Home
About us
Services
Case Studies
Articles
Parent-Teacher Home Visit Project
National Million Father March
Contact Us
   
 


Effective Outreach: Meeting Parents on Their Turf (excerpt)

Juanita Coleman-Merritt, Ed. D.

Overview of Strategy

Between 2007-2009, five District 8 schools implemented the Nell Soto Program. The program is a grant-funded effort that provides resources and encouragement for teachers who truly believe in parent partnership as a strategy for raising student achievement. The D8 Parent Involvement Office was instrumental in promoting grant-writing and implementation of the grant, having recognized the value of this powerful outreach strategy.

In order for a school to receive state funding for the Nell Soto program, a member of the school-community must write a grant proposal. The Request for Proposal requires documentation that at least 50% of the teaching staff and 50-% of the parents of enrolled children support the program. Therefore all schools that submitted proposals had the buy­-in of approximately 50% of the adult members of the school-community.  
 
LAUSD's District 8 Parent Involvement Office assisted with the training and provided teachers with resources to share with families. In preparing teachers to participate, the emphasis was on strategies for building relationships between teachers and parents, fostering student awareness of the supportive network developing between the adults in their lives, and motivating parents to engage in their children’s education with greater regularity and confidence.   

Excerpts Teacher/Staff Interviews Regarding Results of Home Visits

Ms. S. of Wilmington MS noted that :

“This experience was very helpful in better understanding the needs of my students and their parents. I have seen in my students better study habits, more class work and homework and a better sense of pride in their whole attitude with school. Their parents were not afraid to visit or call with concerns and seemed to participate more in school functions… I hope that more teachers participate and gain a true satisfaction as I have
in making this school a great one!.”

Ms S. of Century Park ES visited the homes of 14 5th Grade students who she felt were “at risk” or had special issues related to their success:

“One EL student seemed like he could be identified as gifted but had a traumatic home situation due to divorce. After the home visit the parent stayed in touch and the student was reclassified and applied to a Gifted Magnet program. Home visits say ‘I care’…it opens up for the parent to share their needs. We always take a packet of supplies and information for the family. 

I had one family that refused a home visit. When I visited the home of another student, I found the first family living in the garage of that home. I saw their need and understood why my student had trouble doing his homework and keeping up in class. I immediately asked the parents to sit down with me and we worked out a plan to help the student improve. I was able to help all of the students I visited to improve in some way. One needed glasses. She had broken a pair 2 years before and they had not been replaced. Two students had mild/moderate hearing loss and we were able to get assistance for them. We also prepared parents to help their children transition to Middle School.”

Currently, Juanita Coleman-Merritt, Ed. D. is continuing her investigation of student/ parent/teacher outcomes for Nell Soto implementation in District 8. In addition, a doctoral candidate is conducting a study that includes home visit results from some of the participating schools. Although Nell Soto Grants have been discontinued due to the state budget crisis, two possible funding sources have been identified at the federal level. The Sacramento City School District has been allocating Title I funds to continue home visits in several schools in recent years because of the success school leadership has discovered in raising student achievement. Home visits have been recommended as an effective strategy for the use of Federal Stimulus funds in two categories: Professional Development and Parent Involvement. In addition, a national effort to promote this effective educational practice in urban communities was held in October, 2009.