Get Involved

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BOOKER T. WASHINGTON HIGH SCHOOL Parental Involvement Policy

2019-2020

Tulsa Public Schools shall promote parent involvement in all schools as mandated by Title I, section 1118 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), and work as equal partners with parents in inspiring and preparing every student to love learning, to achieve ambitious goals and to make positive contributions to our global society.

The Board believes and acknowledges that parent involvement raises the academic achievement level of students. Additionally, parents become empowered, teacher morale improves and communities grow stronger when parents take an active role in educating their children. To this end, schools shall involve parents in the education of their children at all grade levels. The superintendent or his/her designee shall provide coordination, technical assistance and other support necessary to assist all schools in planning and implementing effective parent involvement activities to improve student academic achievement and school performance.

Section 1118 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), Title I Parent Involvement, establishes that to build the capacity for parent involvement within schools, a district is to “develop jointly with, agree with, and distribute to parents of participating children a written Parent Involvement Policy”. This policy includes six (6) critical elements to ensure that the school strives to build the capacity of parents to help their children achieve high academic standards.

BUILDING PARENTS CAPACITY FOR INVOLVEMENT

The Board believes that empowering parents to insist on improvement and giving schools extra incentive to do so and by giving parents options regarding their children’s education helps the district to realize its vision to become Destination Excellence for patrons of the community. As a result of this belief, the Board shall create an environment of supportive and collaborative parent involvement.

DEFINITION OF PARENT INVOLVEMENT

Parent involvement is the support and participation of parents at home, in the community, and at the school site that directly and positively affects the educational performance offered to all children. Parent involvement is most successful when it is viewed, practiced, and promoted as a partnership between the home and school. Parental involvement ensures that parents play an integral role in assisting their child’s learning; that parents are encouraged to be actively involved in their student’s education at school; and, that parents are full partners in their student’s education and are included, as appropriate, in decision-making and on advisory committees to assist in the education of their student as described in section 1118 of the ESEA.

The Administration, Faculty, and Staff of Booker T. Washington High School believe that parental involvement is a valuable key to help our students succeed in school and later in life. As a result of this belief and in compliance with Title I, Part A, parental involvement requirements, as much as possible, we will provide full opportunities for the participation of parents with limited English proficiency, parents with disabilities, and parents of migratory children, including providing information and school reports required under section 1111 of the ESEA in an understandable and uniform format and, including alternative formats upon request, and, to the extent practicable, in a language parents understand. Additionally, as part of the ESEA, the Parental Involvement Policy, will be kept on file in the main office.

1) SHARED ACCOUNTABILITY:

The mission of Booker T. Washington High School is to empower all students to be inquirers and to meet high academic standards in a nurturing, enriching, supportive environment where individual differences and talents are respected; academic excellence is promoted; lifelong learning is strongly encouraged; critical, creative, and higher level thinking skills are developed; connections among all disciplines are provided; and students are empowered to become productive citizens of the global community. Faculty and staff members at Booker T. strive to provide a quality learning experience for every student, every day, without exception. At Booker T., our tradition is excellence; our concept is diversity; our potential is unlimited; our future is global.

Booker T. Washington High School believes that this mission can be achieved by the active partnership of students, families, faculty and staff working collaboratively. Therefore, Booker T. utilizes various accountability measures to ensure that the needs of our students are being met. Parents, students, and teachers will sign an “Accountability Agreement” during the fall of each school year that outlines the responsibilities each holds in the education of the student. Students and parents will receive written notification of the Code of Conduct, Dress Code, and Attendance Polices at the beginning of each school year to make parents and students aware of acceptable behavior and the consequences of violating these expectations. Progress reports and/or grade cards will be sent to parents to monitor their student’s progress.

2) COMMUNICATION:

Booker T. is committed to keeping parents informed of its activities. The school uses School Connects, the automated telephone calling system, to inform parents of student absences. Booker T. also communicates with parents (and students) by using the following forms of communication: Remind, Group Me, Twitter, personal telephone calls, handouts, weekly PTSA emails to parents, written notices, announcements at special events and parent meetings, and 24-hour access to both the Booker T. sponsored website, the Booker T. parent sponsored website PTAvenue, and the BTW PTSA Facebook website. Class specific progress reports are sent home on a quarterly basis and report cards are sent home in conjunction with the district’s semester rotation schedule. Parents also have 24- hour access to their students’ grades via the Power School grading system.

The academic progress of students will be communicated to parents by phone calls, mail, and e-mail as necessary to ensure that parents are informed when any concerns arise. Guidance Counselors will provide community resources on parenting topics.

3) MATERIALS AND TRAINING:

Booker T. will provide materials and training, to help parents work with their children to improve achievement. Teachers will provide parents with relevant web pages/sites that contain all pertinent information. Weekly PTSA emails, School Messenger telephone/email/text messaging systems, Facebook, Twitter, Remind, and Group Me will be utilized to inform parents of the issuing dates for progress reports, semester report cards and other pertinent information. Parents and teachers will also utilize the Power School App to monitor daily classroom assignments and homework.

4) EDUCATE EDUCATORS:

Booker T. will, with the assistance of the district and parents, educate its faculty, staff members, and administrators, 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 providing professional development opportunities for faculty and staff members to strengthen and enhance the “teacher/parent” relationship. Further, in conjunction with our PTSA, Booker T. will also house items for parents to utilize as resources in the library, the main office, and the counseling center will house informational fliers, information about college, and community resource information to provide parents with the tools necessary to help develop successful students.

5) ACTIVE PARENTS:

The school will, with the assistance of the district, provide materials and training to help parents work with their student’s to improve their student’s academic achievement, such as literacy training and using technology, as appropriate, applicable, and available, to foster parental involvement.

In many ways, parents are the most important teachers that their children will ever have. Studies indicate that when parents are actively involved in their child’s education, students perform better academically, are more disciplined and organized, and are more willing to and better able to communicate with their parents. At Booker T., parents are encouraged to volunteer as much as possible with teachers and student organizations, participate in school activities such as monthly PTSA Meetings, Fall and Spring Musical Programs, Back-to-School Night, Parent/Teacher Conferences, and the Booker T. Washington Foundation for Excellence fundraiser event. Parents also have the option to volunteer to assist with the supervision of students, when applicable, during planned field-trips, school book fairs, make copies for teachers, mentor students, tutor students, and assist with the proctoring of some standardized exams (PSAT, SAT, ACT, AP, IB).

6) FAMILIES – COMMUNITIES AS PARTNERS:

In following with the Tulsa Model, Booker T. Washington High School takes great pride in building and maintaining community support with parents and members of our community. Through activities such as Freshman Orientation, Back-to-School Night, Gospel Grits and Gershwin (sponsored by the Booker T. Washington Foundation for Excellence), IBMYP informational meeting(s), and other school functions, we continue to build our community relationships. In addition, we strive to have at minimum 80% participation in our PTSA. We also continue to maintain positive relations with our current Partners in Education.

ANNUAL TITLE I MEETING

Booker T. Washington High School will hold an annual Title I meeting to inform parents of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), Accountability and student mastery of academics, Supplemental Educational Services, academic achievement, state testing, Title I programs at Booker T., school hours, uniform policy information, and the parents’ rights under Title I to be involved in the school program.

INFORMATIONAL MEETINGS

In order to promote positive and meaningful interaction between parents and staff, Booker T. will hold meetings throughout the school year at flexible and convenient times for parents. These meetings include, but are not limited to: Freshman Orientation, Back-to-School Night, Parent-Teacher Conferences, Open House Showcase for prospective students and their parents, monthly Parent-Teacher-Student-Association Meetings, monthly Booker T. Washington Foundation for Excellence meetings, monthly Booker T. Washington Foundation meetings, an annual College Road-Map/Financial Aid night for graduating seniors, and an NCAA Clearinghouse meeting.

OTHER REQUESTED ACTIVITIES

Booker T. Washington High School will proactively develop appropriate roles for community organizations and businesses in parental involvement activities and will provide additional reasonable services at the parent’s request.