- Houston Independent School District
- Family and Community Engagement
- Family Friendly School

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How Schools Are Certified
The Family and Community Engagement (FACE) Department offers all HISD campuses the opportunity to earn a Family Friendly School Certification. This research-based process assists schools in building strong family-school-community partnerships that support students’ academic success through:
- Building relationships with families and community
- Linking family engagement activities to learning
- Supporting parent advocacy
- Honoring families
- Facilitating parent-led events
Why It Matters
Research indicates that when parents feel welcomed and appreciated at school campuses, they tend to influence their children's academic outcomes positively. The Family Friendly School certified campuses tend to have better academic results, fewer discipline issues, and better attendance rates. Becoming certified as a Family Friendly School can also benefit the effectiveness and morale on your campus (Karen Mapp et. al., 2007).
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2022-2023 Family Friendly School Activities
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Parent Involvement
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Family Workshops
HISD 101: District Resources
(Required) Families will get an overview of HISD’s key resources and tools available to aid in student achievement.
A Parent Lens: Parent Teacher Conferences
Families will learn benefits and preparation strategies for Parent Teacher Conferences and explore HISD’s “Student & Parent” resource website.
Balancing Work and Family:
Families will gain best practices in managing a healthy lifestyle by providing parents examples and ideas on how to balance work and family during unprecedented times.
College & Career Readiness:
Families will learn the benefits of career readiness for parents, various types of adult continuing education opportunities, and discover post-secondary pathways.
Connection Before Correction
Families will learn positive reinforcement tools to improve their child’s learning and overall academic success.
Plugged-In: K-8 Digital Safety
Working together with commonsense.org to provide parents the knowledge to make educational decisions on when to get their kids a phone, keeping them safe online and guiding them to have a healthy online independence.
Literacy at Home:
Families will learn strategies to support reading and writing at home using activities that develop comprehension in reading and writing to start mastering literacy concepts.
Math 1, 2, 3
Families will be guided through the current math strategies their child is learning and how to support academic success at home.
Investing Thoughtfulness & Kindness in the Real World
Families will learn how to live healthier lives by learning the various types of kindness, compassion and how to pay it forward.
Setting Limits: Encouraging Positive Behaviors
Families will be given tactics on how to manage and set limits for common problematic child behaviors.
2 Way Communication: Best Practices for Campuses
Participants will be able to strengthen their overall communication skills by learning two-way communication best practices to foster positive relationships in their interactions.