Parent Coordinator Use of Time Guidelines

Parent Coordinator Use of Time Guidelines The parent coordinator role was created as a means for the 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 helping 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 those 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, whether that be 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 .