Document contains information and links to family and community engagement resources for the state of Indiana.

Sec. 1. The purpose of the program is to focus on addressing the:

• (1) academic;
• (2) physical;
• (3) emotional; and
• (4) social; needs of students while providing the needed resources and fostering the active engagement of families through schools and the community.

Sec. 1. (a) A school may voluntarily request from the department an assessment for the purpose of evaluating and improving family engagement in the school. (b) The principal of a school that wishes to be designated as a family friendly school shall submit to the department an application for assessment no later than August 1 of each year in order to be evaluated and receive a designation level. Applications received after this date will not be considered until the next review cycle in the subsequent school year. (c) The department shall make the application form available on its website.

Sec. 1. (a) The department shall evaluate the family engagement at any school that voluntarily requests and applies for an assessment. The evaluation shall be completed during the school year after the school's application is submitted. (b) The department shall develop a rubric to:

• (1) evaluate family engagement at a school; and
• (2) determine the school's designation under the program. The rubric shall incorporate the results of surveys administered to teachers, students, and parents, and the results of at least one
• (1) on-site visit to the school. (c) The department shall provide the evaluation results to the school within thirty (30) days of completing the evaluation. (d) The department shall post the evaluation results of any school receiving a designation of "excelling" under 512 IAC 5-5-2 [section 2 of this rule] on its website for public review within sixty (60) days of completing the evaluation and submit the evaluation results of "excelling" schools to the state board no later than July 31 of each year.

Sec. 2. (a) The department shall conduct an annual assessment of each school's family friendly program. The assessment shall be based on the report submitted by the school under section 1 of this rule and shall determine whether a school has improved, maintained, or fallen below its designation level.

• (1) If a school has improved its designation level, the department shall do the following:
• (A) Notify the school of its improvement.
• (B) Present the information to the state board.
• (C) Update the department's list of family friendly schools to reflect the improved designation level.
• (2) If a school has maintained its designation level, the department shall do the following:
• (A) Notify the school of its continuing designation.
• (B) Present the information to the state board.
• (C) Provide guidance to the school on developing family engagement and parental involvement in student achievement.
• (3) If a school has fallen below its designation level, the department shall do the following:
• (A) Notify the school of its drop in designation level.
• (B) Present the information to the state board.
• (C) Update the department's list of family friendly schools to reflect the drop in designation level.
• (D) Request that the school submit a plan to regain its designation level.
• (E) Provide guidance to the school on developing family engagement and parental involvement in student achievement. (b) The department shall submit the results of the annual assessment to the state board no later than July 31 of each year.

The department shall make available to schools best practices in developing family engagement and parental involvement in student achievement. The best practices shall be posted on the department's website.

(a) The department, in consultation with statewide organizations whose mission is to link family engagement to student achievement, shall develop the Indiana family friendly school designation program. (b) The program must allow a school to voluntarily request from the department an assessment for the purpose of evaluating and improving parental involvement in the school. (c) The department may designate a school as an Indiana family friendly school if the department determines that the school has established parental engagement practices that increase parental involvement and foster high student achievement. (d) The department shall develop rubrics or Standard under which the department will evaluate a school’s parental involvement and award the Indiana family friendly designation to schools. The department’s evaluation of a school’s parental involvement under this subsection must incorporate surveys of teachers, students, and parents. The department shall make the results of a school’s evaluation available to the public. (e) The department shall make available to schools best practices in developing family engagement and parental involvement in student achievement. (f) The department shall annually assess the quality of a school’s family friendly school designation by correlating designation outcomes to student achievement. The department shall submit the results of the assessment under this subsection to the state board.