MEDIA CONTACT: Amy Foster Parish Director, Communications Cell: 703-472-5997 aparish@familieslearning.org NCFL to lead Statewide Family Engagement Centers in North Carolina and Nebraska FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE LOUISVILLE, KY
(OCTOBER 5, 2023) – The U.S. Department of Education has selected the National Center for Families Learning (NCFL) to establish and lead the new North Carolina Statewide Family Engagement Center (NC SFEC) and to continue its leadership of the Nebraska Statewide Family Engagement Center (NE SFEC). In each state, NCFL will work alongside a consortium of state and local organizations to provide an equitable, coordinated continuum of family engagement support designed to build the capacity of families, schools, and communities and improve student and family well-being. The need for robust, cohesive family engagement systems is longstanding, but the recent COVID-19 pandemic impact has intensified this need.
Studies show that children whose parents are more engaged with their education are more likely to have higher school attendance, achieve better learning outcomes, have improved social emotional well-being, and are overall more adaptable and comfortable in school settings. Both state SFEC efforts will work to leverage the power of family engagement in education while centering low-income, minority, and rural families who have been historically underserved. NCFL’s efforts are grounded in the latest research and applies Dr. Karen Mapp’s Dual Capacity-Building Framework, as the gold standard in family engagement practices.
The North Carolina SFEC award represents a new opportunity for NCFL and its partners—including the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, Book Harvest, North Carolina Parents as Teachers, University of North Carolina Greensboro, and local education agencies—to work together on family engagement strategies. In the coming months, NCFL will conduct statewide community asset mapping to examine educator and family needs, identify key community partners, and examine the potential for cross-agency collaboration to enhance existing family engagement efforts.