Below is a sampling of professional development sessions and workshops available through
the Carolina Family Engagement Center (CFEC) on topics related to family engagement
in education. All are available at no cost and can be scheduled by emailing the contact
person listed at the end of the session description or CFEC Project Director Karen
Utter at utter@email.sc.edu. Unless otherwise noted, all sessions can be delivered virtually or in-person and
are available statewide.
All of our sessions are grounded in the SC Family Engagement K-12 Framework (SC Department
of Education 2019); the Dual Capacity-Building Framework for Family-School Partnerships
Version 2.0 (K. Mapp et al. 2019); the Framework of Six Types of Involvement (Epstein
et al.); current research; and the rich experience of CFEC’s Regional Family Engagement
Liaisons in the field.
Renewal credits for certified administrators and teachers are available as indicated
at the end of each session description.
If you don’t see what you are looking for, please let us know. We can work with you to develop a professional development opportunity that is designed
especially for your needs.
Professional Development Sessions and Workshops
Foundations of Effective School-Wide Family Engagement
This session addresses how to use family engagement as a powerful strategy for increasing
student achievement and school improvement. We will review the basic concepts underlying
family engagement at the school level, with an emphasis on adapting and implementing
the five core strategies in the SC Framework: Building Relationships/Welcoming Schools,
Communication, Linking to Learning, Collaboration, and Community Partnerships. Examples
of innovative practices from the field will be presented.
Length: 90 minutes.
Audience: All K–12 school personnel.
Facilitator and Contact: Karen Utter, CFEC Project Director
Renewal credits: 1.
Foundations of Effective Family Engagement at the District Level
This session will focus on key steps that districts can take to support schools in
developing the type of family-school partnerships that can have a positive impact
on student outcomes and school performance indicators. We will also review how districts
can help schools transform federal and state family engagement mandates from items
on their compliance check-off list to meaningful opportunities to engage families.
Length: 90 minutes.
Audience: All district personnel.
Facilitator and Contact: Karen Utter, CFEC Project Director
Renewal credits: 1