“When parents are involved in their children’s education, everyone benefits.”
Dr. Crystal Ladwig
DELAND, FL, UNITED STATES, September 21, 2023/EINPresswire.com/ — ThinK-12 today announced a partnership with Volusia County Schools (VCS) to provide the company’s ThinK-12 Families program to enhance strategic family engagement in the district. VCS, the largest employer in Volusia County, partners with families to create life-long learners for an ever-changing global society. ThinK-12 Families is a program that helps districts attract new families, engage current families, and celebrate success, all while telling a powerful story and building a stronger school community that families can be proud of. Public schools are the center of many communities, and strengthening family connections around the school is a win for students, parents, and VCS.
The research is clear. When parents are involved in their children’s education, everyone benefits. Families develop stronger parent-child relationships, better rapport with teachers and school staff, and a greater understanding of their child’s progress and how to help. Simply put, they are better able to collaborate and advocate for their child. Students experience increased grades, test scores, attendance, engagement, efficacy, higher self-esteem, and higher rates of post-secondary attendance. When parents and students feel great about their school, they share their stories with others and build more positive school awareness in the community.
ThinK-12 Families launched in 2022 and is being used in districts throughout the nation, leveraging technology to increase school engagement among current and prospective families.
VCS is piloting ThinK-12 in 15 select schools and for the district website. The full program suite for ThinK-12 Families will be implemented, including:
ThinKTanK™: Custom content to help support families and drive awareness of school and district resources;
Family Network™: Prospective families can engage with family ambassadors (designated by the schools), while current families can connect with each other to build a more supportive school community;
Q&A Videos™: Custom videos of school staff, parents, students, and alumni, answering questions to help inform and equip prospective and current families;
Outcomes™: Showcases school outcomes in beautifully designed pages and infographics;
Staff Directory™: Helps to ‘humanize’ staff so families feel more connected to them, which promotes compassion, empathy, and alliance between teachers and families;
The Hub™: A centralized, consolidated communication tool for a school’s clubs, teams, and organizations. Simplifies parent communication;
Family Service Center™: An AI chat tool that provides parents with quick answers to commonly asked questions. Helps schools treat families more like customers
“We are thrilled to partner with Volusia County Schools to help drive enrollment, family engagement, and retention,” said Peter Kraft, CEO of ThinK-12. “With increased school choice options for families, how families perceive and talk about your school is more important than ever. We can’t wait to work with school leaders to showcase all the amazing opportunities available for students and families in Volusia County.”
“Engaging families in their child’s education is one of the best things we can do as a school district to instill a love for learning that will stick long after our students’ K-12 educational journey is over,” VCS Superintendent Dr. Carmen Balgobin said. “As such, Volusia County Schools is excited to work with ThinK-12 to shine a light on the amazing educational experiences happening in our district, help schools tell their story, and provide a new way for schools to foster community.”