Ari Gerzon-Kessler’s Post

Family engagement is a key 🔑 to successful learning communities. Relationships. Relationships. Relationships.

Rick Phillips, Founder and former Executive Director of Community Matters, talks about the importance of getting the support of parents and families when instituting restorative practices using a wide range of communication channels: "...many educators do not engage families as stakeholders when introducing their restorative practices initiatives and plans. Since restorative practices is not a program or a curriculum, but rather a philosophy and a way of thinking and acting, introducing restorative practices to the students’ families in an inclusive, collaborative and culturally sensitive manner is critical for success." Read more about including the family in the process of RP here 👉 https://bit.ly/49tEric #IIRP #RestorativePractices #Families #CommunityMatters #BuildingCommunity

4 Ways to Support Partnerships With Families

Kinship/grandfamilies often face serious challenges that can affect the children’s educational success and that are not easily overcome without appropriate, equitable services and supports. These challenges include: 🏡 Meeting basic needs 💬 Overcoming communication barriers between schools and kinship caregivers ♿ Addressing disabilities and special education needs ❤️ Managing effects of trauma ⚖️ Gaining legal custody of the children ✏️ Enrolling children in school Discover how we can better support the nearly 2.5 million children in grandfamilies facing educational challenges with Generations United’s #2024GrandfamiliesKinship report. Together, we can build a brighter future and enhance academic outcomes for children in grandfamilies! https://buff.ly/3XT0MmQ #Grandfamilies #KinshipCareMonth #Kinship #PublicPolicy #EducationSupport #Education

Families are children�s first and most important advocates. At ECINS, we help schools and families work together to support every student�s success. Join our community to learn more about tools that foster family engagement and positive outcomes! ??? #FamilyEngagement #StudentSuccess #ECINS Join our community today! Sign up for our newsletter for the latest resources and insights. https://bit.ly/3AuzVVi

Family and community engagement greatly increases the likelihood that students will learn and thrive. Students are more prepared for school, more likely to achieve, and more likely to graduate when they are supported by schools, families, and communities working together in a coordinated manner. This 5th in our 6-part series of Family Academy will focus on the most impactful member of the support team for the child … “the parent”. You will hear from parents who have gone through the process of advocating for their child through middle school, high school, and college …

In communities across the country, the demand for early childhood education (ECE) exceeds the number of slots available for children, including in #Missouri. Kids Win Missouri is working to address this challenge through its Child Care & Early Education Community Planning Project, which is supporting the development of locally focused community plans designed to chart a path toward a child care and early education system that better meets each community’s needs. Learn more about the initiative and how IFF is contributing to the work in our recent story: https://lnkd.in/e9SdXCUB

There is a new issue of Fostering Perspectives out! View this link to read it: https://lnkd.in/gZZ6Km2K This issue examines how youth, resource parents, and professionals in the child welfare system can build resilience as they navigate extremely challenging times. This issue features articles about: • Promoting mental health awareness and strategies • Tips for building resilient resource parents • Nurturing and supporting children and youth with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilites • Keeping children and youth connected to their culture while they are in care • How to keep serving as a resource parent after children and youth have been reunified • The role of the Guardian ad Litem in child welfare • How stable housing builds resiliency in youth • Innovation in foster care through Intensive Alternative Family Treatment • Those with lived experience in foster care sharing tips for resource parents and professionals • And much more. This issue also features news from Foster Family Alliance of North Carolina (our statewide resource parent association), SAYSO Inc.(Strong Able Youth Speaking Out), and profiles of children and youth seeking permanence through adoption. Fostering Perspectives is sponsored by the NC Division of Social Services and produced by the Family and Children's Resource Program, part of the UNC School of Social Work.

I often discuss the importance of listening to families, so I want to share some recent experiences of educators' deeply listening to families. Over the past month, I helped plan and facilitate Family Engagement Summits in Watsonville and San Diego, where school teams, including families and staff, gathered to discuss their school priorities and how family engagement can help achieve those goals. The most impactful moments of these summits were the Family Fishbowls. Families sat in a circle, sharing their stories about schooling and parenting, while educators listened from the outside. The questions I used allowed families to speak about their hopes, challenges, and share experiences from their own lives and as caregivers. There were many inspiring stories of positive interactions with educators, alongside honest reflections about when schools failed them or their children. What stood out to me was how quickly these conversations became deeply emotional and filled with truth-telling. Families are ready to share beyond the usual—exploring what they truly need from schools, what it means to be a parent, and how we can support each other across difference. Families want to work with educators, and I know educators want the same. Too often, though, we get stuck in transactional relationships. These fishbowls show us that when we create spaces for vulnerability and honesty, we can transform how we build community in schools. Check out this picture from our recent fishbowl in San Diego, and explore the questions we used to facilitate these conversations by clicking the link below. https://lnkd.in/dPMe-H79 #FamilyEngagement #Listening #SchoolCulture #CommunityBuilding #Empathy #SchoolImprovement

If home feels like a war zone and school is just another battlefield, how can we expect a child not to rebel? Imagine growing up in a place where there’s constant fighting at home and relentless pressure at school. For some kids, this is their reality. When the very places that should provide love and learning become sources of stress and conflict, it’s no surprise that some children start to push back against it all. They’re not born rebels—they’re shaped by the world around them. As parents, teachers, and community members, we need to ask ourselves: Are we creating spaces where kids feel safe and supported, or are we pushing them to their breaking points? It’s on us to build environments that foster growth, not rebellion. Let’s create homes and schools that feel like havens, not battlegrounds. #Parenting #Education #Childhood #Community #Support