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Public schools can be improved only if the entire community unites on their behalf.
Project Appleseed attracts, mobilizes and organizes community support.
Strategic Approach & Framework
Project Appleseed’s approach to school improvement is like a double helix, combining two essential strands: an external strand that mobilizes broad community support and resources, and an internal strand that transforms school operations and instruction (Hill, Wise, Shapiro, 1989). By leveraging initiatives like the Family Engagement Toolbox, National Parental Involvement Day, and Public School Volunteer Week, Project Appleseed helps schools activate this dual-strand approach, creating a dynamic process of continuous improvement.
The foundation of Project Appleseed lies in research-backed principles that emphasize the role of effective family engagement in enhancing educational outcomes. Engaging families, schools, and communities collaboratively is critical for preparing students for college and career readiness in today’s competitive global society. Numerous studies, including those by Weiss, Lopez, and Rosenberg (2010), have demonstrated a strong link between family engagement and student achievement. Yet, despite this, family engagement is often underutilized in school reform efforts.
Project Appleseed aims to shift this by aligning engagement strategies directly with student learning and achievement.
Strategic Approach to Family Engagement
Project Appleseed’s approach to family engagement is built around three core elements:
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Systemic Engagement: Embedding family engagement as a key component of broader educational goals like school readiness, student achievement, and school turnaround efforts.
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Integrated Engagement: Incorporating engagement practices into the fabric of school structures and processes, including training, professional development, community partnerships, and data-driven strategies for continuous improvement.
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Sustained Engagement: Maintaining long-term commitment and resources, including public-private partnerships, to ensure the effectiveness and sustainability of engagement strategies that can directly impact student outcomes.
Strategic Framework
Project Appleseed envisions a future where every public school family in America is equipped with the knowledge, skills, resources, and motivation needed for effective family engagement. Its mission is to strengthen the relationship between families, schools, and communities through a systemic, integrated, and sustained strategy for school improvement. The organization’s evidence-based framework supports family, school, and community partnerships to create a positive impact on education.
Organizational Goals
Project Appleseed's goals include:
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Expanding family engagement
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Highlighting the importance of evidence-based engagement practices
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Improving communication between families and schools
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Addressing the decline in parent group participation and advocacy to ensure the longevity of engagement efforts
Strategic Imperatives (2022-2027)
The strategic framework focuses on four main imperatives, each aimed at driving systemic change:
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Expanding Reach: Engage more K-12 Title I public school families.
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Integrating Technology: Use technology to provide parents with easy access to resources and information.
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Enhancing Programs: Implement research-based practices, fostering continuous innovation and quality improvement.
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Building Partnerships: Establish collaborations to support the mission and sustain engagement efforts.
Evidence-Based Tools and Inputs
A critical aspect of Project Appleseed's strategy is the implementation of evidence-backed practices such as Title I compacts, including the Parent Engagement Pledge. Research, such as the National Assessment of Title I (1999), has shown that such strategies are effective in fostering family engagement. Key tools and activities include:
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Family Engagement Toolbox: A resource for recruiting family participation.
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Parent Engagement Pledge and Report Card: Tools to encourage active family involvement.
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Traveling Workshops and Training: Professional development for staff to support engagement initiatives.
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Six Slices of Family Engagement (Epstein 1992): Framework for activities and partnerships, supported by technology and events like National Parental Involvement Day.
Expected Outcomes
The strategic approach of Project Appleseed aims to achieve:
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Immediate Outcomes:
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Increased training for educators and parents.
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Enhanced understanding among families about how to engage in their children’s education.
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Strengthened local collaborations that support and sustain parent involvement.
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Long-term Outcomes:
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Greater awareness and commitment to sustainable family engagement.
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Higher levels of parent involvement in children’s education.
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Lasting family engagement programs that continue to impact schools positively.
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Impacts:
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Enhanced student success.
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Improved overall school performance.
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Strengthened community capacity to advocate for better education.
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Community Engagement
Research underscores the importance of engaging the broader community in education. Community-based organizations play a key role by offering services and support that enhance student learning and foster family engagement. Community schools, which partner with local organizations, provide wraparound services like tutoring, leadership training, and family support programs. Project Appleseed champions this model by working with schools to move beyond isolated acts of involvement to create systemic, community-driven change that aligns with educational goals.
Summary
Project Appleseed’s strategy emphasizes the shift from sporadic family involvement to a strategic, research-driven model that engages families, schools, and communities in a shared effort to improve student learning and achievement. Through this approach, Project Appleseed ensures that family engagement becomes an integral, sustainable part of school improvement, helping students and schools thrive. Learn more in Evidence-Based Program here...
References:
1 Hill, Wise, Shapiro, "Educational Progress: Cities Mobilize to Improve Their Schools," Rand Corporation, 1989: More details on this can be found at Rand Corporation's page.
2 Epstein, Joyce L., "School and Family Partnerships," Report No. 6, Center on Families, Communities, Schools, and Children's Learning; Johns Hopkins University, Baltimore, MD, 1992: Access this report through ERIC at https://eric.ed.gov/?id=ED343715.
3 "Prospects Study: Promising Results, Continuing Challenges: The Final Report of the National Assessment of Title I," 1999: Information is available through the U.S. Department of Education at https://www2.ed.gov/rschstat/eval/disadv/title1-final/index.html.
4 Weiss, Lopez, & Rosenberg, "Beyond Random Acts: Family, School, and Community Engagement as an Integral Part of Education Reform," 2010: Find the full text at Harvard Family Research Project's page.