Halton District's Parent Engagement Consultant Committee

       To establish strong communications with parents, and foster effective working partnerships, the Halton District School Board has established the Halton Parent Involvement Committee (PIC).  The committee is designed to involve parents more in the educational development of their own children, by giving parents more of an opportunity to get involved in the school community, both at the board and school levels.  The committee was developed in response to the Ministry of Education's provincial Parent Involvement Policy of 2006.

       The ministry of education recognizes the role parents play, in the successful development and education of their children, as well as the success of our schools.  The provincial Parent Involvement Policy was established as a means of recognizing effective parent involvement as a performance measure to be expected of the publicly funded education system.  There are three main parts to this policy, with a key initiative I've outlined for each:

            1.  Parent Voice Empowerment - the establishment of parent involvement committees at the board level, to provide a direct link to the Director and Trustees, and provide parent advice and support parent engagement in education.

            2.  A Welcoming Environment for Parents - school councils focusing on engaging parents and fostering parental involvement within their school community as a key factor in assisting student achievement.

            3.  Addressing Diversity - school councils focusing on initiatives to reach parents who may find involvement more challenging due to language, recent immigration, poverty, newness to the system, or other factors.

       The purpose of Halton Parent Involvement Committee is to support, encourage, and enhance meaningful parent involvement at the board level, to improve student achievement and well being.  The committee is parent lead, meaning that any parent of a student within the Halton system can be a member.  Each school within the board must designate a parent name to a central list, for the purpose of communication and distribution of information to individual schools.  The Director of Education and a Trustee are also members of the committee, but have a non voting role.  The PIC holds two general meetings and/or events per year, including a workshop/conference for parents.

       The PIC is designed to make schools a welcoming place for parents and parent involvement.  The more that parents are involved in the education of their children, the more opportunities that educators and parents can have to work together to support the educational and social development of all Halton students.  The central functions of the PIC, to support these initiatives for the better welfare of our students and children are outlined below:

 1. School Council Support:

a. Communication

b. Assisting at home

c. Attending school events

d. Building parenting skills

e. Volunteerism

f. Fundraising

g. Participating in Decision Making

h. Use of Community Resources

2. Awareness and Education of Hot Topics

3. Consultations to Support Initiatives and Parent Engagement

4. Provincial Voice

a. Representation

b. Grant application/distribution

http://www.hdsb.ca/Community/PIC/Downloads/Parent%20Engagement%20Resource%20Booklet.pdf

       Parental involvement is essential in the development of student understanding and success in education.   Many times throughout my career, parents have asked me how they can support their child at home with their educational development.  I believe however, that if the parent of a child is willing and able, there are many opportunities for a parent to get involved beyond homework and field trip volunteering.  The PIC gives parents that opportunity, to not only learn about provincial and board initiatives first hand, but also to have a say in their development.  Furthermore, parents are always looking out for the best interests of their own child, as they should.  The PIC gives parents the opportunity to work beyond their own families, as more of a community, to assist schools in helping all children learn, develop, and grow.  The final result would mean stronger ties between parent, teacher, child, and school, meaning more opportunities for developing initiatives that will result in greater success for our students.