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District details new family and community engagement efforts: parent university, 2‑gen pilot and volunteer expansion
Summary
The board heard an update on Strategic Plan Pillar 5 initiatives, including parent universities, a CEO-in‑schools pilot, a 2‑generation (2‑gen) program to support parents’ education and workforce pathways, expanded volunteer/resiliency coach efforts, and community outreach such as a Newtown trolley tour.
Sarasota County Schools presented Phase 1 and Phase 2 work on Strategic Plan Pillar 5 (Family and Community Engagement) at the April 1 work session, describing a mix of ongoing programs and new initiatives intended to boost early-literacy supports, deepen business partnerships and expand volunteer capacity.
Director of Strategic Engagement Doctor Moore and the strategic-engagement team summarized accomplishments since the board adopted the district strategic plan, highlighting partnerships and targeted supports for Title I schools. Key items presented:
- Chalkboard Champions / Pack the Bus: The district and partners ran school-supply drives for early fall; the district said it received a community donation check for $15,442 to support schools and family engagement work.
- Kindergarten readiness kits: Title I schools received take-home kits intended to support parents as children prepare for kindergarten; staff said those kits are one step in a parent-facing literacy strategy.
- Lunch-debt relief: The Education Foundation provided $22,633 to clear outstanding student meal debt created or worsened by recent storm impacts; staff said the district also organized application and resource drives for families to access benefits.
- CEO in Schools / Day of Impact: A pilot program connected about 40 local CEOs with district schools for one-day shadow and volunteer activities; staff said the events produced sustained relationships and community support for schools.
- Parent University and parent mini-academies: Staff described a month-by-month plan of evening presentations and an asynchronous (recorded/on-demand) option so families who cannot attend in person can access the content later. Topics include literacy, AI/internet safety, and family strategies for supporting reading.
- Volunteer growth and resiliency coaches: The district reported nearly 9,000 volunteers on file and described a new resiliency-coach training program intended to place trained volunteers and mentors in schools to support students’ social-emotional learning; staff said a $150 stipend is available for resiliency coaches.
- 2‑gen pilot: The district is piloting a two-generation approach at several Title I schools to connect parents to career and education opportunities (for example, through partnerships with local colleges, CareerEdge, and nonprofit partners) while their children receive school services.
Doctor Moore said staff will pilot additional district-level engagement events (virtual “lunch‑and‑learns,” coffee chats, recorded webinars and story-time partnerships with public libraries) and expand community partnerships to enlarge the pool of business and foundation sponsors.
Board members praised the work and asked staff to keep expanding partnerships while ensuring initiatives remain measurable; staff said they will return with metrics and requested next-step support for broadening the 2‑gen pilot and parent-university offerings.
