Kentucky Collaborative Research and Evaluation Study

Kentucky Collaborative For Families and Schools

The Kentucky Statewide Family Engagement Center (SFEC) was created in 2018 by a grant from the U.S. Department of Education to create an integrated and systematic model of transformational family engagement across the state of Kentucky. The NYU Metro Center was contracted by the Prichard Committee for Academic Excellence, the lead grantee for the Kentucky Statewide Family Engagement Center, otherwise known as the “Kentucky Collaborative for Families and Schools” to lead the research and evaluation.

The Prichard Committee is a nationally recognized, independent, non-partisan citizen’s advocacy organization based in central Kentucky. The Prichard Committee has operated the Commonwealth Institute for Parent Leadership (CIPL) for a little over 25 years, which builds families’ knowledge, skills, and power related to improving public education.

Joining the Prichard Committee are three regional partner organizations that each offer a variety of programming and services for children, young people, and families throughout their regions:

Learning Grove, located in Northern Kentucky, primarily serves Emergent Bilingual Latinx families.
Partners for Rural Impact (formally known as Partners for Education), located in the Appalachian region, primarily serves rural families.
The National Center for Families Learning (NCFL), located in Louisville/Southeastern region, primarily serves urban families in its workscope for this grant.
The Kentucky Department of Education serves as a statewide agency/policy lever.

Guiding Questions

1. How does the KY Collaborative support schools?

What is the depth of schools’ engagement in KY Collaborative offerings, and how does engagement change over time?
How and to what extent are schools implementing the Dual Capacity-Building Framework? How does this change over time?
What is the relationship between implementation of the Dual Capacity-Building Framework and changes in family-school partnerships over time?
How does the KY Collaborative support schools?What is the relationship between changes in family-school partnerships and changes in school-level outcomes (academic, attendance, discipline, school climate)?

2. How do CIPL fellows experience personal transformation, engage in collective action, influence public officials and school officials, and create more equitable educational systems? What conditions facilitate or hinder success?

3. How does the KY Collaborative support integrated, systemic, and sustainable family engagement? What conditions facilitate or hinder success?

What changes do families report as a result of participation in KY collaborative programs?
What is the statewide impact of the KY Collaborative?

Year 1 Research Findings

Report: Year 1 Findings of the Kentucky Collaborative

In this report, we share findings from the first year of a 3-year research project on the relationship between the Kentucky Collaborative family-school partnerships and student outcomes.

Executive Summary

Summarization of research, key points, and recommendations from the first year of a 3-year research project on the relationship between family-school partnerships and student outcomes.

AMPED Case Study: Year 1

This case study on Adventurous Minds Produce Extraordinary Dreams (AMPED), highlights a community resource that provides enriching out-of-school services to students and families in West Louisville.

Berea Community School Case Study: Year 1

This case study shows how a rural community school builds relationships with families during the Covid-19 pandemic and the Black Lives Matter movement.

Boone County Case Study: Year 1

This case study examines the family engagement beliefs and experiences of parent leaders and district leadership and staff in the linguistically diverse Boone County School District.