Family Engagement

Both sites offered a range of family activities across the six years of the grant, with between three and six events each year.  This included hosting events that were specific to the 21st CCLC program and joining in schoolwide events, such as: 

• Cultural Celebrations: Multicultural Night, Mother Africa Cultural Resource Event 
• School Engagement: Schoolwide open house, parent-teacher conferences, orientation nights 
• Recreation:  Let’s Cook Together, Family Paint Night, Family Science Day, Family Game Night, Family Wellness Night 
• College/Career Readiness: Gear Up/STEM Night 

Meeker offered a variety of family engagement activities in Years 1-4, with the bulk of events in the fall.  In Year 2, they shifted to coordinating with larger school events such as open houses and parent-teacher conferences to engage with a larger number of families, as these events were widely attended. Several planned family events were cancelled in March 2020 (Year 4) due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and in subsequent years, events at Meeker were specific to the 21st CCLC program. In Year 5, Meeker hosted a series of cooking events, and in Year 6, they hosted a Wellness Night, Cooking Night, and Paint and Picnic Night.  

Mill Creek also engaged with families through schoolwide events, particularly orientations for new students.  In Year 3 (2018-19), Mill Creek hosted Las Familias Están Hablando, a class for parents conducted in Spanish to learn how to talk with their students about relationships, puberty, and sex. 

Both sites had a number of culturally focused activities over the years, including Multicultural Nights; Latinos Unidos, which introduced the GEAR UP program and celebrated Hispanic Heritage month; and the Mother Africa Cultural Resource Fair. (Additional data available) 
In addition to family events, both sites also connected with families via individual outreach, through home visits, phone calls, and email.  

Table 3: Family Events (with Number of Participants or Families)