Iowa State University Extension

Problem:
Iowa’s youth will be facing an increasingly competitive, global economy in which many will not be adequately prepared. Math and science scores are not keeping up with those of other countries. Child poverty, immigration and youth needing special assistance have increased, creating special challenges for families and schools. The “No Child Left Behind” initiative has pushed higher standards in the classroom, yet schools alone have not met the demands. Researchers and practitioners agree that all community sectors must find ways to creative a positive, community-wide culture for learning (Search Institute, Commission on Children at Risk in “Hardwired to Connect”, 2003). While there is increasing recognition that “it takes a village” to raise thriving, successful children, there is little information on effective strategies to explicitly empower community sectors to support families and schools.

Response:
ISU Extension to Families and the IA. Dep. of Education developed a 6-day, community capacity building program called Partnering With Communities: Strong Families/Strong Communities (PWC). Core information and activities were taken from “Partnering With Parents”, an intensive training for professionals who work with parents based on best practices, and were piloted in Perry. Eighteen community members representing various community sectors participated in 33 hours of training. Topics included:

parenting theories and reaching diverse families,
effective guidance and discipline, the role of sleep,
nutrition and exercise in learning and
creating effective learning environments at home.

End of meeting evaluations, as well as a focus group of participants after the program, provided critical feedback in curriculum assessment and refinement. Feedback, including knowledge gained on each topic and ways Perry was impacted, finetuned the curriculum so it could be published. Additionally, a series of learning cards was created to highlight key concepts so that these best practices in helping students achieve could be disseminated in user-friendly ways throughtout the community. Created in both English and Spanish, the cards present simple but important information on how such things as sleep, nutrition, exercise, and routines at home influence learning.

Presently, Partnering In Communities is being implemented with 18 participants in Webster City and 14 in Storm Lake. Results from these two sites will provide further information on ways to market and utilize this curriculum statewide.

Impact:
Three communities have participated in PIC. All participant evaluations show strong gains in knowledge of specific behaviors and practices which parents and community members need to practice to enhance student learning. Additionally, evaluations indicate stronger partnerships and greater awareness of community resources as well as several specific community initiatives resulting from the training.

Perry Focus Group content provided information on ways to edit the curriculum for greater clarity and impact. The Department of Education views PIC as a support for schools struggling with student achievement and is investigating ways to fund communities with schools in need of assistance to participate in PIC.

Additional ISUE Staff:
Kim Greder, Campus Family Life Specialist, 515 294 5906, kgreder@iastate.edu
Rosa Morales De Gonzalez, Program Specialist, Perry LINK, 515 490 229,8 rdegonza@iastate.edu
Linda Nelson, Dallas County CEED, 515 993 4281, lsnelson@iastate.edu
David Brown, Hamilton County CEED, 515 832 9597, browndn@iastate.edu
Rhonda Christensen, Buena Vista CEED, 712 732 5056, rchris@iastate.edu

Community Partners:
Dr. Jane Neff, PIRC, Department of Education, 515 382-6700

Contact:
Beth Fleming
Story County Extension
220 H Avenue
Nevada, IA 50201
515 382 6551
bflem@iastate.edu