Title I

Overview

What is Title I?

Title I is a federally funded program designed to ensure that all children have a fair, equal and significant opportunity to obtain a high-quality education and reach, at a minimum, proficiency on challenging state academic standards and state academic assessments. The Title I program focuses on the academic needs of the most disadvantaged students.

What is the aim of Title I at James K. Polk?

We use the federal funds to:

• Support student instruction
• Improve teaching strategies
• Increase family engagement

Targeted versus Schoolwide Program

Schools with at least 40% of their students eligible for free and reduced meals are eligible for a schoolwide Title I program. James K. Polk has a free/reduced lunch rate of 78% and operates a schoolwide program.

Parent and Family Engagement Policy

James K. Polk values parent engagement as a critical role in the academic success of students. James K. Polk believes that parental involvement means the participation of parents in regular, two-way, and meaningful communication involving student academic learning and other school activities, including ensuring the following:

1. that parents play an integral role in assisting their child's learning
2. that parents are encouraged to be actively involved in their children's education at school
3. that parents are full partners in their children's education and are included, as appropriate, in decision making and on advisory committees to assist in the education of their children
4. the carrying out of other activities, such as those described in section 1118 (b) – (h) of the ESEA

James K. Polk jointly developed this parental involvement policy in consultation with school personnel, community members, and parents. This policy shall be made available to the local community on the school's web page and in the front office. If the Title I plan is not satisfactory to parents, the local educational agency will submit any parent comments with the application when the plan is submitted to the state. This parent involvement plan will be updated annually to meet the changing needs of parents and the school.

Review the Parent and Family Engagement policy in your preferred language:

Policy Involvement

James K. Polk will:

1. Convene an annual meeting at a time convenient for parents of participating children to inform parents of their school's participation in Title I, the requirements of Title I, and the right of the parents to be involved. All parents shall be invited and encouraged to attend.
2. Offer a flexible number of meetings, such as meetings in the morning or evening, and may provide, with funds provided under this part, transportation, child care or home visits, as such services relate to parental involvement.
3. Involve parents, in an organized, ongoing, and timely way, in the planning, review, and improvement of the school's Title I program. This includes the planning, review, and improvement of the school parental involvement policy and the joint development of the schoolwide program plan.
4. Provide parents:
   • timely information about Title I programs;
   • a description and explanation of the curriculum in use at the school, the forms of academic assessment used to measure student progress, and the proficiency levels students are expected to meet; and
   • Opportunities for regular meetings to formulate suggestions and to participate, as appropriate, in decisions relating to the education of their children, and respond to any such suggestions as soon as practicably possible; and
5. If the schoolwide program is not satisfactory to the parents of participating children under Section 1114 (b)(2), we will submit any parent comments on the plan when the school makes the plan available to the local educational agency.
6. Provide high-quality curriculum and instruction in a supportive and effective learning environment that enables the children served under this part to meet the state's student academic achievement standards. We will partner with each parent to offer ways to support their children's learning, such as monitoring attendance, homework completion, and television watching; volunteering in their child's classroom; and participating in decisions relating to the education of their children and positive use of extracurricular time.
7. Provide frequent reports to parents on their children's progress;
8. Provide materials and training to help parents to work with their children to improve their children's achievement, such as literacy training and using technology, as appropriate, to foster parental involvement; with the assistance of parents, educate teachers, pupil services personnel, principals, and other staff in the value and the utility of parents' contributions. We will seek guidance in ways to reach out to parents; to communicate with them; to work with them as equal partners; to implement and coordinate parent programs; and to build ties between parents and the school;
9. Coordinate and integrate, to the extent feasible and appropriate, parental involvement programs and activities with other programs, and conduct other activities, such as parent resource centers, that encourage and support parents in more fully participating in the education of their children;
10. Ensure that information related to school and parent programs, meetings, and other activities is sent to the parents of participating children in a format, to the extent practicable, in a language the parents can understand.

Right to Request

In compliance with the requirements of the Every Student Succeeds Act, James K. Polk informs parents that you have the right to request information about the qualifications of the classroom staff working with your child. If you request this information, the school division will provide you with answers to the following questions as soon as possible:

The following information may be requested:

• Whether the teacher has met state qualification and licensing criteria for the grade levels and subject areas in which the teacher provides instruction.
• Whether the teacher is teaching under emergency or other provisional status because of special circumstances.
• Whether the teacher is teaching in the field of discipline of the certification or degree he/she received.
• Whether paraprofessionals provide services to your child and, if so, their qualifications.

 
Right to request letter in English, Spanish, Amharic, and Arabic.

Data

James K. Polk Elementary School is fully accredited and meets Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP). To learn more, review the Virginia School Quality Profile on the Virginia Department of Education Web site or review recent test scores.