Alpha Academy School
Parent and Family Engagement Policy

The Alpha Academy School agrees to implement the following statutory requirements:

• ALPHA ACADEMY will jointly develop with parents and distribute to parents of participating children, a Parent and Family Engagement Policy that the school and parents of participating children agree on.
• ALPHA ACADEMY will notify parents about the Parent and Family Engagement Policy in an understandable and uniform format and, to the extent practicable, will distribute this policy to parents in a language the parents can understand.
• ALPHA ACADEMY will make the Parent and Family Engagement Policy available to the local community.
• ALPHA ACADEMY will periodically update the Parent and Family Engagement Policy to meet the changing needs of parents and the school.
• ALPHA ACADEMY will adopt the school-parent compact as a component of its Parent and Family Engagement Policy.
• ALPHA ACADEMY agrees to be governed by the following statutory definition of parental involvement and will carry out programs, activities and procedures in accordance with this definition:

Parent and Family Engagement Policy means the participation of parents and family in regular, two-way and meaningful communication involving student academic learning and other school activities, including ensuring that:

1. parents play an integral role in assisting their child’s learning;
2. parents are encouraged to be actively involved in their child’s education at school;
3. parents are full partners in their child’s education and are included, as appropriate, in decision-making and on advisory committees to assist in the education of their child;
4. other activities are carried out, such as those described in Section 1116 of ESSA (Every Student Succeeds Act). Alpha Academy School will implement the required Parent and Family Engagement Policy components as follows:

1. Alpha Academy School will take the following actions to involve parents in the joint development and joint agreement of its Parent and Family Engagement Policy and its school wide plan, if applicable, in an organized, ongoing, and timely way under section 1118(b) of the ESEA:

Gather and disseminate to parents for review the following materials: School-wide/LEA/Board wide Parent and Family Engagement Policy, the School’s Parent and Family Engagement Policy, the school-parent compact, and Parent Notices from the Title I, Part A Non-Regulatory Guidance. These materials will be disseminated to parents at regular Title I parent meetings, School Improvement

Team meetings, and parent/teacher conferences. Written and oral input from parents will be solicited through Title I parent meetings, School Improvement Team meetings, parent/teacher conferences, school newsletters, school web site, and other regular written communications with parents.

2. Alpha Academy School will take the following actions to distribute to parents of participating children and the local community the school Parent and Family Engagement Policy:

• The School Parent and Family Engagement Policy will be distributed to parents at Title I parent meetings.
• The policy will be posted on the school website.
• Parents of new participating students will receive the policy upon registration if eligible for Title I.

3. Alpha Academy School will periodically update its Parent and Family Engagement Policy to meet the changing needs of parents and the school through:

• Semi-Annual School Improvement Team meetings
• Regular Title I meetings
• Parent/Teacher meetings
• General School meetings

4. Alpha Academy School will convene an annual meeting to inform parents of the following:
• that Alpha Academy School participates in Title I and the requirements of Title I
• of their rights to be involved as outlined in Title I, Part A Parent and Family Engagement Policy; and the ALPHA ACADEMY parent compact.

Meetings will be held at various and convenient times to encourage parents to attend. Parents will be notified about meetings through school memos, newsletters, the school’s website, and the automated phone system.

5. Alpha Academy School will hold a flexible number of meetings at varying times, and may provide transportation, child care, and/or home visits, paid for with Title I funding if these services relate to parental involvement:

To encourage parents to attend these meetings, the school will offer training to parents to improve student success and achievement. In situations that prevent parents from coming to the school for meetings, school personnel may make home visits or arrange to meet the parents at a mutually convenient time off campus.

Alpha Academy School will provide information about Title I programs to parents of participating children in a timely manner through the automated phone system, memos, newsletters, and the web page.

Alpha Academy School will provide parents of participating children with a description and explanation of the curriculum in use at the school, the forms of academic assessment used to measure student progress, and the proficiency levels students are expected to meet through:

• the annual Title I parent meeting
• regular parent/teacher conferences
• Title I meetings and Family Nights throughout the year

(a) If requested by parents, Alpha Academy School will provide parents of participating children opportunities for regular meetings to formulate suggestions and to participate, as appropriate, in decisions relating to the education of their children, and respond to any such suggestions as soon as practicably possible:

• through prearranged meetings with the Title I Coordinator.
• through meetings with the student’s teacher which may include the Title I Coordinator, the principal, and other staff as appropriate.

(b) Alpha Academy School will submit to the school-wide/LEA/Board any parent comments if the school wide plan is not satisfactory to parents of participating children:

• Parents may submit comments in writing regarding the school wide plan to their child’s teacher, the Principal, or the appropriate department within Alpha Academy School.

RESPONSIBILITIES FOR HIGH STUDENT ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT
1. Alpha Academy School will build the schools’ and parent’s capacity for strong Parent and Family Engagement Policy to ensure effective involvement of parents and to support a partnership between the school, parents, and the community to improve student academic achievement through the following activities described below:

• Parent Training
• Family Nights
• Parental access to the Teacher/Parent Resources such as web sites, parent organizations, etc.
• Parent Partnership

2. The school will incorporate the school-parent compact as a component of its School Parent and Family Engagement Policy:

• The school-parent compact will be a part of the School Parent and Family Engagement Policy on the school’s web page.
• During regular parent/teacher/student conferences, the school-parent compact will be completed and signed by the teacher, the parent(s), and the student.
• As needed, the school-parent compact will be included in school newsletters along with the School Parent and Family Engagement Policy.

3. The school will, with the assistance of the school-wide Board, provide assistance to parents of children served by the school in understanding topics such as the following:

• the State’s academic content standards,
• the State’s student academic achievement standards,
• the State and local academic assessments including alternate assessments,
• the requirements of Title I,
• how to monitor their child’s progress, and
• how to work with educators:

Parents will receive training and necessary information on the topics above through PTF workshops, School-Parent Intervention Compact, highlights of the standards, list of websites, school-sponsored training sessions and workshops.

4. As appropriate, the school will, with the assistance of the school-wide Board, provide materials and training such as literacy training and using technology to help parents work with their children to improve their children’s academic achievement and to foster parental involvement, by holding regular Title I meetings, Family Nights, and encouraging parental participation in Parent Projects.

5. The school will, with the assistance of the school-wide Board and parents, educate its teachers, pupil services personnel, principals and other staff, in how to reach out to, communicate with, and work with parents as equal partners, in the value and utility of contributions of parents, and in how to implement and coordinate parent programs and build ties between parents and schools, by: Encouraging staff to attend Parent and Family Engagement Policy workshops and conferences, web-based learning, and on site staff development.

6. The school will, to the extent feasible and appropriate, take the following actions to ensure that information related to the school and parent- programs, meetings, and other activities, is sent to the parents of participating children in an understandable and uniform format, including alternative formats upon request, and, to the extent practicable, in a language the parents can understand:

Upon identification of parental need for information in another language or in another format, the school will take steps to ensure that the parent request is fulfilled.