CEC-DLL Showcase: How School Leadership Teams can Strengthen Meaningful Partnerships with Culturally and Linguistically Diverse Families

Culturally appropriate family engagement is an expectation under the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act and the Every Student Succeeds Act Title 1. It is also outlined in the CEC Standards for Professional Practice. This presentation illustrates how school leadership can strengthen relationship-rich collaborative partnerships with culturally and linguistically diverse (CLD) families, including families of students with special needs. Practical steps and examples focus on four fundamental high-impact family and community engagement strategies: relationships and trust, communication, culture and diversity, collaboration and partnerships.Participants will be able to: 1. Explain the rationale for developing relationship-rich partnerships with CLD families to improve students’ long-term life outcomes. 2. Provide leadership in engaging school staff in the work of facilitating schoolwide family engagement with CLD families through the development of an action plan focused on four high-impact family and community engagement strategies. 3. Provide leadership and support as school staff, families and community work towards implementation of that action plan.The Division of Leaders and Legacy will provide each of the first 50 participants entering this session with a free copy of the Teaching Exceptional Children Special Edition on Families. This journal includes several articles that support the information shared during this session.