Family and Student Engagement Facilitator

2013-14 Job Description

Reports to: Principal or Headmaster

Duration of position: 1 school year

Compensation: $2000.00

Project Overview:

Engaging families and students as equal partners is a core strategy for raising student achievement and closing achievement and opportunity gaps in BPS. Deepening partnerships with parents, students, and the community has been identified as one of four key strategies in the BPS Acceleration Agenda, and the new Massachusetts educator evaluation system includes family engagement as one of four Standards on which teachers and administrators are evaluated.

A significant body of research demonstrates that family engagement that is linked to learning has a positive impact on school improvement and student outcomes.[1] Recent research on urban schools conducted by the University of Chicago found that school-parent-community ties are one of five essential supports that schools must have in place in order to increase student achievement. This research further identified teachers’ knowledge of students’ home cultures and communities, teacher outreach to parents, and teachers’ support of parents to support student learning at home as the critical components of strong school-parent-community ties.[2]

In order to strengthen school-level capacity for engaging families and students in ways that improve student learning, the Office of Family and Student Engagement (OFSE) will provide funding for 10 BPS schools to pilot an innovative approach using teacher leaders as school-based Family and Student Engagement (FSE) Facilitators during the 2013-14 school year. FSE Facilitators will be trained, supported by, and will collaborate extensively with OFSE Network Liaisons.

Position Summary:

The FSE Facilitators will provide coaching and professional development to colleagues in their school in order to build collective capacity and shared responsibility for family and student engagement in the school community. They will work in a facilitative role, supporting their colleagues to deepen their knowledge and skill level, and to embed authentic family and student engagement into their teaching practice in ways that align with the proficiency targets for Standards II and III of the Massachusetts teacher evaluation rubric. The FSE Facilitators will be at the forefront of strengthening a culture of systemic engagement within BPS.

Position Responsibilities

Responsibilities will include, but are not limited to:

  1. Participate as an active member in all FSE Facilitator meetings, including a two day ‘train the trainer’ workshop over the summer that will prepare you to co-facilitate professional development as well as four (two in person, two online) out-of-school time sessions on the following dates:

Session / Dates
Train the Trainer (8:30am-3:00pm) / July 9 and 10, 2013
Meeting #1 4:00-5:30 pm (Online) / Sept. 17, 2013
Meeting #2 4:00-6:00 pm (In Person) / Nov. 12, 2013
Meeting #3 4:00-5:30 pm (Online) / Feb. 11, 2014
Meeting #4 4:00-6:00 pm (In Person) / Apr. 15, 2014
  1. Attend one session in the fall (out of 4 options), one session in the winter (out of 4 options) and one session in the spring (out of 4 options) where all Facilitators will be present (i.e., Lead Teacher, ELA/Literacy, Math, and FSE Facilitators). Dates for these sessions are to be determined.
  1. Act as the liaison and point person between teachers at their school and OFSE.
  1. Work with OFSE Network Liaisons to build family and student engagement capacity across the school, sharing relevant information, strategies, tools, and resources that align with the proficiency targets of Standards II and III in the MA teacher evaluation rubric with colleagues.
  1. Collaborate with OFSE to deliver 10-15 hours of school-based professional development and/or grade level team coaching that focuses on building teacher capacity for family and student engagement in ways that align with Standards II and III in the MA educator evaluation rubric.
  1. Provide support to colleagues around identifying and uploading appropriate artifacts and evidence in order to- demonstrate proficient or exemplary practice in Standards II and III.
  1. Maintain and submit records on a periodic basis of all activities related to stipended role as determined by OFSE.

Position Scope and Impact

This position supports capacity building and shared responsibility for family and student engagement as a key strategy for improving school-wide student learning and achievement. Additionally, FSE Facilitators will aim to support and build a culture of engagement in which teachers work collaboratively embed and sustain family and student engagement practices that are linked to learning and align with the proficiency targets of Standards II and III of the MA teacher evaluation rubric.

Approximate Time Commitment

The FSE Facilitator position requires an approximate time commitment of 55 hours distributed over the course of the year.

  • 12 hours to participate in OFSE ‘Train the Trainer’ workshops
  • 6 hours to participate in 4 FSE Facilitator Learning Sessions
  • 6 hours to participate in 2 District-Wide trainings for all school-based facilitators
  • 30 hours to provide school-based capacity building, coaching, and/or professional development

Please note that the stipend for this position is not based on an hourly rate, but rather on the successful completion of the responsibilities listed above.

Candidate Qualifications:

Required education, certification, and experience

  • Currently teaching as BTU member in a BPS school
  • Scored ‘Meets/Exceeds Expectations’ or ‘Exemplary/Proficient’ on most recent performance evaluation
  • Meets all state and federal guidelines in order to be fully licensed and ‘Highly Qualified’
  • Demonstrated experience engaging families and students as partners in student learning
  • Passion for and belief in family and student engagement as a key strategy for improving student learning outcomes

Commitment to Diversity

Boston Public Schools seeks to ensure that demographics of leadership roles reflect the demographics of our student population.

Application Process:

Schools seeking to apply for funding should submit the following application materials:

  1. RFP Cover Page
  2. Narrative responses to the questions in the RFP, to be completed by Principal/Headmaster
  3. Cover letter and resume of the teacher that will be serving in the FSE Facilitator role which speaks to and highlights his/her experience with and commitment to family and student engagement.

Applications are due by 5:00pm on June 7, 2013. Submit all application materials to:

Brett Walker
Email:
Subject Line: “FSE Facilitator Application -- [school name]”

[1] Henderson, A., & Mapp, K. (2002). A new wave of evidence: The impact of school, family and community connections on student achievement. Austin, TC: Southwest Educational Development Laboratory.

[2] Bryk, A., et al. (2010). Organizing school for improvement: Lessons from Chicago. Chicago, IL: University of Chicago Press.