Top Recommendations

Priority recommendations identified for the Educare Network:

• Include families, from the beginning, in development and decision-making forums and Network development opportunities, including the annual Educare Network Meeting.
• Provide financial and other resources that remove barriers to parent participation (food, childcare, expenses, etc.) and compensate parents equitably for their expertise and skills.
• Establish a family leadership steering committee composed of primarily family leaders with a few Network staff liaisons to inform/guide the work of Network.
• Continue to support Parent Ambassador initiatives, which offer valuable insights to the network about family engagement, leadership, and advocacy.
• Build/join coalition among other family leadership organizations and initiatives such as UPLAN, Parent Nation, Strolling Thunder, Fathers, Families & Healthy Communities, etc. Define Educare Network’s unique value add or point of view as part of a potential coalition.

Priority recommendations identified for Educare Schools:

• Identify and prioritize resources for family leadership.
• Use Parent Engagement and Leadership Assessment (PELA) with a multidisciplinary team (including families) to support goal setting, action planning, and intentional implementation of improvement plans.
• Provide funds to prevent or address unforeseen circumstances to avert family crisis (emergency funds).
• Co-create and share clear messaging about boundaries, ethics, and behavioral expectations for staff and families when they are representing the organization.
• Provide clear and respectful messaging about the use of agency funds.
• Support a network of peer-to-peer outreach to develop and sustain family leadership within an organization.