It is with an extremely sad heart that we write to inform you that FIS has lost a member of its family:  Celso Chavez, eldest son of FIS founding president Maria Casillas and brother of FIS staff member Carlos Chavez, passed away last Wednesday afternoon after complications from pneumonia.  He was 44 years old.  

Celso is remembered as a generous and creative spirit.  He was a founding member of the local band Possum Dixon that was signed to Interscope Records in 1993.  As a guitarist and songwriter, he was deeply involved in the recording industry and gave tirelessly to the work of MusiCares.  He was also active in supporting FIS and a number of FIS’ partners.  Celso was part of FIS since its inception in 2000 and was a close member of the FIS family. He demonstrated a true commitment to helping families by supporting the implementation of many of our programs, always going the extra mile. We will remember Celso as a joyful, caring and creative person.  His energy and smile were contagious.  He was a loving father and cared deeply about the education of his son.  He never hesitated to step in when any of us needed assistance.  We will miss him dearly and we share our deepest sympathies with the Chavez and Casillas families.

Celso leaves behind a 12-year-old son, Vincent, for whom an education trust will be created.  In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the trust. You can make checks payable to Families In Schools and mail to:

Families In Schools
c/o Vincent Chavez Trust
1545 Wilshire Blvd, Suite 700
Los Angeles, CA 90017
(Families In Schools will hold the donations as we wait for the trust to be created, donations to the trust are not tax-deductable).

Sincerely,

The FIS Family

Advocacy Day:

On March 27^th, FIS partnered with local nonprofits to bring more than 100 parents, civic leaders, and education leaders representing low-income and communities of color from the Central Valley and Inland empire to advocate for the education system to better engage parents.  The centerpiece of the event was a visit to the California state Capitol, where Advocacy Day participants planned to speak with their legislators.

The parents that attended the event were excited and nervous.  This was the first time most of them had visited Sacramento or conducted a visit with a legislator. The night before, each group of parents practiced for hours how to communicate their many frustrations, hopes and needs with respect to the education system.

To launch the event, a rally led by Dolores Huerta was held outside of the Capitol. Energized and inspired after the rally, each group began visiting its legislators.  Each group had three to four appointments and overall we completed more than 65 visits that day!

At the end of the day we conducted a wrap-up session and began to see the full range of experiences the parents had:

The Good:  Many parents were received by welcoming legislators (or their staff) who were truly interested in learning more and in offering future support and resources. The parents’ voices were raw and honest, sharing the challenges they encountered in dealing with their children’s schools.  For many legislators, this perspective – rarely seen at the Capitol – was refreshing.

The Bad: Other parents were less fortunate. Policy-makers and their staff seemed not to understand the raw language parents used – the language of personal narrative. Parents were pressured: “So, what bill do you want to support? What amendments are you looking for?” Somehow they couldn’t translate parent experiences into policy, even though it is implicit in their role to do so. Sure, we need more parent leaders to be experts in policy and technical language (and we had a good share of experts in the groups), but as a country we must aim to maintain a democratic system in which the burden is upon government to listen to the needs and concerns of the people, and not upon individuals to become experts in policy in order for government to hear them. Let’s remember, the authors of the Declaration of Independence were not asking to pass a bill or resolution; they were asking for their grievances to be heard.  This is the spirit to which we should hold government accountable.

The Ugly:  Some parents were confronted with animosity and rejection. I won’t name names, but on more than one occasion parents were told: “Don’t talk to me about anything if it doesn’t relate to the state budget. I don’t have time to listen to your problems.” Or “We cannot legislate parent engagement.  That is the responsibility of families.” To me, this is worse than those situations in which policy-makers had trouble communicating with or understanding parents.  At least those policy-makers recognized that they needed to be responsive to constituent concerns. Unfortunately, some policy-makers did not believe they needed to listen to their constituents.

Furthermore, parents were not asking for schools to come into their homes and fulfill their parental responsibilities. They were simply asking for government to help eliminate the obstacles parents face on a day to day basis in their children’s schools. Parents want schools to welcome their participation, be responsive to their questions and give them enough time to talk to staff about their children’s academic development. Parents want more information to understand the complex educational system, as well as their rights and options in the system.  Parents also want schools to provide them with more opportunities to learn how to better support their children’s education, such as college preparation workshops or information and tools for encouraging reading in the home.  All parents, regardless of economic status, love their children and based on that love would do anything to give their children a better life.

While some situations were upsetting, others were hopeful, and we came out of the experience energized by the opportunity to engage families in our democracy on this level and encouraged by the champions we gained who are committed to being leaders in support of parent engagement. We heard many parents say now that they have met with their legislators once, they will be back to do it again and again and carry on the conversation.  As we move forward, we will build upon the positive experiences as we continue to require an education system that is democratic—one that is responsive to its constituents: the families it serves.

O.K. too much about me, let’s go back to the issue of education. In addition to the popular expression above, I think the following phrase should also be widely shared (get ready it’s going to be a long one): “Students that are not reading at grade level by 3^rd grade are 4 times more likely to drop out of high school—there is a 50% chance that if your child is in LAUSD,  he/she is reading below grade level.” It is clunky, long, and even depressing (a communication director’s nightmare), but I think it could be more effective in engaging all of us —parents, schools, and communities—to take action with a great sense of urgency. The reality is that too much is at stake for us to continue doing the same thing — especially for low-income communities. And don’t be misled; low-income communities care as much as you and I do about education. The problem is not about “caring enough;” it’s about the lack of critical information, educational options, resources, and support available to low-income communities. When provided with the right information, options, and support, I believe the majority of low-income families will react the same way you and I would.

So, fueled by this urgency to act, Families In Schools developed the Million Word Challenge. The campaign encourages preschool through 12^th grade students to read millions of words outside of school with support from their parents and community. As part of the campaign, we provide registered schools with parent-friendly information that they can share with families regarding the current literacy crisis in our communities, literacy milestones for students, and literacy tips for parents, and many more resources and tools. The student who reads the most at each school/or agency gets receives a voucher to buy books so they can start their own home library. The campaign is supported by dozens of foundations, corporations and community organizations interested in improving education in their communities.  This year, TARGET is our featured sponsor – THANK YOU!

This is only the beginning – just like my own resolution, joining the gym was only the first step.  But based on a strong partnership between schools, families and communities, I am certain that we will boost literacy rates. Please join us in achieving our New Year’s Resolution to create a legacy of avid readers and critical thinkers!

Oscar E. Cruz

The day finally came and I found myself sitting with more than 200 other people in the waiting room in hopes of not being assigned to a trial.  Before lunch, I was pulled from the waiting room and assigned to a robbery case along with 52 other potential jurors. I was excused as a juror during the second day, but my limited time there deeply impacted my work; not because of the time it took me away from my responsibilities – as I had previously thought – but because it significantly deepened my convictions that guide my advocacy work.

The case was presided by a judge who spent a lot of time explaining the role of the jury. Well, my wife is a devoted fan of Law and Order so I have seen my share of episodes which made me confident that I knew the basics .  The judge explained a very simple concept that triggered me to write this article: Jury of Facts vs. Jury of the Law. The judge explained that in our American judicial system, a jury of peers serves to assess the facts to determine if there is enough evidence to convict a defendant while the judge serves to ensure the proceedings are being carried according to the law.

The role of the jury in a public trial was so intriguing to me, simple but yet fundamental to the American way of life – based on key democratic principles. Our democratic system is grounded upon the belief that everyday people (not experts) can and should make critical decisions affecting their community (popular sovereignty); and that empowering individuals to make these decisions is the only way to bring true credibility to the system (justice and fairness).  Furthermore, these decisions are made through a public trial that helps jurors understand their role and provides access to all relevant evidence for them to make informed decisions (transparency). Granted, no one can claim that this system is perfect, but if given a choice, I would choose this model over any other. I am sure there are many community leaders out there working towards improving the system.

So how does this impact my work? If the judicial system of the United States can be based on day-to-day individuals making life or death decisions for peers, why can’t we have an educational system in which parents are empowered to make critical decisions affecting their schools? Aren’t these parents the same potential jurors making decisions in the courtroom? If they are treated capable jurors shouldn’t they be treated as capable decision makers in their children’s education? The reality is that thousands of families currently send their children to failing schools and their children also face a life or death situation: a life of opportunity, wellness and prosperity that a quality education provides or a life of poverty, disenfranchisement, sickness, prison, and even early death. The question is whether the education system can truly embrace and empower parents — especially low-income — to make critical decisions that affect their children.

For many middle/upper income families frustrated with the quality of public education, they have greater power to make choices on behalf of their children (moving, charters, private schools, homeschooling, tutoring, etc.) But for most low-income families, they are imprisoned in a failing system with limited options. Too many times the education system takes it upon itself to make the choice for low-income parents, wrongly assuming that the system knows best. Unfortunately, the public education system has yet to fully embrace basic democratic principles that are so common place in many of our other democratic institutions.

• How is the school system helping parents access, understand, and analyze critical data to make informed decisions?
• Do parents have access to workshops or other learning opportunities that can help them understand their role at home?
• How is the school system empowering parents to decide how to turnaround their failing schools?
• Are parents given alternative options if they are unsatisfied with their school? How does the school system embed these core democratic principles into its functioning, especially when critical decisions need to be made?

Surly we cannot leave the responsibilities of parents out of this equation: they are the student’s first and lifelong teacher. But, the bottom line is that the education system has its own set of responsibilities that must be fulfilled independent of parents – and one of those responsibilities is to function as a democratic institution.

It is now early January 2012 and these questions swirl in my head – just ask my wife. While daunting, they have refueled my passion in promoting parent engagement. After my jury duty experience, I can see that Families In Schools advocates for more than just better engagement of parents: we are advocating for a more democratic education system which, ultimately, all Americans deserve and want for their communities.

I hope you can join us in this work!

Oscar E. Cruz

Research has shown that organizations that build robust infrastructure—which includes sturdy information technology systems, financial systems, skills training, fundraising processes, and other essential overhead—are more likely to succeed than those that do not. (Citation:  http://www.ssireview.org/articles/entry/the_nonprofit_starvation_cycle/)

Many organizations under prioritize the importance of investing in their staff  – whether that’s  providing technical training, developing leadership skills, building team unity, and so on. In the nonprofit world, this piece is often overlooked because of the pressure to allocate all resources to programmatic work. Often times, we forget that building staff capacity will enable agencies to conduct their work even better.  For example, when an organization works on team building, communication and collaboration improves which can increase efficiency in the delivery of programs.

So how do we build team unity? There are innovative ways to increase team unity amongst your staff without a huge cost to the organization. Two weeks ago, Families In Schools staff participated in a photo scavenger hunt in the Downtown Disneyland in Anaheim, CA. The objective of the retreat was to serve as an opportunity for FIS staff to connect to one another, build unity, and develop team work and leadership skills through a series of challenges. The staff was divided into teams of 4-5 staff and each team was responsible for completing 22 photo challenges that related to the mission of the organization. For example, one challenge was for the team to take a picture of FIS staff reading a book to children as they promoted Family Literacy Month. Take a look at some of the challenges and related photos, by clicking HERE.

Staff had the following to say about their experience:

Felicia Jones, Advocacy Specialist – “After working really hard, it was nice to have fun and learn to challenge, stretch, and support each other in a dynamic team setting.”

Jose Cisneros, Program Coordinator  –  “It brought me closer to my coworkers on a personal level as we collaborated together.”

The retreat was an opportunity for our organization to reconnect with one another and strengthen our collegial relationships. Building trust amongst staff is what enables an organization to work as a team effectively, communicate directly, and work together efficiently towards achieving the same mission and vision.

Survey

We want to hear from you! Please share with us your thoughts on the following question:

If you are a principal, nonprofit leader or corporate executive, what investment would you make in supporting the development of you staff?

Submit your response, by clicking HERE.

Families In Schools is looking for these extraordinary people who have demonstrated excellence in one of more of the four categories listed below:

• Advocating for policies that foster parent involvement and parent engagement in education;
• Implementing programs that help parents develop their knowledge and skills on how to support their children’s education at home and at school;
• Implementing programs that help schools and nonprofit staff strengthen their knowledge and skills to effectively engage parents in supporting their children’s education;
• Demonstrates overall excellence in parent engagement though leadership, innovation, and collaboration.

If you know someone deserving of this honor please click HERE for complete nomination details. Parent Engagement is credited for raising teacher morale, increasing student graduation rates, decreasing school violence and gang activity, and is a key component to student successes. FIS looks forward to recognizing the hard-work of these individuals that are bettering our schools and communities. For further information, please contact Melyora Trujillo at mtrujillo@familiesinschools.org or by calling 213.201.3928.

Oscar E. Cruz
President & CEO

Message from the President

Families In Schools (FIS) welcomes you to our new blog and website. We look forward to discussing issues around educational advocacy, listening to your thoughts on how we should best move forward, and informing our communities with the latest policies and programs being implemented in our schools around parent engagement. Over 10 years ago, FIS was created to strengthen the capacity of schools and families to work effectively as partners. We believe that in order for us to accomplish our mission, it is vital for us to stay connected to families, communities, school leaders, and businesses so that we may remain reflective and informed regarding the needs of our students. We hope this blog will turn into that forum; a place where we can be inspired and stay connected.

We welcome your questions, comments, and suggestions. Please do not hesitate to contact us to collaborate with you as you carry out your own work in education.

Oscar E. Cruz

President & CEO