-
Do-It-Yourself FAST Activities at Home (Actividades de FAST en Casa)
Activities traditionally conducted during the FAST Program can be adapted at home during this period of social distancing and home quarantine. All of these activities are research-based and designed to promote family strengthening and bonding. We invite you to share your experience incorporating FAST activities into your life at home, along with any other relevant… READ MORE →
-
Funding and implementing FAST without a community partner
The majority of FAST® Program implementations involve a partnership between a school and a community-based organization or social-service agency. The organization administers funding, handles FAST-related administrative tasks such as distributing the evaluations, and typically provides a team member, the Community Partner. The first six posts in this blog series have focused on building these partnerships, but what… READ MORE →
-
FAST from the perspective of a community partner: Building connections with families and communities
In this blog post about building relationships between schools and community partners, we have explored the advantages of partnerships between schools and community-based organizations for the purpose of implementing the FAST® Program. Community partners serve schools by administering funds, participating as a member of the FAST Team, and handling program logistics, such as ordering supplies… READ MORE →
-
Making a compelling case for FAST with your community-based organization
The last blog post, “How to Find Community-Based Organizations: Start with the End Goal in Mind,” described the benefits of starting with the end in mind, and determining the outcomes you wish to achieve within your school, before approaching a community-based organization. But identifying outcomes is just one part of a well-crafted proposal. You also want… READ MORE →
-
Think like a marketer when approaching a prospective community partner
There’s the saying, “You never get a second chance to make a first impression.” For schools seeking to form a partnership with a community-based organization, a positive first impression might mean demonstrating that you will be a trustworthy and responsible recipient for their funding, time, and resources. You wear many hats as an administrator, and this… READ MORE →
-
How to find community-based organizations: Start with the end goal in mind
The first two blog posts of this seven-part series – Connecting Families and Resources: The Important Role of Community Partners on the FAST Team and Partnering with Local Community-Based Organizations is Key to FAST Implementations, discussed how a relationship with a community partner can provide funding and resources for your school to implement the FAST® Program. But, how do you find… READ MORE →
-
Connecting families and resources: The important role of community partners on the FAST Team
The previous blog post explored how relationships with community and social-service organizations can be instrumental in implementing the FAST® Program at your school. The community organization typically leads the FAST implementation, providing funding and support, while working closely with the school. Organizations contribute to FAST implementations in another significant way — each team includes at least one Community… READ MORE →
-
Partnering with local community-based organizations is key to FAST implementations
Like most activities that are worthwhile and result in long-term change, implementing Families & Schools Together’s evidence-based parent engagement program, FAST®, can take significant resources — time, money, and staff. Fortunately, you and your school don’t have to do it all yourself. Many successful FAST implementations at schools and districts across the U.S., and even… READ MORE →
-
Principals share parent engagement insights (survey results)
In the Fall of 2016, Families & Schools Together, Inc. surveyed education leaders—principals and administrators—to learn more about parent engagement efforts at their schools. More than 1,400 principals, vice principals and head teachers completed our survey. All too often, practical tools, knowledge, funding, and best practices about effective partnership with families are difficult to come… READ MORE →
-
Measuring the effectiveness of parent engagement initiatives
It’s the start of a new year, and many of us are in the mindset of evaluating where we are and setting goals to work toward. As you consider your school’s parent engagement initiatives, you may also be thinking about goals. How will you know if your efforts are effective? Recently, an educator submitted a… READ MORE →
