Family Engagement Plan

At Global Arts Plus - Lower Campus, our mission is provide a quality, comprehensive, “Arts Infused” education for all students.  

The Family Engagement Plan (FEP) is organized into four impact areas. We will be working together this year to build positive and goal-oriented relationships in each area. Families and staff at school developed this plan together.

Welcoming Environment

Our school has staff member(s) available for families to discuss this plan and ask questions:

• Dr. Franks (Principal)

Our school communicates with families in many ways.
Our PreK-4th grade teachers send home weekly newsletters. Our school emails families a monthly newsletter, the Global Arts Plus Family Smore. We use Mass Notification to text and email school updates, events and information. We utilize our teaching and educational assistants to connect with our families in their home language.  

The achievement gap, or rather the “opportunity gap,” between students of color and white students in Saint Paul Public Schools is unacceptable. Our school is working to change practices and systems by identifying the barriers that make it harder for students of color to succeed and for their families to support their learning.

For more about our work on racial equity, contact Dr. Franks

Transitions between schools can be challenging, and we work to help families as their children start and leave our school.

For new students and families, we support the transition by:

• We host an Information Night/Open House in the spring to welcome new families, give tours, and answer questions.
• We offer tours to families that can be scheduled at their convenience.
• Our Pre-K students visit the kindergarten classrooms in the spring and meet the kindergarten teachers.

For students and families moving to the next school in their pathway, we support the transition by:
Middle school students receive support in transitions from our counselor and foundation teachers. We also host a middle school registration night.

Family Partnerships

Our school-parent compact establishes the shared responsibility for student success between the school, families, and students. Families and teachers work together to develop the compact. 

• Copies of the compact are available: Parents will receive a copy of the school-parent compact at our fall conferences.
• The compact will be updated: The compact will be updated in Spring 2025.

There are many opportunities for families to build connections to the school and to each other.

Family Fun Nights & Informational Nights

• August 29th- Open House
• October-Back to School Night/Title 1 Meeting
• October-Fall Carnival
• November- Conferences
• December-Winter Wonderland Literacy Night
   
• We host weekly Friday Gatherings, all school assemblies in which students showcase what they have been learning through the arts. Families are always invited and encouraged to attend our Gatherings. Lower Campus Gatherings are at 3:15.
• Our PTA meetings are held monthly. These are open to all families. There are virtual and in-person PTA meetings.
• National African American Parent Involvement Day (NAAPID) will be on Monday, February 10, 2025
• We have several teachers participate in the Parent Teacher Home Visit Project. We hope to increase the number of staff involved.

We work to make these meetings and events available for every family in the school.
We have five bilingual paraprofessionals who speak six different languages all together. Using our monthly electronic school newsletter (S’more), we translate school information into various languages.

We offer taxis to all of our evening events, upon request. The PTA also offers childcare at in-person meetings.

Our multilingual paraprofessionals attend events so that they can interpret for our EL families. In addition, our paraprofessionals make direct calls home to invite families to our evening events.

Our families can call the school and ask for translation for any documents from our multilingual staff.

Our school supports families as advocates and provides opportunities for parent leadership
If parents are concerned about their child’s learning, they are encouraged to first speak with their child’s teacher. If concerns persist, they are encouraged to meet with an administrator.

Staff will receive professional development during opening week and ongoing throughout the year during professional development days.

Families will be involved in planning for School Improvement Plan(SCIP), School-Family Agreement (Compact) and Family Engagement Plan (FEP) through feedback given directly to the school. Families may also attend the monthly PTA meetings to provide feedback.

Teaching and Learning

Our school shares information about state standards, assessment and student achievement with families in multiple ways

• Report cards and progress reports will be made accessible in Schoology and/or Parent Portal.
• Parent-Teacher conferences are held in the fall (November) and in the spring (March). Parents are also encouraged to request to meet with their child’s teacher at any time if they feel that there is a need.
• Classroom teachers will provide specific information on students’ reading
• Global Arts Plus will be hosting one academic night per semester.
• Parents/Guardians should speak directly to their child’s classroom teacher in order to find specific ways to help their child build reading skills at home if not at grade level.
• Parent Portal is available by contacting the main office

Our school will engage in personalized learning as a key strategy to accelerate student achievement. Parents can get more information using many tools.

• We rolled out 1:1 iPads in the winter of 2014. We will continue to connect and set up iPads with families who are new to our building and school district. We will inform families of the school and district policies around responsible use and iPad expectations. Parent log-in information can be accessed at spps.org/onestop or by asking the school clerk
• We have ACES, an early start program that provides academic support for students in K-4.

Community Partnerships

Our school develops community partnerships to provide additional support for students and their families

• Global Arts Plus is an arts-focused school. Therefore, we have many arts partnerships: Upstream Arts, Twin Cities Opera Guild, Extended Day Learning(EDL), and the Perpich Center for Arts Education.
• Global Arts Plus students participate in an arts residency each year with a community artist that comes into the school. They have a performance at the end of the residency.
• We collaborate with Athletes Committed to Educating Students (ACES) to provide mentors and academic support 2-4 days a week before school.

This plan is available as part of our school’s SCIP, or School Comprehensive Improvement Plan at spps.org/scip, is on our school website at https://globalartslower.spps.org/about/title-i, and printed copies are available in the office.