Minnesota Parent Center, MN PIRC

Upcoming Events

1. Workshops for professionals
   • “Writing Effective Parent Involvement Plans” – Thursday, Feb. 26

Free Information for Parents

1. MN PIRC Brochure Describes Services for Families
2. “Choosing a School for Your Child” Booklet Helps Parents
3. Museum Adventure Pass – Free Admission Supports Learning Outside the Classroom

Announcements and News

1. Public Comments Invited on Minnesota Rules on Supplemental Educational Services (SES)
2. New “Focus on Families!” Guide Available from Harvard Family Research Project
3. New Guidance on Supplemental Educational Services (SES) Unveiled by U.S. Department of Education

Featured Resources for Parent Involvement

1. Online Development Resources Help Professionals
2. “School Community Journal” Now Online
3. Free Materials for Hispanic Families Available from National Center for Family Literacy

Upcoming Events

Workshops for Professionals

  “Writing Effective Parent Involvement Plans” – Thursday, Feb. 26, 9 a.m. to 3 p.m., Thief River Falls

School or district teams of parents, teachers, and administrators are invited to learn the basic components of an effective, comprehensive parental involvement program. Participants will prepare a customized plan for a year of parental involvement, including Title I requirements, parent notification, and school-parent compacts. This training is co-sponsored by Minnesota Department of Education and MN PIRC. It’s at the Northwest Service Cooperative, 114 W. First St., Thief River Falls, MN. Registration is required. Register here.

Free Information for Parents

MN PIRC Brochure Describes Services for Families

This brochure highlights MN PIRC’s services and resources and provides helpful information for parents and teachers in your community. It is free for Minnesota families, schools, and community organizations. To order a single copy or in bulk, call 952-838-9000 (800-537-2237 toll free in Greater Minnesota) or visit PACER.org/mpc.

“Choosing a School for Your Child” Booklet Helps Parents

This free publication from the U.S. Dept. of Education walks parents through the process of choosing a school that meets their child’s needs and leads to school success. To order either a Spanish or English version, call 952-838-9000 (800-537-2237 toll free in Greater Minnesota) or visit PACER.org/mpc.

Museum Adventure Pass – Free Admission Supports Learning Outside the Classroom

A new report from the National Research Council stresses that learning done in informal settings such as museums can significantly contribute to scientific understanding. Parents can help their children learn by taking them to museums, and the Museum Adventure Pass program can help. Available through Twin Cities’ area public libraries, it offers free admission to many museums, zoos, and historical sites in the seven-county metro area. Families from Greater Minnesota can register their home library cards with a metro library to access this wonderful opportunity. For more information about this program, click here; to read about the new report, click here.

Announcements and News

For more information visit PACER.org/mpc or call the MN PIRC at 952-838-9000 or 800-537-2237 (toll free in Greater Minnesota).

Public Comments Invited on Minnesota Rules on Supplemental Educational Services (SES)

The Minnesota Department of Education is proposing changes that primarily affect SES free tutoring providers for students in schools identified as “needing improvement.” Parents whose children are using SES, and others, may wish to comment. Comments are due in writing before 4:30 p.m., Feb. 27, 2009. To see the full proposed rule changes and to file comments, click here.

New “Focus on Families!” Guide Available from Harvard Family Research Project

This free, easy-to-read guide for professionals explains how to build and support family-centered practices in after-school activities. It includes good ideas about how to invite and effectively engage families. Download the full guide here.

New Guidance on Supplemental Educational Services (SES) Unveiled by U.S. Department of Education

The new document replaces the old guidance and incorporates changes made to Title I governing regulations in late October 2008. Among the changes are new requirements that school districts do more to inform parents of their options when the school is “needing improvement” under No Child Left Behind (NCLB). The new guidance can be found here. For questions concerning the regulations, call MN PIRC at 952-838-9000.

Featured Resources for Parent Involvement

Online Development Resources Help Professionals

Educators looking for opportunities to learn more about parent involvement will find many free resources to build skills on MN PIRC’s Web site. Click here.

“School Community Journal” Available Online

“School Community Journal” helps professionals understand how the school can function as a thriving community. Created by the Academic Development Institute, it covers parent involvement, family-school relations, site-based management, the sociology of education, systems theory, the classroom community, and other topics and includes research and field reports. For more information and to access the journal, click here.

Free Materials for Hispanic Families Available from National Center for Family Literacy

Hispanic families and professionals may be interested in these two bilingual books – “Get Involved!” and “Reading at Home” – plus two companion videos (in Spanish or English), and a practitioner’s guide with lesson plans and activities for adult ESL and native language use. A limited number of print copies are available. To download the books and guide and to view the videos, click here.