For most parents, getting involved in the school parent group can be compared to sticking your toe into a swimming pool. Some parents aren’t ready and willing to commit until the water is just right. Years might pass from the first time they ever attend a school council meeting or event until they feel comfortable being apart of the group.
Recognizing each parent’s level of involvement and comfort level is important. Using this information helps to encourage and facilitate parents/caregivers to take the next step. Little steps are ok. For some parents that just might be as simple as coming back to a future event. For others, it might be joining a committee. You will need to remind yourself that success is a series of small wins.
The graph below shows the different levels of parent involvement and how you can encourage parents to move from one level to the next. Please keep in mind that few parents/caregivers will complete the journey from beginning till end. That is totally fine.
Recognize the goal isn’t to have everyone become a leader. The goal should always be to get more parents/caregivers involved, even if it is a little at a time. Remember that the journey is more fun when you have more people to share it with.
Levels of Parent Involvement
The Regular Parent
Has a challenging schedule
- Doesn’t come to events
- Isn’t aware of what is going on in the school community
- Might prioritize involvement with other community/social groups
Your Objective: Build Awareness
- Be welcoming and approachable
- Communicate through multiple channels (flyers, social media, email, word of mouth, etc.)
- Post your school councils accomplishments
The Attendee
Is most likely to transition to a volunteer
- Attends a few meetings or activities
- Will come to events where their family can have fun, socialize, or learn
- May or may not know many people at school
Your Objective: Keep them coming back
- Thank them for coming
- Greet them warmly and introduce them to others
- Ask repeat attendees if they would consider helping with a future event
The Occasional Volunteer
Volunteers whenever possible
- Wants to help but has limited time to offer
- Likes easy tasks
- Is not really familiar with school council or school procedures
Your Objective: Offer more opportunities
- Offer flexibility – offer tasks that can be done from home or outside school hours
- Don’t pressure them into tasks/jobs that are not good fits
- Remember to thank them
The Regular Volunteer
Is committed to giving time to your group and school community
- Routinely attends meetings and pitches in on projects
- Might prefer repeat weekly or monthly tasks
- Likes feeling connected to your group
Your Objective: Make their experiences great
- Have clear expectations
- Check in to see how their volunteer time is going
- Thank them regularly
The Leader
Is an executive member of school council or committee chair
- Is comfortable taking on big projects
- Knows a lot of people in the school community
- Willing to take tasks head-on
Your Objective: Support their efforts
- Ask what you can do to support them
- Highlight the importance of developing future school leaders
- Thank them regularly
Find more resources on our website
If you haven’t already done so, we encourage you to surf our website. We have a great list of links to other valuable parent engagement resources on our links page. If you are looking to find more articles like this one, check out the rest of our blog or visit our brochures page. We are constantly trying to add new content for parents to enjoy.
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