Parent Coordinator Use of Time Guidelines The parent coordinator role was created as a means for Milwaukee Public Schools to increase family engagement to support student achievement and school improvement. Parent coordinators are classified as paraprofessional level staff. The expectations and limitations of job suites varies from a traditional paraprofessional, who mostly was assigned to help in classrooms. Parent Coordinators should work with their school leadership to determine a regular schedule. When that schedule needs to be deviated from, to fulfill other duties, the parent coordinator should document and communicate such to their school’s leadership. Classroom Coverage — Parent coordinators should not be used as substitute teachers, classroom aides or teacher assistants. Communication — Parent coordinators should serve as a primary liaison for families. A significant amount of the parent coordinator’s time should be focused on communication, i.e. phone calls home, creating a newsletter, updating the school website, updating a family bulletin board in the school, or staffing a Family Resource Center. Documentation/Reporting — Parent coordinators are expected to keep documentation regarding their schedule, school events, family interactions. They also are expected to keep documentation on items received through fundraising, solicitations, and donations. Evidence must be uploaded as a part of the School Improvement Plan (SIP). Parent coordinators should work with their school leadership to ensure proper and timely reporting. Events — Parent coordinators may be asked to plan and staff events that involve family participation such as Open Houses, Parent/Teacher Conferences, family nights, DAC meetings, etc. It may be necessary to adjust work schedules in order to attend these events and this should be worked out with the school leader in advance of planned events. Fundraising/Soliciting Donations — Parent coordinators may support their school leader in fundraising/soliciting donations, particularly for family needs or events. All parent coordinators need approval from their school leadership prior to initiating fundraising or solicitation. All district documentation and procedures must be followed. Lunch Break — Parent coordinators must receive at least a 30 minute lunch break each day that allows them to leave the building if desired. However, per the mutual agreement of the school leader and parent coordinator, it may be advantageous to provide a longer, unpaid lunch break in order to accommodate other responsibilities throughout the day. For example: a lunch break from 10am-1pm and then return to the building for early evening activities. Lunch, Recess, Bus and Other Student Support Duties — Parent coordinators should not be assigned duties, such as lunch and recess, unless specifically related to their ability to engage families. However, if all paraprofessionals in the school are assigned duties on a rotating basis, the parent coordinator may be assigned those duties not to exceed 10% of weekly hours. Meetings — Parent coordinators may regularly be asked to attend meetings as a representative of the school or to assist in planning activities for families. These meetings include, but are not limited to: School Engagement Council meetings, Title I Annual Meetings, PTO/PTA meetings, school committee meetings, neighborhood association meetings, etc. It may be necessary to adjust work schedules in order to attend these meetings and this should be worked out with the school leader in advance of planned meetings. Planning — Work hours should be applied to planning, organizing, and the effective operation of a Family Resource Center. Parent coordinators should keep detailed records of how their time was spent and what was produced (event plan, agendas, etc.) as justification for planning time. Outlook calendars are a great tool for keeping track of activities.
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