Title I   

Federal funding for schools with approximately 40% or more of students coming from families that qualify under the U.S. Census as low-income

Family Engagement

Building relationships through activities such as helping parents and caregivers develop their own skills, offering educational activities for families and students together, bringing family members into leadership positions and connecting families with schools and resources in the community

Family Engagement Plan

The Elementary and Secondary Education Act requires that every school district and every school receiving Title I dollars must have a written parent engagement policy and must build school capacity to effectively implement the policy. The policy must be developed jointly with, approved by, and distributed to parents of participating children and the local community. Copies of the plan should be available from school and district offices, and may be available on their websites.

Whole Child 

The combined aspects of a child, including the intellectual, social, emotional and physical attributes that contribute to a child's well-being and healthy development. The whole child concept focuses on long-term development and success for young people and requires integration between schools, families and communities

Family 

 For the purposes of family engagement school activities, All people who are either responsible for a child or anyone the child identifies as being important in their lives (e.g., close family friend, sibling, extended family member, neighbor); for the purposes of protecting privacy, federal policy says only certain people (as defined in Title I) may receive student data

Welcoming
Environment 

A friendly, supportive atmosphere that encourages family participation and unites school staff, family and community in supporting student development and academic achievement

Advisory Board

A group of school staff, partner representatives, and possibly students, that monitors partnership progress toward meeting its goals; recommended for all partnerships but most beneficial for schools and districts with a large number of partners.

STEM 

Science, Technology, Engineering, and Mathematics

STEM Literacy 

The ability to understand and apply concepts from science, technology, engineering and mathematics, including computer science and interdisciplinary strategies, in order to make informed decisions, create new products and processes, and solve problems

Assess Mapping 

Practical process for locating resources, knowledge and expertise in a community