The Board of Education supports the engagement of parents, family and community for student success. The Board is committed to promoting the involvement of all parents of students in the Prince George’s County Public Schools (PGCPS) regardless of race, religion, socio-economic status, culture, race/ethnicity, disability, gender, marital status, sexual orientation, primary language, parent/family education, geographical location or any other factor that may limit a parent’s involvement. The Board is further committed to collaborating with the community as participants in school governance and as active partners in facilitating the school system’s basic commitments, core beliefs and theory of action.
Definitions
- Parent – Any one of the following individuals who are legally responsible for a student:
- Biological Parent – A natural parent whose parental rights have not been terminated.
- Adoptive Parent – A person who has legally adopted the student and whose parental rights have not been terminated.
- Custodian – A person or agency appointed by a court as the legal custodian of the student and granted parental rights and
- Guardian – A person who has been placed by a court in charge of the affairs of the student and granted parental rights and privileges.
- Caregiver – An adult resident of Prince George’s County who exercises care, custody or control over the student, but who is neither the biological parent nor legal guardian.
- Foster parent – An adult approved to care for a child who has been placed in his/her home by a State agency or a licensed child placement as provided by Section 5-507 of the Family Law Article.
- Family – A child’s primary care-giving unit.
- Community – Prince George’s County at large which includes, but is not limited to, businesses, government officials/agencies, non-profit service agencies, faith-based organizations, other organizations, and individuals.
Standards
The Board desires to provide a more responsive and inviting school climate and increase the level of parent, family and community involvement in PGCPS. To achieve this goal, the Board establishes the following standards:
- All PGCPS employees will demonstrate a commitment to parent, family and community involvement in the education process and take appropriate steps to meet the mandates of this policy and the Superintendent’s Administrative Procedure.
- Parents and families are expected to be involved in their child’s education and assume a vital role in ensuring success in school for their children.
- Formal and informal procedures will be provided for addressing concerns of parents, family and community members.
- All schools will provide opportunities for parents, family and community members to participate in decision making related to district-wide and school-based issues.
- Each school will offer training and promptly provide materials to help parents and families monitor and support the academic achievement of their Materials and information sent home to parents shall be provided in clear and understandable format and language.
- The Superintendent shall develop and require schools to use effective communication methods to ensure that all families, regardless of income, ethnic background, or language, whose children attend PGCPS, share and receive school-to-home, and home-to-school communications about district, school and classroom programs, and student progress. Such information shall be provided in a format and language that parents can understand.
- PGCPS shall comply with the requirements of the No Child Left Behind Act of 2001 (NCLB) related to parent, family and community involvement, including:
- Meaningful consultation with parents of children participating in PGCPS schools to plan and operate programs, activities, and procedures for the involvement of parents consistent with Section 1118 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA); and,
- An annual review of this policy in their schools
Parents’ Bill of Rights and Responsibilities
To encourage active engagement between parents and schools, parents have the following rights:
- A free public school education for their child, from kindergarten until age 21, or receipt of a high school diploma, whichever comes first, as provided by law;
- Access to current information regarding services which are provided by the school system, eligibility for these services, and how to apply for them (e.g., food services, transportation, health services, remediation, special education services, English Language Learner (ELL) instruction);
- Receipt of information concerning expectations for their child with response to the educational program, attendance and behavior (Code of Student Conduct);
- Receipt of information regarding Board Policies, Administrative Procedures, and federal and state laws and regulations which require parent consultation at the school, administrative or Board level;
- Access to information concerning their child’s instructional program, including but not limited to, course of study or curriculum and the grading criteria;
- Access and review of their child’s education records and assurance of confidentiality of their child’s records in accordance with state and federal laws;
- To be treated with courtesy and respect by all school system personnel;
- To participate in regular written or verbal communication and/or parent-teacher conferences with teachers and other school staff and share concerns regarding their child’s academic, social and behavioral progress;
- Receive important notices from the school, including notices about parent-teacher conference, meetings of parent organizations, school-based management meetings and school activities;
- Right to appeal to the Board the decisions of the Superintendent regarding transfers, discipline and other matters as defined in Board Policy 4200; and,
- Right to file a complaint if their child is subjected to discrimination, harassment, and/or
All parents are responsible for:
- Ensuring that their child attends school regularly and arrives on time;
- Reviewing notices received from the school and responding to the school’s requests for information and providing updated and accurate contact information in a timely manner;
- Refraining from disruptive and disrespectful behavior and treating all members of the school with courtesy and respect;
- Taking part in school and community programs that provide for parents to participate in educational decision making for their child;
- Teaching their child to respect the safety, property and rights of others and the obligation to refrain from engaging in intimidating, harassing or discriminatory behavior; and,
- Maintaining contact with their child’s teachers and the school principal about the progress of their child’s education.
Implementation
The Superintendent is directed to develop strategies to encourage involvement of parents, family and community in PGCPS. The Superintendent is further directed to implement this Policy by enacting an Administrative Procedure that includes, but is not limited to, the process to develop a district wide parental involvement plan and school level procedures for involvement of parents, families and communities in PGCPS.
The Superintendent shall report to the Board annually, on or by July 31, on the implementation of this Policy.
References:
History:
- Policy Adopted as 1352 9/11/97
- Policy Amended and Renumbered 105 2/25/00
- Policy Amended and Renumbered 0105 5/12/03
- Policy Amended 1/6/05
- Policy Amended 9/21/05
- Policy Amended 8/13/08
- Policy Reviewed
- 3/14/12 No Revisions Required
- Policy Amended 6/28/12
About This Policy
Updated June 28, 2012
Documents
