The parents, guardians, and family members of children with disabilities play a significant role in their children's lives. Building collaborative responsive environments and relationships between family members and schools enable a greater number of family members to become active participants; and when family members are engaged, it enhances the system's capacity to address the needs of a diverse student population.
The California Department of Education has prioritized parents as a key stakeholder and partner in the professional development of education leaders and staff. As a project of the Special Education Division, CalSTAT has funded several parent outreach activities and identified families as a key team member in the learning communities they support.
This report includes a summary of two outreach and partnership activities. Both the Family Participation Fund (FPF) and the Community Advisory Committee (CAC) Capacity and Recruitment Project engage family members, targeting those from diverse backgrounds, and supports their participation within the education system while also building their capacity as advocates for their children and other students with disabilities.
The Family Participation Fund (FPF) was developed to meet the need for fiscal resources to help encourage and support meaningful family/consumer involvement in local, regional, or statewide decision-making activities, events, and groups. The intent of this activity is to build partnerships that reflect the diversity of our population and that are aligned with state reform mandates and initiatives. Between 2000 and 2006, nearly 4,800 requests for financial support were funded.
The FPF is administered through the California Association of Family Empowerment Centers (CAFEC), which works as a center of information, technical assistance, and systems change advocacy for the statewide network of local FECs. FECs work directly with families of children with disabilities to provide family education and empowerment and regularly refer families they work with to the FPF when they show interest in participating as a member of a decision-making body.
Ethnic minorities and low-income families are often underrepresented in the membership of decision-making bodies. The FPF implements outreach activities targeting these underrepresented groups to encourage their participation.
| Ethnicity | Number of Recipients | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| African American | 2,963 | 67% |
| Asian/ Pacific Islander | 59 | 1% |
| Hispanic/ Latino | 836 | 19% |
| Native American | 158 | 4% |
| Caucasian/ White | 404 | 9% |
| Income | Number of Recipients | Percent |
|---|---|---|
| Under $10,000 | 2,534 | 60% |
| $10-19,999 | 632 | 15% |
| %20-29,999 | 452 | 11% |
| $30-39,999 | 183 | 4% |
| $40-49,999 | 159 | 4% |
| Above $50,000 | 264 | 6% |
Another goal of the FPF is to increase awareness and build collaborative partnerships between special education (SE) and general education (GE) by encouraging family members of children with disabilities to join decision-making bodies focused on GE issues.
| Focus of Meeting | Percent |
|---|---|
| Special Education Focused | 58% |
| General Education Focused | 42% |
| Evaluation Question | Average Response (1 lowest, 5 highest) |
|---|---|
| I learned valuable, useful information at the meeting | 4.7 |
| The meeting will make a positive difference in the lives of children with disabilities | 4.6 |
| I felt I was an effective participant at the meeting | 4.6 |
| I felt that other people at the meeting valued my participation | 4.5 |
| The financial support of attending the meeting met my needs | 4.4 |
At this meeting we as parents were welcomed, and our input into policies affecting our children's education was valued and utilized. Our concerns were responded to, and we saw results.
I got to meet with really knowledgeable special education representatives, exchange ideas and information, and discuss our concerns trying (hoping) to make a difference.
This meeting presented an opportunity for parents to speak directly to the School Board members and for them to hear and understand a parent's perspective on the current state of affairs.
This meeting presented an opportunity for parents to speak directly to the School Board members and for them to hear and understand a parent's perspective on the current state of affairs.
Between 2000 and 2006, the Family Participation Fund (FPF) provided nearly 4,800 stipends to family members to financially support their participation in decision-making bodies within the education system. To determine their impact on the system, 38 active FPF recipients (family members who received three or more stipends between January 2005 and February 2006) participated in an in-depth telephone interview process.
Each family member indicated a main area of focus in their participation. These areas of focus fall into five general categories:
Within this small sample it was clear that, as family members continue to be engaged in the education system, they progressively move their focus from the school level to the district level to the state level. Family members with 4 or fewer years of participation were more likely to focus on the school level, such as school board meetings. Family members with 4 to 10 years of participation were more likely to focus on the district or regional level, such as CAC meetings. And those with 10 or more years of participation were more likely to be focused on the state level, such as stakeholder meetings.
| 84% report Influencing Discussions | 79% report Influencing Decisions | 71% report Taking Action |
|---|---|---|
| 26% responded with a 5 on a 5-point scale | 32% responded with a 5 on a 5-point scale | |
| 58% responded with a 4 on a 5-point scale | 47% responded with a 4 on a 5-point scale |
It is the mission of all CACs to act as a collaborative partner with the Special Education Local Plan Area (SELPA) to ensure that students with disabilities receive free and appropriate public education and have equal access to all services. CACs serve as a liaison between the SELPA, COE, local districts, families, and community members. Therefore, it is important that the membership of a CAC be representative of its community socioeconomically, ethnically, and by disability.
As a pilot project, in 2005 five Community Advisory Committees (CACs) were partnered with Family Empowerment Centers (FECs) in their area to build the capacity of the CACs as advocates for students with disabilities, to develop support networks for parents, and to increase the membership of underrepresented groups. Data collection is currently underway with four of these CACs, but some preliminary information is available and reported here.
| Trinity CAC |
| San Francisco CAC |
| Santa Clara CAC |
| Santa Ana CAC |
| Fresno CAC (participated briefly in the first year, but has not continued in year two) |
The four CACs involved in this project were selected because they had identified the need to recruit a greater number of members who were representative of the community they served. Two of the CACs had no membership, one had no appointed members, and one had a membership that was predominantly Caucasian when the community they served was very ethnically diverse.
While the CACs have faced struggles in building their capacity to recruit new members, each has reported some success. After participating in this project for two years, the four CACs report a total of 85 members, with a core group of 35 members who regularly attend and participate in committees and outside activities. This is an average membership of 21 parents, family members, and community members.
To ensure that all needs are adequately addressed, it is important that a CAC be representative of the community it serves socioeconomically, ethnically, and by disability. The CACs continue to struggle with this objective as none of the four CACs feels that their membership yet fully represents their community.
Each of the CACs reported a number of achievements that have occurred since their partnership with a local FEC. Their successes fall into six general categories:
When asked to identify what facilitated these successes, the respondents indicated the following three elements as critical for success:
Each of the four CACs also indicated that some of these critical elements are not yet fully in place at their CAC and pose serious challenges. For example, some CACs reported that their ability to recruit and retain new members has been hindered by the lack of a discretionary budget for meeting announcements as well as some school districts not taking action to nominate or approve parents as official CAC members.
A key role of a CAC is to provide family members and the community an opportunity to give input to the local education system. These four CACs report a wide range of perceived degree of success in providing meaningful input and having direct impact, which is largely dependant upon the relationship and communication between the CACs and the SELPA directors/SE directors.
In late January 2007 the CACs will be completing a data collection process during which each CAC reports on their progress in recruiting a diverse membership and other outcomes.
Our goal is to empower parents and the community with the importance of knowing, understanding, and utilizing their rights and benefits through their consistent and dedicated involvement with the CAC as a CAC member. -- quote
As part of the Family Participation Fund interviews, families were asked to identify key needs for parents and families of children with disabilities. Many of those interviewed indicated that families need more training and information to be effective participants in the education system. The following are several suggestions that were made.
Additional Training
Additional Resources and Information
The need to increase awareness among general education administrators and the community of the unique needs of children with disabilities was mentioned by a number of the family members as a critical need.
This Parent Outreach and Family Partnerships report was developed by CalSTAT on behalf of the California Department of Education. CalSTAT is part of the California Institute on Human Services (CIHS), which is located at Sonoma State University.
Funds for this project come in part from federal funds awarded as a State Program Improvement Grant to California (CFDA 84.323A) allowed in Part D of Public Law 108-446, the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), as amended in 2004. These dollars are considered local assistance funds and will assist individuals serving children birth to 22 years of age and their families.
For more information about CalSTAT, visit our website at www.calstat.org.
January 2007