District highlights Title VI parent advisory committee and family‑engagement "family chats"

District staff presented an overview of Title VI (the Indian Education Act) programming and a family‑engagement initiative—referred to in the record as Tiwaje Woglaqapi/"families have a voice"—designed to collect parent and student feedback and turn it into actionable school changes.

A staff presenter explained that Title VI is federal funding intended to preserve cultural and language programs and to increase parent and community involvement. The presenter said the Title VI parent advisory committee must include Native American parents, students and teachers and that the committee reviews grant applications and provides signatures on grant documents; the committee also reviews programs and advises the superintendent and the board. The presenter said the committee meets about five times a year, typically before grant deadlines, and that the committee membership was recently expanded to include one Bridged Ed representative and the family and community engagement coordinator (Lita), who attends as a non‑voting member.

During board discussion a member asked how national political debate over diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) might affect Title VI funding. The presenter said it was speculative but noted that some presenters expect targeted programs could be vulnerable; the presenter quoted an approximate grant figure of about $347,000 when explaining the scale of funds available to support cultural and language preservation and programming.

A separate presentation on family engagement described a multi‑part project that began with “family chats” (online during 2020 and later hybrid and in‑person) and led to family leadership teams, student focus groups and community focus groups. Staff said the family chats produced specific recommendations that principals have used to change practices (for example, adding a transition day so students and parents could visit a new school before it opened). Presenters said the district collects exit surveys and that participation data show repeat participants but also a need to broaden recruitment to more communities and family types across the district.

Presenters said two aims are (1) building trust and partnerships between families and schools and (2) ensuring principals share the actionable changes that result from the chats back to the community. Staff asked board members to encourage families to join chats and noted upcoming chat dates. Lita, identified in the record as the family and community engagement coordinator, joined the presentation and discussed facilitation and outreach.