Meet the 2017 Honorees

The Kearsarge Regional School District Parent Partnership Group is an example of what happens when families and school staff come together to work on common goals.  It began as a project to redesign the special education section of the districts website, but has grown to be a mechanism to strengthen both communication and relationships between families and school staff. The district has a three prong approach to family-school partnerships: the partnership group, professional development for teachers on strategies to work more effectively with families, and professional development for families to help them be stronger advocates and partners in the process.

Rebecca is an asset to the Hinsdale Community.  She has offered her support to other parents who feel hopeless, who feel they ca not do it along and always fosters open communication in a positive manner.  She has worked with her child’s school to connect with other families in need of support in the special education process and to bring workshop into the school to help other families learn.  She is seen as a partner in the process and someone that helps parents find their voice in advocating for their children’s needs.

Jesse is a relationship builder – not only with the parents of his students, but he also works hard to facilitate the development of relationships between families and other team members. Teams led by Jesse are successful because he provides information in a way that the IEP team, the child and the parents can understand and put into practice.  Often, parents feel communicated to, however, Jesse asks how parents’ best communicate and develops strategies for home-school communication that will foster positive outcomes and relationships for everyone.

Alan’s career in education spans nearly 50 years.  From teaching, to Special Education Director to the Executive Director of the NH Association of Special Education Administrators, his influence on policy and practice can be seen at the building, district, and state level.  Through his work teaching at Institute of Higher Education, Alan has helped to prepare the next generation of school administrators and special education professionals to appreciate the value of parents and educators working together. In all his roles, Alan has always made a conscious effort to include all stakeholders, including parents, who can offer differing and sometimes competing perspectives. His belief in being a “solution finder” rather than a “problem solver” is grounded in the belief that engaging parents and educations means the best solution for a win-win.

Family engagement is paramount to the Valley View Community School Early Childhood Preschool program.  Once a month the program invites families into the classroom to engage them in social, academic and self-help activities with their child related to the monthly theme. This includes activities they can do at home to support their child’s learning.  They are very responsive to the changing family dynamics within their community, ensuring that opportunities are open to all family members.  The Early Childhood Team has an open door policy for all families beyond the once a month event, and works hard to ensure community resources are included in opportunities to help families connect and support learning outside the school walls.

Nothing welcomes parents in more than to feel like a true partner in their child’s education and to feel respected.  Sara works diligently to make sure families feel they are valued and heard.  She excels at building an atmosphere of trust with her open door policy.  She fosters two-way communication, encouraging families to share what works at home and helping them to develop strategies to carry over what works at school.  She truly creates an open line of communication that makes it possible for families and school staff to work together as a team.

Meg is committed to partnering with families and community organizations to support children’s physical, mental and social/emotional well-being both at school and at home. She created the Toe Token program that encourages families and their children to log fun, physical movements both at home and in school. Meg realizes the power of partnerships and that collaborating with parents and the community is key to student success.  Partnering with a parent led/created community resource, Meg has brought Mindfulness into the Centre School community, providing opportunities for families, student and school staff to learn stress reduction and trauma sensitive strategies together.

The most important thing Samantha does is to make everyone, whether parent, staff or student, feel welcome and safe in her classroom.  She works hard to keep lines of communication open with families through home-school communication logs and having an open door policy.  She is always encouraging families to be involved in their children’s education by providing information to families and hosting workshops to help them learn to be more effective advocates.  She is supportive of families advocating for their children always creates a level of respect, even when the situation is tense.

Lisa is not only east to talk with, but a great listener, an often forgotten component to effective communication.  She fosters home-school communication and encourages open communication between all professionals involved in a child’s life, including communication with those outside of the school. She reinforces learning at home, working with parents to develop plans to implement at home that support carry over and learning in multiple environments.  Lisa encourages parents to take an active role in planning for their child’s education, not only asking for input, but ensuring that decisions about a child’s education are truly team decisions.