Youth voice is powerful in collaborating with school staff, administrators, school boards, and others in creating policies, procedures, rules, and norms that govern the school setting. School staff must work to uplift diverse youth voices to identify and address a broader range of needs and sustain involvement of young people in decision-making. Engaging youth in these decisions will offer them access to new knowledge, skills, and relationships that will not only empower them, but offer them the opportunity to ready themselves for post-secondary work.
Families have a strong influence on student outcomes and successes. Likewise, school staff –which can include all those that have contact with the student on a daily basis—can also have a direct influence by modeling appropriate social and emotional behavior. To engage parents, literature suggests that schools offer culturally appropriate and sensitive parenting involvement programs that focus on creating a stimulating home environment that motivates children to succeed. For parents to increase their child's connection to school, it is important to support learning at home and to engage with your child's teachers and school activities as their schedule allows.
Cross-system collaboration is a strategy employed by many school districts and can function as a catalyst for change among all child and youth-serving systems. When schools and communities work together, they find that they are able to avoid duplication of services and improve outcomes for youth and families. Agencies and organizations that effectively collaborate have an increase in communication, cooperation, and coordination which could break down divisions between multiple systems and create a culture of belonging to "one system," therefore promoting a community in which all share the responsibility of creating a positive school climate.
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