For Schools and Other Service Providers
College Access Organizations and Programs
Organizations Promoting Family and School Partnerships
College Access Organizations and Programs
The College Board: The College Board is a not-for-profit membership association whose mission is to connect students to college success and opportunity. CollegeEd is a curriculum specifically designed to build early college awareness among middle schools students and their families. The curriculum, available for purchase, features a teacher guide, student workbook, and family guide. It is available in English and Spanish.
College Is Possible (CIP): This K-16 youth development program was developed by the American Council on Education's (ACE) to motivate middle and high school students from underserved communities to seek a college education. The CIP website links users to resources on preparing for, paying for, and choosing a college.
El Puente Project: This bilingual online resource features information to help Latino/a youth succeed in high school, prepare for and apply to colleges, develop their leadership abilities, serve the community, and network with each other. It includes Educator Resources, Youth Blog, Voces Latinas (which publishes youth art and writing), and links to Latino history and culture.
Engaging Latino Communities for Education (ENLACE): ENLACE is a nationwide initiative of the W.K. Kellogg Foundation and Houston Endowment which funds 13 projects in seven states to implement community plans that will promote Hispanic academic achievement and build partnerships between higher education institutions, local schools, and the community.
Federal TRIO Programs: TRIO consists of six educational outreach programs, including Talent Search and Upward Bound. The programs are designed to support low-income, first-generation college students, and students with disabilities to graduate from high school and continue on to postsecondary education.
Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP): GEAR UP is a discretionary grant program funded by the U.S. government. Grants are awarded for state- and local-level partnerships to work with students, parents, and teachers in high-poverty middle and high schools.
Hispanic Scholarship Fund (HSF): HSF’s mission is to increase the number of Hispanics in higher education. They provide many college scholarships and the website provides application information. The site also features resources, many available in Spanish, for students and families on how to prepare for and apply to college.
Kids2College: An initiative of The Sallie Mae Fund, Kids2College (K2C®) creates partnerships between middle schools and local colleges and community organizations. The corner stone of K2C is a 6-week college awareness program designed specifically for 6th graders and their families which culminates in a visit to a local college. In some locations, K2C University and Community Academies provide ongoing college preparation activities for students in grades 7-12.
LULAC National Educational
Service Centers (LNESC): Since 1973, LNESC, has made a significant
impact in Hispanic educational attainment. Currently, LNESC operates
the single largest TRIO program through the Department of Education.
Through a variety of private partnerships with the corporate community,
LNESC has developed an array of exceptional educational and leadership
development programs that have contributed to the academic success of
400,000 promising Hispanic and disadvantaged students Additionally, LNESC
has provided over 14 million dollars to nearly 27,000 minority scholars.
Pathways to College Network: The Pathways to College Network is an alliance of organizations committed to using research-based knowledge to improve postsecondary education access and success for the nation’s many underserved students. The network’s Outreach Program Database lists over 1,000 pre-college student outreach programs across the country, and can assist parents or school personnel looking for programs in their area.
Organizations Promoting Family and School Partnerships
National Council for Community and Education Partnerships (NCCEP): NCCEP works to bring about systemic changes in education through partnerships. It seeks to develop and strengthen partnerships between local schools, universities, parents, businesses, government agencies, and other community groups.
Parents for Public Schools (PPS): PPS is a national organization of community-based chapters working to strengthen public schools through broad-based enrollment. PPS seeks to help public schools attract all families in a community by making sure all schools effectively serve all children. By mobilizing parents who reflect the full diversity of U.S. towns and cities, PPS works to build both strong public schools and healthier, move vital communities.
National Coalition for Parent Involvement in Education (NCPIE): NCPIE is an advocacy organization whose mission is to increase home, school, and community partnerships. The website offers many resources for school and community group personnel, such as A Framework for Family Involvement Programs, Keys for Success, and Guidelines for Good Partnership Policies. Also available are resources to help parents and community members better understand the provisions of the No Child Left Behind legislation.
National Network of Partnership Schools: Organized by John Hopkins University, this network brings together researchers, practitioners, students, and community members to help all schools develop solid parent involvement programs. They offer a wealth of information for school staff members who want to build a successful program, such as a framework for family involvement programs; information about creating an action team; budgeting; and evaluation. It also features vignettes of successful partnership practices taking place at schools nationwide.
National Parent Teacher Association (PTA): The National PTA offers many resources for parent groups and school staff. Their website includes their list of national standards for parent/family involvement programs which describe each standard in detail, including quality indicators, and suggestions to help schools achieve each standard.
Partnership for Learning: The partnership works to build collaboration between local schools and their communities. It particularly emphasizes the important role of families as partners with schools in the education of their children. The partnership publishes many reports, conducts trainings, and coordinates programs. The website offers their many publications available for download, such as articles on hot topics in education and EduGuide: The Middle School Years, a comprehensive guide for parents.
Toolkits and Guides
The College and Financial Aid Guide for Undocumented AB540 Immigrant Students: This resource guide from the USC Center for Higher Education Policy Analysis provides a comprehensive guide to the law, definitions, resources, and information related to applying to and financing college for undocumented students and the practitioners who work with them.
College Readiness for All Toolbox: Over 30 organizations who are members of the Pathways to College Network contributed to this extensive toolkit, specifically designed for college outreach practitioners. The site offers strategies, tools, resources, and vignettes about successful schools and programs. It features three separate “User Guides”specifically designed for principals, counselors, and college outreach professionals.
Creating Partnerships, Bridging worlds: Family and Community Engagement: This guide for schools was created by Turning Points, a comprehensive school reform model focusing on middle-grades students. It discusses the framework for parent/school partnerships, including a review of the research. It also offers a large number of detailed strategies to help schools build successful partnerships with families.
Engaging Mexican Immigrant Parents in Their Children’s Education: A Guide for Teachers (clicking here begins a PDF download): This publication by the Colorado Statewide Parent Coalition highlights the differences between the education systems in Colorado and Mexico, the cultural strengths of Mexican immigrant families and practical ways to engage them in the education process. It is designed to help educators understand the culture, value system and cultural strengths that Mexican immigrants bring with them when they come to the United States.
Exito Escolar: A Toolkit for Academic Success in the Latino Community is a multimedia, bilingual college access curriculum, developed by the National Council for Community and Education Partnerships, to prepare Latino students (grades 6-12) and their families for higher education. The curriculum uses telenovela-style videos to convey information about higher education structure, financial planning, cultural influences, standardized admissions testing, and application procedures. The package includes four bilingual telenovelas, facilitator's guide, PowerPoint presentations, parent information sheets, and student workbook.
National College Access Network: The National College Access Network is dedicated to assisting local communities all over the country initiate, develop and sustain their own college access programs. NCAN’s Building Blocks Toolkit offers suggestions and strategies for starting a college access program. It addresses required management skills, how to implement needed services, and offers models of other college access programs.
School-Parent-Community Partnerships Resource Book: The Indiana Department of Education developed this guide as part of a state-wide initiative. The guide discusses nationally accepted standards, as well as considerations for implementing and evaluating parent involvement programs. It also offers sample tools such as a team work plan and parent, teacher, and administrator surveys.
Self-Assessment: The Council for the Advancement of Standards in Higher Education (CAS) has established a self-assessment for TRIO and Other Opportunity Programs. This tool allows pre-college, TRIO and other outreach initiatives to self-assess in 13 functional areas including Mission, Human Resources, Facilities and Ethics, to name a few. The tool is available for purchase from CAS’s online bookstore.
Working Together: School-Family-Community Partnerships: A Toolkit for New Mexico School Communities: Created by the New Mexico Public Education Department and the Center for the Education and Study of Diverse Populations at New Mexico Highlands University, this toolkit provides information for educators and parents on ways to improve communication, promote positive parenting, enhance student learning, increase volunteerism, and collaborate with the community.The toolkit also includes self-assessment tools, a comprehensive listing of Web resources, and a professional development section with PowerPoint presentations, facilitator tips and notes, activities, handouts, sign-in sheets, evaluation forms, and certificates of completion.
Disclaimer: The PALMS Project, Lumina Foundation for Education and/or Education Development Center are not responsible for any information that may be found on other Web sites linked from the PALMS Project website. Visitors are encouraged to report any perceived problems with this Web site to palms@edc.org
