Wiley Elementary

ESSA Section

Ways in Which Wiley Elementary Staff Accomplish These Activities

1116(b)(1) This Plan has been jointly developed and distributed to parents and family members in a language that can be understood. The Plan is updated periodically to meet the changing needs of parents and the school.

Describe the development of the Plan, including the stakeholders involved, the steps taken to ensure the Plan is understood, and the process for updating the Plan.

The Wiley Elementary Title 1 Schoolwide Parent Involvement Plan has been created through the collaborative efforts of parents and staff.  Parents were an integral part in the development of this plan and their feedback and suggestions are utilized in making updates to our Title 1 Schoolwide Parent and Family Engagement Plan. The plan is reviewed at our annual Title 1 meeting with parents.  Parents have the opportunity to learn the details of the plan, ask any questions they may have, and offer feedback. Their feedback is incorporated into the plan as appropriate. The plan is posted on school website for families unable to attend the annual meeting to review and contact the school should they have any questions or would like to provide feedback. The Home/School Compact is reviewed and then distributed at fall conferences, where all teachers, parents, and students sign the agreement. 

1116(c)(1) Convene an Annual Title I Parent Meeting at a time convenient to 

parents to inform parents of the Title I requirements and their right to be involved.

An annual meeting is held which includes information for parents on:

Wiley Elementary holds an Annual Title l Parent Meeting in the fall. The meeting is scheduled in the evening at a time that is convenient to most families. It is typically congruent with curriculum night or a parent volunteer meeting. This meeting covers the Title 1 Schoolwide Parent and Family Engagement Plan, the Title 1 program, and how parents can assist their child in being academically and socially successful.

How are parents encouraged to attend?

Parents are notified of this meeting through fliers sent home, classroom newsletters, School Messenger, and the Wiley Principal’s newsletter. 

1116(c)(2) Offer flexible number of meetings at times convenient to parents and provide transportation, 

childcare, or home visits as it relates to parental

involvement.

Meetings are offered at times convenient for parents and if needed, transportation, childcare, and home visits can be arranged:

Wiley Elementary holds flexible meetings throughout the school year for families. The option for in person or virtual conferences has been provided to the community during Fall Conferences in November and Spring Conferences in February. The format of the conferences are determined by family preference.  Meetings are available during school hours by appointment when requested.  In addition, kindergarten parents were invited in for a meet and greet on the first day of school, and our annual open house/curriculum night occurs in person each September.  Handouts and materials are provided to all those that attend.  For those parents that are not able to attend, materials are sent home and/or available upon request.  To attract more families to attend meetings, children are welcome to attend and/or childcare is provided.  Additionally, updates are provided on a monthly basis during the Principal’s Remarks of each Parent Volunteer Meeting.

1116(c)(3) Involve parents in an organized, ongoing and timely way in the planning, reviewing, and improvement of Title I programs, including the development, review, and improvement of the Parent and Family Engagement Plan and the Schoolwide Program Plan.

Parents are involved in the development of the School Improvement Plan and Title I Program development in the following ways:

Wiley Elementary includes parents in the planning, review, and involvement of programs.  Along with the principal and staff, Parent Volunteer Group members work together to help determine needs and strengths of our building. During the Fall Annual Meeting, the Parent and Family Engagement Plan, along with the Home School Compact, are reviewed, and parents have the opportunity to ask any questions and offer feedback. Families unable to attend the meeting can contact the building principal to discuss information shared at the meetings and provide feedback. Parents are also given the opportunity to provide anonymous feedback via a spring survey. 

1116(c)(4)(A) Provide 

parents of Title I children timely information about the Title I Program.

Parents are provided information regarding the school Programs in the following ways:

Parents receive timely information about Wiley’s programs through curriculum nights, parent-teacher conferences, Kindergarten Open House, and parent workshops.  Other information is distributed by the classroom teacher through email, individual notes home, the student’s daily agenda, weekly classroom newsletter, personal or phone conferences, and PowerSchool Parent Portal (online access to student’s grades and attendance). Additionally, testing results and supporting explanation is sent directly to parents through PowerSchool Parent Portal.  General information for the school is available on Wiley’s website https://wiley.uticak12.org/, as well as by robocall (automated voicemail recorder sent to all parents by the principal).

Wiley Elementary sends notes to parents informing them when their child is participating in a tiered instruction with our Literacy Coach, literacy para educator, or receiving English Language Learner Support from our English Language Learner Teacher. Parents are informed as soon as their student is identified as at risk (below grade level based on classroom assessments).  This note includes:  the service the child is receiving, who is responsible for providing this service and their contact information, amount of time the child is seen per week and what parents can do at home to help their child.   

1116(c)(4)(B) Provide 

parents of Title I children a description and explanation of the curriculum used at the school, the forms of academic assessment used to measure progress, and the achievement levels students are expected to meet.

Parents are provided information about the school’s curriculum, assessments, and proficiency level expectations in the following ways:

Teachers provide a description and explanation of the curriculum in use at Wiley during curriculum night/open house.  During this event, teachers provide and explain the Core Curriculum Standards and board adopted curriculums for their grade level.  The teachers share assessments used in their classroom and notify parents through classroom newsletters and student daily agendas when the assessments take place.  The District and School sends information to the parents regarding when the M-STEP, WIDA, and NWEA assessments take place.  Letters are sent, in multiple languages, explaining their students M-STEP, WIDA, and NWEA results in detail.  The principal uses School Messenger to share important information regarding assessment dates.  Classroom teachers inform parents of student proficiency levels and where the student should be upon exiting current grade during parent-teacher conferences.  Ongoing contact through email and phone calls is provided to those students who fall below proficiency levels.   

1116(c)(4)(C) Provide 

parents of participating Title I students opportunities for regular meetings to formulate suggestions, to participate in decision-making as it relates to their child’s education, and to respond to any suggestions as soon as possible.

Parents have opportunities to share suggestions, participate in decision making, and respond to any suggestions in the following ways:

At Wiley, parents can contact the principal, teachers, and support staff by telephone, e-mail, or schedule a meeting before/during/after school to discuss their child.  Conferences are scheduled in the fall, (November) for every student and again in the spring (February) for those students that need additional support. Throughout the year, additional conferences are available upon parent request.  The Title I Literacy Coach & English Language Learner Teacher are also available to participate in any parent-teacher conferences.  Title I & EL teacher support staff are available to answer questions, provide examples on how to teach a particular skill/strategy, and receive feedback from parents about their student’s progress at home.  Parents are also able to use the messaging feature in Schoology to communicate with staff members.  

1116(c)(5) Ensure that if the Schoolwide Program Plan is not satisfactory to parents of participating students, submit any parent comments on the Plan when the school makes the Plan available to the Local Educational Agency (LEA).

If parents are not satisfied with the School Improvement Plan or Programs, they have opportunities to make comments by:

In addition to the annual survey, parents can contact the principal with any suggestions they may have for improvements of programs.  Parents can address concerns during Parent Volunteer Meetings. Parents may ask questions and discuss concerns with the classroom teacher, Title I Literacy Coach and/or the principal.  Contact can occur through many venues including emails, phone calls, TEAMS meetings, parent/teacher conferences, pre-arranged face-to-face meetings, and informal discussion settings.   Feedback is used to review and make revisions, if necessary, for the following school year. 

The School-Parent Compact Must:

1116(d) Jointly, with parents, develop a School-Parent Compact that outlines how the entire school staff, parents, and students will share the responsibility for improved student academic achievement.

Yes

No

1116(d) Clearly explain district and school goals for students to meet the challenging State academic standards.

Yes

No

1116(d) & 1116(d)(1) Describe ways that teachers are responsible for supporting students’ learning and providing high quality curriculum and instruction.

Yes

No

1116(d) & 1116(d)(1) Describe specific ways parents will be responsible for supporting their children’s learning.

Yes

No

1116(d) Describe specific ways students will be responsible for their learning.

Yes

No

1116(d) & 1116(d)(2)(C) Describe school activities to build partnerships with parents, including chances for parents to volunteer, take part in, and observe classroom activities, and communicate with teachers.

Yes

No

1116(d) & 1116(f) Describe how parents and family members are involved in developing and revising the compact.

Yes

No

1116(d)(1) & 1116(d)(2) (A-C) Ensure regular two-way meaningful communication between family members and school staff throughout the school year, so that parents are kept up to date on their students’ progress and get regular tips on home learning.

Yes

No

1116(f) Communicate information using family friendly language and format.

Yes

No

ESSA Section

Ways in Which School Staff Accomplish These Activities

1116(e)(1) Shall provide assistance to parents of students served by the school in understanding the State’s academic content standards, the State and Local assessments, and how to monitor their child’s progress and work with educators to improve the achievement of their children.

How does the staff provide assistance to parents to help them understand the content standards, assessments, how to monitor their child’s progress, and how to work with educators to improve the achievement of their children?  What training is provided to families?

The Utica Community School District sends a parent report with individual M-Step, WIDA and NWEA scores.  We have conferences available in November for all students and February upon request by teacher or parent.  In addition, Title 1 Parent Nights provide training for families to monitor their child’s learning at home as well as ways to stay connected.  Literacy Coach and EL Teacher are available during conferences to discuss local and district assessments. During the Kindergarten Open House, new Kindergarten parents are introduced to kindergarten academic expectations and provided with home activities.

1116(e)(2) Shall provide materials and training to help parents work with their 

children to improve their children’s achievement, such as literacy training and using technology, as appropriate, to foster parental involvement.

Staff will provide parents with appropriate materials and offer training in our school to enable them to support their child’s academic progress. These include:

During our Title I night, Curriculum Night, Parent Support Nights, and Kindergarten Open House our parents are given training and materials.  Title I students also bring home materials to keep that are bought with Title I funds.  The ELL district night also gives informational materials to parents.  District UCS Update emails, building newsletters, classroom newsletters, and building/district websites provide important materials and training for parents.  

1116(e)(3) Shall educate staff in the value and utility of parents’ contributions, in how to reach out to, and 

communicate with, and work with parents as equal partners, to coordinate and implement parental involvement 

programs, and to build 

relationships between the parents and the school.

On-going professional development for staff on effective ways to increase parental involvement occurs annually. They include:

Principal offers professional development for staff on effectively communicating with parents.  MISD flyers that provide opportunities for relevant professional development are posted and shared with staff.

1116(e)(4) Shall coordinate and integrate parental

involvement Programs and activities with other Federal, State, and local Programs, including public preschool Programs, and conduct other activities, such as parent

resource centers, that 

encourage and support parents in more fully participating in the education of their children.

Coordination with other Programs for parental involvement includes:

Wiley Elementary collaborates with the Early Childhood Special Education program to transition students from a preschool setting to our building. We also involve our MISD Great Start preschool programs in our communication of all events at the school.  A Kindergarten Round Up night is coordinated at school where preschoolers and their parents are invited to Wiley to tour the building and learn about the kindergarten curriculum. 

At the beginning of the year, a welcome back event is held prior to the first day of school for our school community. Families are invited to tour the school and students can meet staff members and often times, their new classroom teacher. 

During March is Reading Month, Wiley holds a One School One Book event where each family receives the same chapter book and a schedule of chapters to read at home. There are numerous opportunities to participate in various activities at school centered around the book.

Title 1 sponsors family nights throughout the year based on parent feedback. These include Learning Gizmo game nights, science nights, literacy festivals, and math nights.

Our district offers EL informational nights for parents to learn about opportunities and programs their child participates in at school, along with ways to support their child’s learning.

Our special education team invites families to share information on their child’s progress towards their individualized goals. During this meeting it is collaboratively determined if the child’s supports and accommodations are effective.

Parents are also encouraged to volunteer in a variety of ways. Science Olympiad is an after school extracurricular program that is facilitated by parents. Parents volunteer to provide additional support with literacy activities throughout the school day.  Additionally, parents facilitated our first Robotics Team.

1116(e)(5) Shall ensure information is shared with parents in a language and format they can understand.

Information is shared with parents in a language and format they can understand. Examples include:

We provide translated documents in multiple languages for our families. We provide both written (hard copy) and digital information as needed.  Family liaisons are available to interpret for select languages.  In addition, we use Language Line Solutions interpreters for translations. All information shared is reader friendly written in a format easy to understand and free of acronyms.

Gray Area - Recommended Best Practice, but Not Required

1116(e)(6) May involve parents in the development of training for teachers,  

principals, and other educators

ESSA Section

Ways in Which School Staff Accomplish These Activities

to improve the effectiveness of such training.

1116(e)(7) May provide necessary literacy training from funds received under this part if the LEA has exhausted all other reasonably-available sources of funding for such  training.

1116(e)(8) May pay  

reasonable and necessary expenses associated with local parental involvement  

activities, including  

transportation and childcare costs, to enable parents to participate in school-related meetings and training  

sessions.

1116(e)(9) May train parents to enhance the involvement of other parents.

1116(e)(10) May arrange school meetings at a variety of times, or conduct in-home conferences between teachers or other educators, who work directly with participating children, with parents who are unable to attend such  

conferences at school, in order to maximize parental  

involvement and participation.

1116(e)(11) May adopt and implement model approaches to improving parental involvement.

1116(e)(12) May establish a districtwide parent advisory council to provide advice on all matters related to parental involvement in Programs supported under this Section.

1116(e)(13) May develop appropriate roles for community-based  

organizations and businesses in parental involvement activities.

ESSA Section

Ways in Which School Staff Accomplish These Activities

1116(e)(14) Shall provide other reasonable support for parental involvement activities as parents may request.

Parents are provided with other reasonable support such

as:

Wiley makes every effort to support our parents and make sure their needs are met. Some ways we support families are by providing essential items for school such as backpacks, coats, hats, gloves, and basic school supplies. Students and families have access to a digital calming room through Classlink.

How does the school collect this information?

Parents are encouraged to reach out and contact the building principal, office staff, or teacher at any time to ask questions or inquire about support. In addition to parents reaching out, the teaching staff communicates with families while building support staff may also reach out to families that possibly need additional support.

1116(f) Shall provide full opportunities for participation of parents with limited English proficiency, parents with disabilities, and parents of migratory children.

Staff provide opportunities for full parent participation:

Wiley is handicapped accessible. We provide flexible meeting times and vary our Parent Volunteer Group and other programs times and days. We have phone conferences, videoconferences and translators when requested and/or needed. In addition, we use Language Line Solutions interpreters for translations. We provide translated documents in multiple languages for our families. UCS District website can be accessed in multiple languages. Microsoft Teams meetings may be used to provide opportunities for students to remain engaged in learning while away from the school setting.  Additionally, email messaging sent out to the community is translated into additional languages and the Weekly Newsletter can be translated by parents as well.