Families In Schools

TO INVOLVE PARENTS AND COMMUNITIES IN THEIR CHILDREN'S EDUCATION TO ACHIEVE LIFELONG SUCCESS.

SCHOOL PARTNERSHIPS - DURING THE 2021-2022 SCHOOL YEAR, FAMILIES IN SCHOOLS WAS CONTRACTED BY 3 MAJOR SCHOOL DISTRICTS (TWO IN CALIFORNIA AND ONE IN RHODE ISLAND) TO DEVELOP AND OFFER VIRTUAL CURRICULAR TRAINING AND PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT TO OVER 350 EDUCATORS ON FAMILY ENGAGEMENT. ADDITIONALLY, THROUGH ITS MULTI-YEAR PARTNERSHIP WITH SCHOOL2HOME, OVER 1,500 FAMILIES ACROSS 4 LOS ANGELES UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT MIDDLE SCHOOLS PARTICIPATED IN FAMILY WORKSHOPS THAT FOCUSED ON CLOSING THE DIGITAL DIVIDE. THESE TRAININGS FOCUSED ON ENHANCING THE FAMILY'S KNOWLEDGE OF THE USE OF TECHNOLOGY ON SCHOOL SITES, DIGITAL CITIZENSHIP, AND ONLINE SAFETY. FURTHERMORE, IN PARTNERSHIP WITH GEAR UP 4 LA, FIS PROVIDED ADVOCACY TRAININGS TO AN ADDITIONAL 50+ FAMILIES ACROSS LA COUNTY. IN THIS 5-LESSON ADVOCACY CURRICULUM, FAMILIES WERE EMPOWERED TO ADVOCATE FOR THEIR CHILDREN. THEY ALSO GAINED THE CRITICAL SKILLS NECESSARY TO ENGAGE IN LOCAL/ STATE COLLEGE AND CAREER READINESS ISSUES THAT IMPACTED THEIR STUDENTS. LASTLY, TO MEET THE NEEDS OF THE POST-COVID EDUCATIONAL CAPACITY GAP AND THE DRAMATIC SHIFT IN POST-SECONDARY APPLICATION OUTCOMES, FIS PILOTED AN ONLINE ASYNCHRONOUS COURSE FOR TRANSITION TO COLLEGE, ONE OF OUR CURRICULAR PROGRAMS. TWO VERSIONS OF TRANSITION TO COLLEGE ARE NOW AVAILABLE: A VIRTUAL FAMILY TRAINING AND A TRAINING-OF-TRAINERS. ADDITIONALLY, A TRAINING ON RESTORATIVE PRACTICES WAS ALSO CREATED FOR EDUCATORS AND FAMILIES TO ADDRESS MENTAL HEALTH AND RACIAL INJUSTICE THAT WERE EXACERBATED BY THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC. FIS AIMS TO WEAVE THESE PRINCIPLES INTO ALL OF ITS CURRICULA, TO EFFECTIVELY COMBAT THE SYSTEMIC BARRIERS AROUND EDUCATIONAL EQUITY AND ACCESS.

ADVOCACY - THROUGH OUR ADVOCACY WORK, FIS LEADS AND ENGAGES WITH FAMILIES TO CONDUCT LOCAL AND STATEWIDE SURVEYS/STUDIES THAT INFORM OUR WORK (CAMPAIGNS, INITIATIVES AND CURRICULUM) AND OUR LARGER UNDERSTANDING OF AUTHENTIC PARENT ENGAGEMENT IN SCHOOLS, PARTICULARLY LOW-INCOME AND IMMIGRANT COMMUNITIES. THE FOLLOWING ACCOMPLISHMENTS REFLECT THE MULTIPLE WAYS FIS RESPONDED DURING FISCAL YEAR 2021-2022, AT THE HEIGHT OF THE COVID-19 PANDEMIC. CO-LEADING THE WORK WERE OUR FIS PARENT WARRIORS, TRAINED TO LEAD OUR IMPACT WORK AS PART OF OUR MISSION. 1. A TELEPHONE SURVEY OF 144 WORKING FAMILIES IN LOS ANGELES CITY WAS LED BY FIS PARENT WARRIORS. WE SOUGHT TO HAVE A DEEPER UNDERSTANDING OF THE EFFECTS THE PANDEMIC WAS HAVING ON L.A. FAMILIES. THE SURVEY RESULTS PROVIDED A SNAPSHOT OF HOW L.A. FAMILIES WERE ADAPTING TO HOME LEARNING, COPING WITH MENTAL HEALTH, AND SECURING BASIC NEEDS. FOR EXAMPLE, 70% OF FAMILIES WERE AWARE OF HOW TO ACCESS RESOURCES BUT ENCOUNTERED BARRIERS SUCH AS LACK OF TRANSPORTATION AND LONG WORK HOURS. WE ALSO FOUND A PREVALENCE OF HOUSING INSTABILITY, FOOD INSECURITY, AND LACK OF RELIABLE, AFFORDABLE INTERNET ACCESS. IN DIRECT RESPONSE, FIS CREATED AN ONLINE RESOURCE HUB TO PROVIDE FAMILIES WITH LOCAL RESOURCES AND PROGRAMS THAT COULD ADDRESS THEIR NEEDS. OUR RESOURCE HUB HAD AN AVERAGE OF 80 VIEWS PER DAY THROUGHOUT THE ENTIRE YEAR AND GARNERED NUMEROUS POSTING REQUESTS FROM LOCAL RESOURCES CENTERS, WHO HAD DIFFICULTIES TARGETING LOW-INCOME FAMILIES. ADDITIONALLY, WE FACILITATED A WEBINAR ON HOW TO COMPLETE THE FREE APPLICATION FOR FEDERAL STUDENT AID (FAFSA) AIMED AT PARENTS/CAREGIVERS WHOSE STUDENTS WERE COLLEGE-BOUND. WITH OVER 151 INDIVIDUAL VIEWERS, THE SESSION PROVIDED FAMILIES AND STUDENTS WITH CREDIBLE INFORMATION ON THE NUMEROUS FINANCIAL RESOURCES/SUPPORTS, THAT WERE AVAILABLE TO THEM. 2. IN LOS ANGELES COUNTY, COVID-19 WAS THE LEADING CAUSE OF DEATH FOR LATINOS THROUGHOUT THE 2020 PANDEMIC. BY SEPTEMBER 2021, LATINOS REPORTED THE HIGHEST DEATH RATES, WITH OVER 12,000 DEATHS. BARRIERS, INCLUDING THE NEED FOR LINGUISTICALLY ACCESSIBLE AND RELIABLE INFORMATION, CONTINUE TO PRESENT CHALLENGES TOWARD GETTING BOTH ADULTS AND LATINO CHILDREN VACCINATED. TOWARD THAT END, FIS PARTNERED WITH UCLA, PEPPERDINE UNIVERSITY, AND FOUR LOS ANGELES-BASED NONPROFIT ORGANIZATIONS IN AN EDUCATIONAL STUDY TO PROMOTE COVID-19 VACCINE CONFIDENCE AND ADDRESS COVID-19 PANDEMIC DISPARITIES. THE GOAL WAS TO COMBAT DIS- AND MISINFORMATION ABOUT THE COVID-19 VACCINE AND EMPOWER LATINO COMMUNITIES TO MAKE AN INFORMED DECISION. TOGETHER, WITH OUR NONPROFIT PARTNERS AND SUPPORTED BY THE FIS PARENT WARRIORS, WE RECRUITED NEARLY 500 LATINO FAMILIES TO PARTICIPATE IN A PILOT STUDY THAT CONNECTED THEM TO A MOBILE/ONLINE PLATFORM THAT ALLOWED THEM TO RECEIVE TEXT MESSAGES AND REVIEW WRITTEN INFORMATION/VIDEOS ABOUT THE COVID-19 VACCINE FOR AN ENTIRE MONTH. THIS INITIATIVE WAS SO SUCCESSFUL IN INCREASING VACCINATION RATES WITHIN THE LATINO COMMUNITY THAT IT RESULTED IN A COUNTYWIDE EXPANSION OF THE PROGRAM.3. WITH THE REOPENING OF SCHOOLS IN THE FALL OF 2022, CENTERING RELATIONSHIPS AMONG EDUCATORS, STUDENTS, AND FAMILIES BECAME INCREASINGLY INTEGRAL TO STUDENT LEARNING OUTCOMES AND CLOSING THE WIDENING ACHIEVEMENT GAP. WITH RESTORATIVE PRACTICES, PARENTS AND SCHOOLS CAN MANAGE BEHAVIORAL ISSUES THROUGH PRINCIPLES OF ACCOUNTABILITY, COMPASSION, FORGIVENESS, AND PEACEMAKING. A ROBUST BODY OF EVIDENCE SUGGESTS THAT RESTORATIVE PRACTICES IS HAVING A POSITIVE IMPACT ON REDUCING SCHOOL DISCIPLINARY OUTCOMES AND DISPARITIES. TOWARD THAT END, WE PILOTED A VIRTUAL TRAINING ON RESTORATIVE PRACTICES WITH 28 SCHOOL STAFF AND 35 FAMILIES, REPRESENTING 12 LOS ANGELES UNIFIED HIGH SCHOOLS, EXPONENTIALLY IMPACTING 5,000 STUDENTS AND FAMILIES.

COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT - FAMILIES IN SCHOOLS CO-LEADS THIS STATEWIDE INITIATIVE THAT INVITES EDUCATIONAL PARTNERS SUCH AS COMMUNITY MEMBERS, EDUCATORS, FAMILIES, AND STUDENTS IN THE SAME SPACE TO CREATE AUTHENTIC, CULTURALLY AND LINGUISTICALLY RESPONSIVE, AND PRODUCTIVE PARTNERSHIPS THAT IMPROVE STUDENT OUTCOMES. DURING THE 2021-2022 SCHOOL YEAR, FIS SUPPORTED 17 DISTRICTS ACROSS THE STATE OF CALIFORNIA TO DEEPEN THEIR COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT THROUGH PEER-TO-PEER PARTNERSHIPS, COACHING, AND CONVERSATIONS. WE FACILITATED ALL OF THESE GATHERINGS VIRTUALLY DUE TO COVID-19 AND CREATED SPACE FOR 300 PARTICIPANTS FROM THESE 17 DISTRICTS TO SHARE THEIR SUCCESSES AND CHALLENGES IN ENGAGING THEIR COMMUNITIES. THROUGH THIS WORK, FIS SUCCESSFULLY RECRUITED 24 DISTRICTS TO JOIN THE INITIATIVE.