build relationships with students and their caretakers.
All communication sent home with students should be followed up on to ensure that parents receive all necessary information in a timely manner.
Planning time should be used wisely and should include parent contact time.
Parents should be contacted for successes as well as for areas of improvement.
Parent talents should be shared at the school level when available.

In order to follow the policy of Putnam County, the following classroom level standards must be met:

Standard 1 Families are seen and treated as partners in their children’s education by teachers and other instructional staff.

Teachers send home copies of class discipline policies in home language(s).
Teachers send home student progress reports every three weeks. Progress reports can be mailed if parent requests.
Teachers send work home to be signed by parents, so that parents can see how students are succeeding.
Teachers encourage parents to visit the classroom as well as volunteer throughout the school.
Teachers are willing to assess the needs of a student and work with parents to meet those learning needs.
Teachers engage in regular communication with parents regarding their student’s progress.

Standard 2 Each family’s experience, knowledge, and culture are respected and valued by teachers and other instructions staff.

Interpreters are provided when needed.
Teachers take knowledge of family culture and then make sure that all they do is in respect to the family’s culture.
Teachers work to develop strong classroom parent relationships. Teachers work to develop classroom parent teams to work together for the better of all students at Burks Middle School.

Plans are currently being made for all teachers to be involved in Poverty training. Other training opportunities are being made at this time as well to learn to better serve the community.