The SEL Innovations series aims to help the field imagine new, more expansive and equitable approaches to SEL and wellness to ensure that all children, adolescents, and adults feel safe, supported, and seen so that they can thrive. This report focuses on the conditions and guiding actions to foster authentic school-family partnerships. Research…

This dissertation delves into the crucial realm of teacher-parent communication, recognizing its pivotal role in establishing a foundation of trust with families. This study employs a qualitative approach to emphasize the bidirectional and continuous nature of effective communication. It adopts a case study methodology, focusing on ten early…

This article employs the comparative case study (CCS) approach to examine how four public pre-kindergarten (pre-K) teachers in Michigan enacted a state-mandated parent involvement policy. Using CCS, we trace policy enactment from the policy text, through mid-level administrators, and into the classroom context. We demonstrate how teachers used…

Migrant and Seasonal Head Start (MSHS) is a Head Start program which serves exclusively young children from the migrant farmworker community, the majority of whom are Mexican nationals and second-generation immigrants. From this early childhood context, little is known about parents' perspectives on education and the roles they take to engage in…

An increased level of collaboration is often a specific requirement for groups and agencies involved in complementary grant program activities. This ensures that programs with a common funding source are as efficient and effective as possible in areas where their missions converge. In this report, the authors highlight collaborative activities…

In this article, the author describes a StoryCorps project for the National Day of Listening. StoryCorps is a non-profit organization whose mission is to provide Americans of all backgrounds and beliefs with the opportunity to record, share, and preserve the stories of their lives. The organization initiated The National Day of Listening in 2008…

Making Connections was the Annie E. Casey Foundation's signature place-based, community-change initiative of the 2000s. It sought to build on previous work and launch an effort focused firmly on the framework of family strengthening. The Foundation started Making Connections in 22 places, focusing eventually on first 10, then seven sites. It…

A newsletter can be an effective component of a comprehensive plan for sharing information. A newsletter, in contrast to progress reports, surveys, open houses, or conferences, is a regular opportunity that allows for consistent sharing of information about the program. In this article, the authors discuss how to plan and produce newsletters and…

This report chronicles the work and recommendations of a coalition of educational, public, and private organizations known as the Grand Rapids Education Reform Initiative. Based on research showing that education in the public schools of Grand Rapids, Michigan, was in a state of crisis, the initiative set out to improve education throughout the…

THE PURPOSE WAS TO RAISE THE ACHIEVEMENT LEVEL OF UNDERACHIEVING STUDENTS. PARENTS AND TEACHERS WORKED TOGETHER TO IMPROVE CHILDREN'S ATTITUDES TOWARDS SCHOOL. OBJECTIVES WERE TO AWAKEN INTEREST IN PARENTS, HELP TEACHERS DISCOVER UNDERLYING CAUSES OF UNDERACHIEVEMENT AND UPDATE MATERIALS. A DESCRIPTION INCLUDED TEACHERS' AND PARENTS' DEVELOPING…

A resource document for implementation of community coordination of child care (the 4C concept), this organizational guide is based on the experiences of 24 local programs in Michigan communities, 1969-75. Flexible models are presented, capable of accommodating to the uniqueness of each community. Functioning to maximize resources, a 4C Council is…

This report is the product of a committee charged to define "medically fragile," explore the array of educational services available and/or needed for children in Michigan considered medically fragile, identify current information and gaps in the information, and identify areas of interagency collaboration. The report discusses critical…

NOTING THAT THE CHILD OF LIMITED BACKGROUND HAS CONSIDERABLE NATIVE ABILITY BUT HAS NOT BEEN ABLE TO REACH HIS POTENTIAL DUE THE KIND OF TEACHING AND CURRICULUM OFFERED IN THE TYPICAL PUBLIC SCHOOL, THE DETROIT PROJECT HAS ATTEMPTED TO COMPENSATE FOR THE DIFFICULTIES RESULTING FROM DEPRIVATION. DIRECT EFFORTS HAVE BEEN MADE TOWARD INSERVICE…

The Saginaw Prekindergarten Program is designed to provide four-year-olds with an environment that will enable them to develop skills needed for future success in school, and to prepare inner city children for entry into kindergarten. The objectives of the program include specific achievements in 16 cognitive skills, psychomotor skills, and…

THE PERRY PRESCHOOL PROJECT IS AN EXPERIMENT WITH REPLICATIONS DESIGNED TO ASSESS THE LONGITUDINAL EFFECTS OF A 2-YEAR, COGNITIVELY ORIENTED, COMPENSATORY EDUCATION PROGRAM. SELECTED FROM A POPULATION WHICH IS NEGRO, FUNCTIONALLY RETARDED, AND CULTURALLY DEPRIVED, CONTROL AND EXPERIMENTAL GROUPS ARE EQUATED FOR MEAN CULTURAL-DEPRIVATION RATING AND…