When parents, schools, and communities work together, children are more likely to succeed in school and in life.
FACTS partners with the Jefferson-Lewis Board of Cooperative Educational Services (BOCES) to provide comprehensive training, information, and support to teachers and school personnel to build family-school partnerships and family involvement programs.
Professional development includes workshops, assistance in developing school partnership teams, and early childhood services.
Download the FACTS Professional Development brochure.
Professional Development Workshops
Professional Development Workshops
FACTS offers on-site professional development for teachers, paraprofessionals, administrators, and other school staff, including preschool staff. The program also works with New York State colleges with teacher preparation programs to provide workshops for student teachers.
Workshop Topics
- Linking It All Together: Creating Effective Parental Involvement Programs
This workshop is to assist administrators, teachers and paraprofessionals in finding new and creative ways to form partnerships with parents in order to improve parental involvement. Some of the topics discussed will be communication with parents, strategies to increase parental involvement, engaging parents in their child’s education and sharing of successful parent involvement ideas.
- Working With Families in Poverty
This workshop will focus on the culture of poverty in our society. Learn about the “hidden rules” among classes and how to identify interventions that are effective in helping children and families succeed. Participants will learn creative ways of building relationships with parents in order to help improve student achievement.
- Working With Low Literacy Parents
This workshop will focus on the challenges and rewards that school personnel face when working with low literacy parents. Find effective ways to work with low literacy parents in order to assist them and their children to be successful. Topics to be discussed include:Definition of literacy, Characteristics of low literacy adults, Social and physical contributors to illiteracy, How to meet the needs of low literacy parents.
- Strategies for Dealing with Difficult Parents
This workshop will focus on strategies for dealing with the most hard-to-handle parents. Learn how to effectively manage even the most difficult parents while still delivering your message. You will learn practical, innovative methods of communicating with parents so that you can move from conflict to cooperation.
- Supporting Military Families
This workshop focuses on the unique issues facing military youth that are dealing with deployment or reintegration of a parent or loved one. This workshop will offer insight into the deployment cycle and the emotional effects on children and their families. This workshop will help schools find ways to support military children and their families in the community.
- Working with Families from Diverse Backgrounds
This workshop guides administrators, teachers and paraprofessionals in finding creative ways in meeting the needs of families from diverse backgrounds. We will discuss cultural diversity, as well as economic and social diversity among families. This workshop will help schools build relationships with all families in order to help improve student achievement.
- Teachers and Parents Working Together
This workshop will explore new and creative ways to improve parent involvement in your school and classroom. We will focus on the importance of investing in the first six weeks of school in order to build a partnership with parents in the education of their children. We will discuss specific steps that will help lay the groundwork for a successful year with your students and your parents.
- Creating Family Friendly Schools
What type of first impressions do parents and visitors find when they visit your school building? Learn how schools can create a culture where parents and students feel welcomed and feel like they are a part of your school community.
Additional workshop topics can be provided upon request.
To schedule a workshop, please email the School Coordinator or call (315) 779-7071.
To view other professional development workshops in Jefferson County, visit the Jefferson-Lewis Teacher Center.
School Action Teams
School Partnership Teams
FACTS is available to assist schools in creating school partnership teams comprised of parents, students, teachers, school administrators and community members.
Partnership teams work to develop effective parental involvement polices as well as to develop parent information packets for distribution to all families who enroll in the district. These packets can include parent involvement polices, school discipline policies, code of ethics and other information that each school feels is appropriate.
More about School Partnership Teams
For more information, contact the FACTS School Coordinator at (315) 779-7071.
Early Childhood Services
Kindergarten readiness is impacted by the lack of quality preschool programs in the area. The FACTS School Coordinator is available to work with school districts to expand or establish early childhood programs.
For more information, call the FACTS School Coordinator at (315) 779-7071.