“The mutual responsibility of families, schools, and communities to build relationships to support student learning and achievement, support family well-being, and the continuous learning and development of children, families, and educators. Family engagement is fully integrated in the child’s educational experience and is both culturally and linguistically appropriate.” Texas Administrative Code §102.1003.

It has long been recognized by both researchers and practitioners that family engagement plays a non-negotiable role in education. It is no longer a suggestion, rather a mandate, in Texas with the passage of house Bill 4 in 2015. Texas Education Code §29.168, created by House Bill 4, 84th Texas Legislature, 2015, requires a school district or charter school to develop and implement a Family Engagement Plan to assist the district in achieving and maintaining high levels of family involvement and positive family attitudes toward education. The local Family Engagement Plan shall be based on the family engagement strategies established by Texas Education Agency in collaboration with other state agencies.

The Coppell ISD Early Childhood Program embraces the individuality and uniqueness of families and promotes a culture of learning that is child-centered and age-appropriate. Building partnerships between educators and families, by way of the Family Engagement Plan, ensures that every learner is encouraged, supported, and challenged to achieve the highest levels of knowledge, skills, and character.

The six Coppell ISD Family Engagement Plan strategies are based on empirical research and are proven to demonstrate positive short-term and long-term outcomes for early childhood education. This plan expresses what is contained in the Commissioner’s Rule (102.1003(f)) in addition to specific examples of how each of the family engagement strategies will be accomplished in our high-quality Early Childhood Program. The following articulates strategies within each of the six domains:

Coppell ISD

Family Engagement Plan Overview

Family engagement is defined as

Strategies in Action: (1) Facilitating Family-to-Family Support

Strategies in Action: (2) Establishing a Network of Community Resources

Strategies in Action: (3) Increasing Family Participation in Decision-Making

Strategies in Action: (4) Equipping Families with Tools to Enhance and Extend Learning

Strategies in Action: (5) Developing Staff Skills in Evidence-Based Practices

Strategies in Action: (6) Evaluating Family Engagement Efforts and Using Evaluation for Continuous Improvement