Dear Students, Parents, and Community of Prosser,

 The entire staff at Housel Middle School is looking forward to the new school year.  It is extremely important that the students, school, parents, and community work closely together in the education process.

As we enter the year, we meet with all of the students and staff.  The staff and students have committed to the mission that HMS be an environment where students and staff have the right to be SAFE, RESPECTFUL AND PRODUCTIVE.

In order to accomplish our mission, we ask the students to do three things as the come to school each day:

1.                  Bring their “best effort”.  In everything you do, give it your best shot.  Try to make the effort each and every day on everything you attempt.

2.                  Bring their “best person”.  We expect students to be on your best behavior as you come to school to work with staff, relating with everyone associated with our school and community.  We aim to model a ‘please – thank you’ and ‘handshake’ approach in the way we conduct ourselves.  We appreciate feedback from community members as our students travel within our community.

3.                  Prepare for their “best performance”.  It takes proper preparation to do well on anything.  We expect students to study, plan, practice and really ‘get after it’ when it comes putting your ‘best’ out there.  Make the paper your best.  Perform your best on the test.  Dazzle them with your speech and wow them with your project.  Compete at the highest level in the classroom and on the athletic field.  Make what you are being evaluated on your best! 

We are off to a great start from the first day.  We look forward to the best year for Housel Middle School students, staff, and community.  Look for additional information on our site for the beginning of school, calendars, and things coming up for the Mustangs.

We welcome your thoughts, ideas and questions.  We look forward to hearing from you.

Deanna Flores
Housel Middle School Principal

Housel Middle School

Parent Involvement Policy and Procedures

Espanol version (click link)

2007-2008

Housel Middle School is committed to the goal of providing quality education for every child in this district. To this end, we want to establish partnerships with parents and with the community. Everyone gains if Housel Middle School and home work together to promote high achievement by our children. Neither home nor Housel Middle School can do the job alone. Parents play an extremely important role as children’s first teachers. Support for their children and for the school is critical to children’s success at every step along the way.

Housel Middle School recognizes that some students may need the extra assistance available through the Title I program to reach the state’s high academic standards. Housel Middle School intends to include parents in all aspects of the school’s Title I program. The goal is a school-home partnership that will help all students to succeed.

PART I-SCHOOL PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT POLICY REQUIRED COMPONENTS

A.      Housel Middle School will jointly develop/revise with parents the school parental involvement policy/procedures and distribute it to parents of participating children and make available the parent involvement policy/procedures to the local community.

·        Housel Middle School believes parent input is vital to student success in our school.  A parent representative is a full member of our building leadership team (H.I.L.T.).  One of the responsibilities of the H.I.L.T. team is to review, revise, and approve our Housel Middle School Parent Involvement Policy and Procedures.  Each Housel Middle School Parent receives a copy of this policy each year via a fall newsletter mailing.  Additional copies are available in our school office.

B.      Housel Middle School will convene an annual meeting, at a convenient time, to which all parents of participating children shall be invited and encouraged to attend, to inform parents of their school’s participation under Title I, Part A,  and to explain the requirements of Title I, Part A, and the right of the parents to be involved.

·        All parents will be invited to attend Title I, Part A parent meetings. The meetings will occur during the first week of November during parent conferences.  Two meetings will be held Thursday, November 8, 2007. 

·        Housel Middle School’s Parent Involvement Policy will be included during a regular school board meeting where our Schoolwide Project is reviewed and approved.

C.      Offer flexible meetings, such as meetings in the morning or evening, and provide, with funds provided under this part, transportation, child care, or home visits, as such services related to parental involvement.

·        Two meetings will be held during the first conference week, one at 7:30 am and the other at 5:00 pm.  These times coincide with the school day’s start and the start of evening conferences. 

D.      Involve parents, in an organized, ongoing, and timely way, in the planning, review, and improvement of the school plan under Section 1112, schoolwide under Section 1114, and the process of the school review and improvement under Section 1116.

·        Housel Middle School’s leadership team (H.I.L.T.), which consists of representatives from all strands of our school, including parent representation, meets biweekly on Thursdays for the purposes of reviewing, updating, and editing the SWP/SIP.  These meetings are planned in advance and all parties are notified.

E.       Provide parents of participating children—

a.       Timely information about programs under this part.

b.       A description and explanation of the curriculum in use at the school, the forms of academic assessment used to measure student progress, and the proficiency levels students are expected to meet.

·        A variety of curriculums are used in our classes at Housel Middle School.  In Literature and Language Arts, a Balanced Literacy model is in place.  Teachers facilitate this approach by using the Reader’s and Writer’s Workshop Approach.  In mathematics, the Connected Mathematics Project is in place in all classes. 

·        All teachers disaggregate WASL, MAPS, and STAR assessment data, as well as classroom assessment data, to inform instruction.

c.       If requested by parents, opportunities for regular meetings to formulate suggestions and to participate, as appropriate, in decisions relating to the education of their children, and respond to any such suggestions as soon as practically possible.

·        Housel Middle School conducts Student-Led Parent conferences twice yearly.  During this time, students share their academic progress information.  Parents, students, and the conference teacher review, revise and sign our Student Compact and Student Learning Plans.

F.       If schoolwide program plan is not satisfactory to the parents of participating children, submit any parent comments on the plan when the school makes the plan available to the district.

·        The Prosser School District has established protocols for parents to give input to individual schools

·        The Housel Middle School principal has communicated through a variety of means, including parent newsletters, open house, and other written communications, an open door policy for parent questions, concerns and feedback.

G.      Housel Middle School will inform parents and parental organizations of the purpose and existence of the Parental Information and Resources Center (PIRC) in Washington.

·        PIRC exists to provide support and information about other community resources for parents.  The nearest PIRC Resource Center is located in Pasco.

PART II-REQUIRED SHARED RESPONSIBILITIES FOR HIGH STUDENT ACADEMIC ACHIEVEMENT

As a component of the school-level parental involvement policy, each school shall jointly develop with parents for all children served under this part, a school-parent compact that outlines how parents, the entire school staff, and students will share the responsibility for improved student academic achievement.

-Conduct a parent/teacher conference in elementary schools, annually (at a minimum), during which the compact shall be discussed as the compact relates to the individual child’s achievement.

·        Twice yearly student led parent conferences are held at Housel Middle School.  The parent compact is reviewed, revised, and signed.

-Provide frequent reports to parents on their child’s progress.

·        Housel Middle School provides all parents access to student academic progress through individual student and parent accounts using the Edline web based program.  Assistance is provided to help parents log on and set up their accounts.  Teachers are required to update student academic progress at least on the 1^st and 15^th of every month.

·        Counseling Progress reports

·        Class progress reports – Mid-quarter and end of quarter

·        Student-led parent conferences

·        E-mail to parents

·        Quarterly report cards

·        Student Learning Plans

·        Parent Surveys

·        WASL Reports

·        Other assessment reports, including MAPS, Star

-Provide parents with reasonable access to staff, opportunities to volunteer and participate in their child’s class and observation of classroom activities.

·        Edline

·        E-mail

·        Housel.org website

·        Volunteer invitations and opportunities

·        Student agendas

·        English/Spanish monthly newsletter

·        Open house

·        PTSA

·        Family math and reading night Fairs

·        nish mrons and opportunities

·       

BUILDING CAPACITY REQUIREMENTS FOR INVOLVEMENT

To ensure effective involvement of parents and to support a partnership among the school involved, parents, and the community to improve student academic achievement, each school and district under this part-

a.       Shall provide assistance to the parents of children served by the school or district, as appropriate, in understanding such topics as the state’s academic content standards and state student academic achievement standards. State and district assessments, the requirements of this part, and how to monitor a child’s progress and work with educators to improve the achievement of their children.

·        Student Led Parent Conference review and discussion of WASL student reports

·        Written parent communications regarding state standards

·        Distribution of materials from OSPI

b.       Shall provide materials and training to help parents work with their children to improve their children’s achievement, such as literacy training and using technology, as appropriate, to foster parental involvement.

·        Edline parent training and technical support

·        Family math and reading night

·        Community classes

·        Open house parent presentation

·        Orientation parent presentation

c.       Shall educate teachers, pupil services personnel, principals, and other staff, with the assistance of parents, in the value and utility of contributions of parents, and in how to reach out to, communicate with, and work with parents as equal partners, implement and coordinate parent programs, and build ties between parents and the school.

·        Teacher training and support for communication with parents

·        Housel Academic Team (H.A.T.) Student, parent, advising teacher relationship building through conferences

·        Parent Surveys

·        Annual District Expectations meeting

d.       Shall to the extent feasible and appropriate, coordinate and integrate parent involvement programs and activities with Head Start, Reading First, Early Reading First, Even Start, the Home Instruction Programs for Preschool Youngsters, the Parents as Teachers Program, and public preschool and other programs, and conduct other activities, such as parent resource centers, that encourage and support parents in more fully participating in the education of their children.

e.       Shall ensure that information related to school and parent programs, meetings, and other activities is sent to the parents of participating children in a format and, to the extent practicable, in a language parents can understand.

·        Parent newsletters – English/Spanish

·        Student Handbook – English/Spanish

·        Parent Surveys – English/Spanish

·        Parent Involvement Policy – English/Spanish

·        Prosser School District Expectations Handbook – English/Spanish

f.        Shall provide such other reasonable support for parental involvement activities under this part as parents may request.

g.       May involve parents in the development of training for teachers, principals, and other educators to improve the effectiveness of such training.

·        Building Leadership Team Representation (H.I.L.T.)

·        District Procedures for parent input

h.       May provide necessary literacy training from funds received under this part if the district has exhausted all other reasonably available sources of funding for such training.

i.        May pay reasonable and necessary expenses associated with local parental involvement activities, including transportation and child care costs, to enable parents to participate in school-related meetings and training sessions.

j.        May train parents to enhance the involvement of other parents.

k.       May arrange school meetings at a variety of times, or conduct in-home conferences between teachers or other educators, who work directly with participating children, with parents who are unable to attend such conferences at school, in order to maximize parental involvement and participation.

l.        May adopt and implement model approaches to improving parental involvement.

m.      May establish a district parent advisory council to provide advice on all matters related to parental involvement in programs supported under this section.

n.       May develop appropriate roles for community-based organizations and businesses in parent involvement activities.

PART III-ACCESSIBILITY REQUIREMENTS

In carrying out the parental involvement requirements districts and schools, to the extent practicable, shall provide full opportunities for the participation of parents with children with limited English proficiency, parents with children with disabilities, and parents of migratory children, including providing information and school reports in a format and, to the extent practicable, in a language such parents can understand.

·        504 plans, when applicable

·        IEP’s, when applicable

·        Special Education Services

·        Migrant Services

·        Bilingual Services

·        Translators on site to facilitate parent communication

PART IV-ADOPTION

This Housel Middle School Parental Involvement Policy/Procedures have been developed/revised jointly with, and agreed upon with, parents of children participating in Title I program, as evidenced by meeting minutes.

The Parent Involvement Policy/Procedures were developed/revised by Housel Middle School on October 4, 2007 and will be in effect for the period of 2007-2008. The school will distribute these Parent Involvement Policy/Procedures to all parents of participating Title I children and make it available to the community on or before November 16, 2007.

(Signature of Title I Authorized Representative

(Date)

These parents were involved with the development of this document:

Lynn Blair

Christine Essary

Mark Skeen

Wendy Rodriguez

Amy Beightol