Heather A.

Bower is a
doctoral candidate at
the University of
Can the Epstein Model of
North Carolina,
Chapel Hill. E-mail:
Parental Involvement Work in a
hbower@email.unc.edu
Dana Griffin is an
assistant professor, also
High-Minority, High-Poverty
at the University of
North Carolina,
Elementary School? A Case Study
Chapel Hill.

The literature has lauded parental involvement as an high-minority elementary school that included
effective strategy to increase student achievement, but parental involvement as an approach to increasing
schools still struggle with how to effectively involve par- the academic achievement of its students. The
ents of color and low-income families. In an effort to authors first briefly discuss parental involvement.
assess the effectiveness of the Epstein Model of Parental The school utilized the Epstein Model of Parental
Involvement in high-poverty, high-minority schools, the Involvement as its guiding framework; therefore, the
authors conducted a case study of an urban elemen- article considers the strengths and limitations of the
tary school that uses parental involvement practices Epstein Model and includes a discussion of consid-
stipulated in the model. This article provides implica- erations for race, ethnicity, and socioeconomic sta-
tions for school counselors and suggestions for future tus. The article concludes with a description of the
research. methodology and results, discussion, implications
for school counselor practice, and suggestions for
n faculty workrooms and school improvement future research.

I plans across the country, parental involvement is

both heralded and lamented. Often, a lack of
parental involvement is blamed for low student
PARENTAL INVOLVEMENT

achievement or engagement (Barnard, 2004; Parental involvement is seen as an effective strategy

Desimone, 1999; Hill & Craft, 2003; Hill & Taylor, to ensure student success, as evidenced by several
2004; Jeynes, 2011; Zellman & Waterman, 1998); correlational studies, with the overarching benefit of
therefore, teachers are asked to communicate with parental involvement being increased academic per-
parents to help motivate students and encourage formance (Barnard, 2004; Desimone, 1999; Hill &
parents to become more involved in the school and Craft, 2003; Hill & Taylor, 2004; Zellman &
their students’ educations (Epstein & Dauber, 1991; Waterman, 1998). The current literature also
Epstein et al., 2009; Glasgow & Whitney, 2009; emphasizes other positive effects. For example,
Griffith, 1998; Henderson & Mapp, 2002; Lee & increased parent involvement leads to early social
Bowen, 2006). However, schools often struggle competence, which ultimately leads to academic suc-
with low attendance at parent nights and a lack of cess (Hill & Craft). Similarly, parent involvement
strategies to more effectively promote parental also increases social capital, or networks designed to
involvement (Glasgow & Whitney). The gap leverage resources (Hill & Taylor; Lee & Bowen,
between the desired and actual levels of parent 2006). As social networks are increased, students are
involvement has led to a wealth of literature and able to access additional support or resources, such
strategies developed for schools. These include as tutoring, enrichment opportunities, or access to
charging school counselors with including parental curriculum extensions beyond the school, in order
involvement strategies in comprehensive school to achieve academic success (Bryan, Holcomb-
counseling programs (American School Counselor McCoy, Day-Vines, & Moore-Thomas, 2011; Hill
Association, 2010). Although researchers have stud- & Taylor; Lee & Bowen). Furthermore, because of
ied and discussed parental involvement extensively the increased academic success as parents become
in the literature and schools use models to imple- more involved, parental involvement has been iden-
ment parental involvement strategies, schools con- tified as a strategy to decrease the achievement gap
tinue to struggle with increasing parental involve- (Jeynes, 2011; Lee & Bowen; Zellman &
ment with students of color and students of low Waterman). In the era of accountability, the promise
socioeconomic statuses. This article discusses the of increased academic achievement, especially with
outcomes of a case study that specifically explored regards to the achievement gap, places the need to
parental involvement strategies in a high-poverty, increase and improve parent involvement in chil-

15:2 DECEMBER 2011 | ASCA 77

 dren’s education in a powerful position. However, nurturance to their children, instilling cultural val-
focusing on parent involvement as a strategy to ues, and talking with their children, which do not
increase achievement shifts some of the responsibili- align with traditional forms of parental involvement
ty for students’ success from schools to families as defined by schools (Scribner, Young, & Pedoza,
(Graue & Benson, 2001). This seems to be at the 1999).
root of the gap between espoused parental involve- In essence, traditional definitions of parental
ment strategies and the lack of parental involvement involvement make demands of parents to help facil-
that persists. In an effort to explore why this gap itate the success of the school, while reciprocal
exists, this article first looks at how parental involve- demands are not made of the school to ensure the
ment is defined. success of their families. New research and discourse
on parental involvement state that schools may need
Defining Parental involvement to redefine parental involvement and develop broad-
Discourse on parental involvement demonstrates er frameworks that can make involvement more
disagreement on how to define the topic (Baker & inclusive for families of color (Abdul-Adil & Farmer,
Soden, 1997; Jeynes, 2005; Lewis & Forman, 2002; 2006; Griffin, 2011; Jackson & Remillard, 2005;
Lopez & Stoelting, 2010). The traditional definition Mattingly, Prislin, McKenzie, Rodrigues, & Kayzar,
of parental involvement includes activities in the 2002).
school and at home. Parental involvement can take Even though the current definition of parental
Schools continue to many forms, such as volunteering at the school, involvement has some limitations, the Epstein
communicating with teachers, assisting with home- Model (2009) continues to be one of the most
struggle with work, and attending school events such as perform- widely referenced frameworks for parental involve-
ances or parent-teacher conferences (Epstein et al., ment and the model that the urban school in this
increasing parental 2009; Hill & Taylor, 2004). However, viewed study chose to use. The Epstein Model outlines six
through this lens, African American and Latino fam- concrete types of family involvement behaviors: pos-
involvement with ilies demonstrate low rates of parental involvement itive home conditions, communication, involvement
(Simoni & Adelman, 1993). Further, parents’ vol- at school, home learning activities, shared decision
students of color unteering in school only has shown a significant aca- making within the school, and community partner-
demic effect for white students (Desimone, 1999); ships (Epstein & Dauber, 1991; Epstein et al.,
and students of low yet schools often focus on volunteering as a key 2009). The positive aspects of Epstein’s Model are
measure of parent involvement (Epstein & Dauber, that it encompasses the traditional definitions of
socioeconomic 1991; Epstein et al., 2009). Volunteering in the parental involvement and recognizes the role of par-
schools often calls for parents to shoulder the addi- ents in the home, including supporting educational
statuses. tional responsibility of providing supplies requested efforts and providing an environment where educa-
by the school, which include not only traditional tional activities are supported and encouraged
classroom supplies such as pencils, paper, and fold- (Epstein & Dauber; Epstein et al.). Furthermore,
ers, but also items for fundraisers or school events Epstein shifts some of the onus from the parents to
(Zellman & Waterman, 1998). Traditional defini- the school by acknowledging communication as a
tions of parental involvement require investments of bidirectional endeavor and encouraging schools to
time and money from parents, and those who may create a place for parent ownership within the school
not be able to provide these resources are deemed through shared decision making. Studies have found
uninvolved. connections between the use of this model and
In addition, the literature typically defines parental increased student achievement (Barnard, 2004;
involvement as either supporting student academic Ingram, Wolfe, & Lieberman, 2007; Lopez &
achievement or participating in school-initiated Donovan, 2009).
functions (Lopez et al., 2001). This overlooks dif- However, limitations do exist with this model.
fering perceptions on the part of parents from low- Although the model works to empower parents to
SES and minority populations regarding parental have a voice within the school and recognizes the
involvement and educational responsibilities (Nieto, work of parents in the home, the school is still
1987). Indeed, in a study using random stratified expected to inform parents of effective strategies
sampling procedures with 30 low-income African within the home (Epstein et al., 2009). Further, the
American (48%), Hispanic (25%), and Pacific role of parents in the decision-making process is
Islander (17%) parents, researchers found that par- defined by and created within the existing frame-
ents believed the school should provide the academ- work of the school, ensuring that parental involve-
ic education and parents should provide the moral ment is defined and evaluated in the school’s terms
education for their children (Smrekar & Cohen- rather than the families’ terms (Epstein & Dauber,
Vogel, 2001). Further, parents can exhibit parental 1991; Epstein et al.). This model also fails to address
involvement through activities such as providing the forms of advocacy demonstrated by African

78 ASCA | PROFESSIONAL SCHOOL COUNSELING

American families and their church involvement issue with Latino families. Although most schools
(Fields-Smith, 2009), which is a primary form of translate written communication, translation should
community collaboration among African Americans not end with written language if schools truly desire
(Bradley, Johnson, Rawls, & Dodson-Sims, 2005; parents’ involvement and collaboration. In one
Day-Vines & Day-Hairston, 2005). Other forms of study, for example, a Latina mothers’ group that
advocacy that tend to be overlooked as parental facilitated the cultural translation of the school’s phi-
involvement are found in studies specifically with losophy demonstrated a deeper understanding of
African American parents. These include setting the philosophy of the school and became empow-
clear and consistent behavioral rules for their chil- ered to educate other families. This indicated a need
Traditional
dren, engaging in frequent and meaningful conver- for schools to embrace families as translators, trust
sations with their children, encouraging independ- them to make the most culturally relevant transla-
definitions of
ence, providing assistance with homework, and tions, and allow them to become the school’s
expressing graduation expectations (Abdul-Adil & ambassadors to their communities (Galindo &
parental
Farmer, 2006; Jackson & Remillard, 2005). In addi- Medina, 2009).
tion, many of the studies using Epstein’s Model do
involvement
not take into account differences in race and ethnic- Considerations for Socioeconomic Status
ity; rather, they provide a general approach to Poverty also presents unique barriers to traditional
require investments
parental involvement, regardless of race, class, or forms of parental involvement. Work schedules, lack
sociocultural factors (Abdul-Adil & Farmer; Garcia- of transportation, and lack of child care may prevent
of time and money
Coll et al., 1996; Tillman, 2009). Parental involve- families from attending school events or volunteer-
ment strategies are largely based on school cultures ing in the school (Hill & Taylor, 2004), although
from parents, and
that are formed from middle-class, European- research has demonstrated that, for families in
American cultural norms (Fields-Smith, 2007; poverty, parents’ volunteering in the school does not
those who may not
Freeman, 2010; Kroeger, 2007; Hill & Craft, 2003; have a significant effect on students’ academic
Lee & Bowen, 2006); therefore, schools need to achievement (Desimone, 1999). Families from
be able to provide
consider differences in cultural norms by race/eth- lower socioeconomic backgrounds expend consider-
nicity and socioeconomic status in order to use par- able effort, including more informal conversations
these resources are
ent involvement effectively as a strategy for student and unscheduled visits, to demonstrate their involve-
success. ment to teachers and the school at large (Freeman,
deemed
2010); however, these less structured approaches are
Considerations for Race and Ethnicity often viewed as obtrusive by schools and teachers
uninvolved.
Parental involvement strategies should consider race (Fields-Smith, 2007). Furthermore, schools are cau-
and ethnicity because research has demonstrated dif- tioned against defining specific behaviors as parental
ferences in parental involvement among African involvement because the schools’ definition often
American, Latino, and White families. African results in families feeling disenfranchised and their
American families tend to spend more time in home- efforts being unrecognized (Freeman). Families in
based activities with their children than their white poverty are further alienated by middle-class families
counterparts (Barbarin, McCandies, Coleman, & who see the lack of traditional involvement as a lack
Hill, 2005); however, home-based involvement is of caring or concern about their children (Kroeger,
difficult for schools to measure and is often over- 2007). For families in poverty, the school’s control
looked, and families are not recognized for their of time and “appropriate” communications retains
efforts. Parent groups are a strategy that has proven its power in parental involvement practices
particularly successful with African American fami- (Freeman).
lies, allowing parents to obtain information about Given the evidence regarding the limitations of
the school, advocate for the children as a collective current parental involvement practices, new prac-
group, and form support networks with other fami- tices are needed that incorporate culturally relevant
lies (Martinez-Cosio, 2010). strategies. Based on the literature, such practices
As with African American families, Latino parental should include components of relationship building,
involvement may not align with the white, middle- advocacy, and parental efficacy, as these have been
class norms of the school. Latino families tend to shown to be effective in working with African
respect the role of the school and teacher and are American, Latino, and low-income populations
therefore less likely to contact the school regarding (Desimone, 1999; Martinez-Cosio, 2010). The
potential problems, especially when English is not authors assert that these culturally relevant strategies
their first language (Gaetano, 2007). However, should also occur in high-minority, high-poverty
schools often view a lack of family-initiated commu- schools. Therefore, the purpose of this study is to
nication as a lack of involvement rather than an act assess the effectiveness of the Epstein Model in a
of deference. Furthermore, translation becomes an high-minority, high-poverty school by exploring

15:2 DECEMBER 2011 | ASCA 79

 parental involvement strategies in an urban elemen- In the 2006-2007 school year, the lead author
tary school that has identified parent involvement as began work with Hawk Elementary. She served as
one strategy to increase student achievement. the College Access Programs Coordinator for the
district and worked with Hawk Elementary to
CASE STUDY implement programs that increased students’ and
parents’ awareness of and planning for post-second-
Hawk Elementary (a pseudonym) has a majority ary opportunities. In the spring of 2008, she left the
Parent groups are a African American, Latino, and high poverty popula- district to serve as a research project coordinator for
tion and struggles with low student achievement. a study conducted by a local university and contin-
strategy that has Because of the various family configurations at this ued to work with Hawk as their University Liaison.
school, parental involvement at Hawk includes As she spent more time at Hawk, she began to
proven particularly working not only with parents, but also with grand- explore aspects of the school’s culture with the fac-
parents, aunts, uncles, and community mentors who ulty and administration to better understand the cul-
successful with serve as “parents” within the school. Hawk ture and develop strategies to improve student
Elementary embraced parental involvement as a achievement. Since parental involvement was identi-
African American strategy for raising achievement and utilized the fied as a key strategy by the school, it became the
Epstein Model. Although school staff employed focus of exploration for this study, which occurred in
families, allowing many parental involvement strategies, including the spring semester of the 2009-2010 school year.
meaningful homework, family workshops, meeting Every attempt was made to minimize bias and
parents to obtain the collective needs of the family, and creating and increase validity because of the well-established rela-
implementing a comprehensive parental involve- tionship the lead author had with the school.
information about ment plan, they have been disappointed with the Prolonged engagement at the site, triangulation of
results both in terms of low parent attendance and data, negative case analysis, clarification of bias, thick
the school, student achievement. The resulting research ques- description, and member checking were all utilized
tion guiding this study was: Even when using an evi- throughout the study (Glesne, 2006). Although this
advocate for the dence-based model of parent involvement, why does study took place over the span of one semester, it
parent involvement continue to remain a struggle at was part of a larger study that occurred over three
children as a Hawk Elementary? years, providing the researcher with in-depth knowl-
edge of the school and participants. Observations,
collective group, Method interviews, and document analysis provided for tri-
The Epstein Model, because of its prevalence in the angulation of data, and every attempt was made to
and form support field and use by the school as the model of parental find and analyze negative cases in the coding
involvement, informed the methodology of this process. Additionally, field notes were kept in rich
networks with study. In this study, the researchers defined parental detail, and reflexive notes were inserted to identify
involvement both in terms of traditional strategies and analyze researcher assumptions or areas that
other families (such as attending conferences and school events needed additional analysis or data collection. Finally,
and responding to requests and communications initial themes and drafts were shared with partici-
from the school) and less-traditional strategies (such pants as a form of member checking.
as participating in home learning activities and Reciprocity (Glesne, 2006) was also very impor-
parental ownership of some aspects of the school). tant to the lead author as a researcher. Participants
Research questions and field notes were informed by gave their time and energy to this project, and she
the definitions of parental involvement in the litera- sought to ensure that relationships remained recip-
ture, although data were closely examined for count- rocal. Therefore, she would often assist with tasks
er-evidence that spoke against emerging patterns within the school or on activities such as assembling
and themes (Creswell, 2008) and definitions unique fundraiser packets, assisting with grant applications
to Hawk Elementary. A microethnography frame- and interventions, and researching resources that
work, which allows for a single researcher to focus may be available to the school. Assisting in these
explicitly on one aspect of a larger belief system of a ways provided further opportunities for informal
culture (Creswell), was used for this case study to conversations and observations. The information
examine the definition and operationalization of gathered during informal conversations greatly
parental involvement in Hawk Elementary. informed her knowledge of the general school cul-
Microethnography relies heavily on a researcher ture and practices. For example, through this work
becoming integrated into the community to form a she learned more about the school’s Saturday
reciprocal relationship among participants and the Academy, which is an opportunity for students who
researcher. This methodology was appropriate are below grade level to receive additional instruc-
because of the lead author’s established relationship tion. As she worked beside teachers, she learned that
with the site and participants of the study. they often pick up students and bring them to the

80 ASCA | PROFESSIONAL SCHOOL COUNSELING

Saturday Academy. This provides teachers an oppor- ed with observer notes and reflexive comments
tunity to speak with parents weekly, build relation- (Glesne, 2006).
ships with parents, and offer strategies for parents to Throughout the data collection process, the lead
utilize throughout the week to help accelerate their author maintained an observer’s role as much as
children academically. possible, but many times was not able to remain
Sample. Hawk Elementary is one of the smallest totally in that role. Because so few parents attended
schools in a large urban district in the southeastern the events, she was often asked to directly participate
United States. The 347-student population is 60.5% or share her opinions or observations about the
African American, 33.1% Hispanic, and 6.4% Multi- meeting topic or event. For instance, during a PTA Latino families tend
Racial and Caucasian. Hawk Elementary is consid- meeting, she was asked to help develop a list of pos-
ered a high-poverty school, with 92.5% of its students sible resources and sponsors for the school bazaar. to respect the role
receiving free or reduced-price lunches. On the 2009 Data Analysis. Throughout the data collection
state end-of-year tests, 37.6% of the third- through process, the lead author analyzed transcripts for of the school and
fifth-graders were at or above grade level in reading, emerging themes and areas for further examination
and 61.8% were at or above grade level in math. through inductive analysis, which allows for con- teacher and are
Two members of the administrative team and five cepts and relationships among ideas to emerge
teachers participated in this study. The participants throughout the research process (Glesne, 2006). therefore less likely
were chosen because of their involvement with the Inductive coding was most appropriate because it
standardized testing that drives many school enables emerging concepts and themes to inform to contact the
accountability and reform decisions. Further, the the foci of observations and conversations and fur-
school does not have a full-time school counselor, so ther minimize researcher bias or over-reliance on the school regarding
teachers and administrators are the sole links to par- Epstein Model.
ents. To preserve confidentiality and anonymity, par- Once all the data were collected and transcribed, potential
ticipants are not identified by position within the the lead author began the formal coding process. All
school. All of the participants are well established transcripts were read line by line for general themes problems…
within the school, have a minimum of three years of in the form of recurring words. Three themes
service, and know the school’s culture and practices emerged: Strategies Employed, Frustration, and However, schools
well. All participants are minority females. Engagement. Once initial themes emerged, all of the
Data Collection. Each teacher participant took transcripts were reread to find supporting excerpts, often view a lack of
part in a 45-minute, semi-structured interview which were placed into Microsoft Word files for each
scheduled at her convenience. Interviews with theme (Glesne, 2006). Excerpts were categorized family-initiated
teachers took place in their classrooms during their into subthemes for more detailed analysis.
planning periods. The administrator interviews were Communication and Home Learning Activities communication as a
60 minutes long, due to their more flexible sched- emerged as sub-themes of Strategies Employed, and
ules, and interviews took place in their offices. The Lack of Reciprocity and Low Attendance emerged as lack of involvement
guiding question was: How do you communicate subthemes for Frustration. Finally, all transcripts
with parents and encourage involvement in the were reread in their entirety to look for counter-evi- rather than an act
school? After the guiding question, probing ques- dence. Once the coding was complete, each Word
tions were asked based on participants’ responses. file was reread for significance and authenticity to of deference.
The interviewer used a digital voice recorder to ensure that the themes reflected the participants’
record the interviews and transcribed them verbatim views rather than the researchers’. No counter-evi-
within 24 hours of each interview. She inserted dence was found.
reflective notes into the transcripts regarding non- Member checking was utilized to ascertain the
verbal communication and researcher responses, as validity of emerging themes. Participants readily
appropriate (Glesne, 2006). agreed with the analysis of the data, identifying most
For this study, the lead author also conducted with the strategies employed and frustration themes.
observations of two formal parental involvement Although they agreed with the findings, participants
opportunities within the school. The first event was were hesitant to identify cultural differences as a bar-
a Parent Teacher Organization meeting, and the sec- rier, primarily because they were unsure the school
ond was an open house in which parents were able had the resources to address this need.
to view projects the students completed during a six-
week unit and also interact with the students and RESULTS
teachers. The author also took field notes while in
the school assisting with other projects such as Three key themes and four subthemes emerged as
assembling bulletin boards, organizing school components of parental involvement at Hawk
bazaar materials, and compiling fundraiser items. All Elementary School: Strategies Employed (subthemes
notes were transcribed within 24 hours and annotat- include Communication and Home Learning

15:2 DECEMBER 2011 | ASCA 81

 Activities), Frustration (subthemes include Lack of In addition to providing information, Hawk
Reciprocity and Low Attendance), and Engagement. Elementary developed multiple home learning activ-
Strategies Employed describes the practices imple- ities to help parents meaningfully participate in their
mented at Hawk Elementary. Frustration describes child’s academic development (Barbarin et al., 2005;
the lack of impact of those strategies, and Hill & Taylor, 2004; Wong & Hughes, 2006).
Engagement describes the multiple levels of engage- Many of these strategies required very few resources:
ment among teachers and parents. By examining the
correlations among these three themes, a clearer pic- I try to tell the parents, you know, what we do
ture of the current parental involvement practices in school, try to reinforce it at home. Like when
emerges. Further, the results indicate that strategies we’re doing measurement and capacity, have
of parental involvement (relationship building, advo- the kids look in the refrigerator. What can you
cacy, and efficacy), which could characterize effective find that’s two ounces or two liters? What does
parental involvement for people of color and low- your mom use to measure a teaspoon? Does she
SES families, were missing. The next section use a regular teaspoon or does she use a tea-
describes the themes in more detail. spoon measurement? Pounds and ounces. Do
you have a pound of butter or does she have a
Practices should Strategies Employed cup? So, it’s trying to make everything we do in
The strategies used by Hawk Elementary align with school at home—how can you reinforce it at
include components more traditional types of parental involvement home. We put it in our newsletter.
strategies. For example, school staff embraced fre-
of relationship quent and specific communication as the primary The measurement activity served as an example of
parental involvement strategy. Weekly reports were a math home learning activity that teachers believed
building, advocacy, one tool used by many teachers: parents could easily incorporate into their evening
routine. Some activities were more explicitly con-
and parental It’s a weekly report that I give to parents just to, nected to school work:
kind of, let you know how your child did this
efficacy, as these week, any missing assignments they have, and We have packets, you know, helping your child
failing grades I staple it to it. to read. We’ve done a couple of workshops
have been shown to where we’ve had the parents come in and here
These reports, along with all other communica- are the types of questions we’re asking your
be effective in tion, are translated for any Latino parents that would child, here’s what we’re asking them to do.
prefer receiving communication in Spanish, a key Even if they just ask the five Ws [who, what,
working with best practice in parental involvement (Epstein & when, where, why].
Dauber, 1991; Epstein 2009; Galindo & Medina,
African American, 2009). In addition to written communication, By providing the activity and the training, teach-
teachers called or visited parents in their homes on a ers provided parents with the skills to effectively
Latino, and low- regular basis: implement these home-learning activities. Parents
also received home learning activities in a more per-
income My parents have my cell phone number, and sonal setting:
I’m really open with my parents... I go to their
populations. houses on Saturday to pick [students] up [for There are questions that they can ask their kids
Saturday Academy] and try to tell [the parents] before, during, and after reading… We had par-
how important it is for [students] to come to ent conference open night here, and we gave all
Saturday Academy. the parents the questions stems. Please, you
know, just always talk to your kids about what
The administration and teachers also personally they’re reading. And then every time on my
called all parents to remind and invite them to update I’ll say ask your kid about the books that
school events, such as Parent Teacher Organization they read. Whether they do it or not, it’s pre-
meetings and conferences. Furthermore, the com- sented to them. I’ll even give them a specific
munication was bidirectional, with parents often question to ask [in our weekly newsletter].
calling teachers: “Quite a few of them will call. ‘Just
want to know how so and so is doing. I saw this These individual conferences enabled teachers to
report—wasn’t happy with this.’” By establishing better customize and clarify information for specific
regular routines for communication and providing students and parents.
multiple methods for parents to obtain information, By implementing these strategies, Hawk
Hawk Elementary invited parents to become Elementary worked to not only invite parents into
involved in the school. their student’s learning but also provided them with

82 ASCA | PROFESSIONAL SCHOOL COUNSELING

the tools to be successful. Furthermore, focusing including the English as a Second Language teacher
efforts on empowering parents to be educational who served as the school liaison. However, the pres-
partners within the home shifted the school’s efforts ence of this liaison did enable Latina mothers to
away from traditional forms of parental involvement become involved in the organization.
and towards practices that may have a more signifi- No parents attended the informal open house
cant effect on academic achievement such as mean- organized for students to share their unit projects
ingful homework, home learning activities, and bidi- with their families. After the first two informal open
rectional communication. However, overall, parents houses, teachers instead decided to plan a typical
still demonstrated low involvement, especially in afternoon of lessons and activities as they did not
returning forms, attending conferences, or partici- want to see the children disappointed or have two
pating in school events, causing frustration for the hours of unstructured time. Although the projects
school staff. were on display, students and teachers did not
receive recognition for their efforts or an opportuni-
Frustrations ty to engage with parents.
In spite of the efforts of the school, the level of Frustrations did not prevent Hawk Elementary
parental involvement still remained low, which from attempting to engage parents, but they impact-
served as a constant frustration for Hawk ed the school’s attitude towards parental involve-
Elementary. Teachers were especially frustrated by ment. Although teachers were certain to provide
weekly reports that were unreturned or requests for home learning activities, they did not expend the The school does not
assistance that went unanswered: same amount of energy attempting to invite parents
into the building because they believed that, no mat- have a full-time
The [students whose weekly reports] I really ter what efforts they made, families would not come
want to see don’t bring them back. Those are into the classroom. In essence, previous experiences school counselor, so
the ones where I write your child really needs began directing future efforts.
help; I’m sending home an extra sheet please teachers and
make sure it comes back. It never comes back. Engagement
They’re not reading at home, and this is so I can Although teachers engaged with parents on some administrators are
ensure that they are reading. And so it’s getting level, and parents engaged with students, parents did
better and that’s because I will call them and say not engage with other parents. The most poignant the sole links to
look, you’re not signing this sheet just saying example of this phenomenon occurred at the PTO
that your child read. I don’t think they realize meeting, which was comprised of three mothers parents.
that just the repetition of reading will help the (two African Americans and one Latina), the ESL
child so much, but that’s what I have. teacher, and the lead author. This particular meeting
was called to organize the school’s bazaar, which was
Equally frustrating for teachers were parents who a new fundraising event initiated by the Latino fam-
questioned methodology: ilies. A bazaar was more closely aligned to their phi-
losophy of fundraising and community building
I know that when I send things home the par- than traditional sales campaigns. After the details of
ents write back and say what is this? Why are the bazaar had been arranged, the PTO president
they doing this? Why aren’t they doing it the stated that a nomination form was in the mailbox
way I was taught? And I try to explain that’s not from the district for recognizing an outstanding par-
how we teach them anymore; they have to learn ent volunteer. She then stated that there was no one
it this way. to nominate. The school liaison did not translate this
part of the conversation and proposed that they
This disconnect between parents’ own experiences nominate the Latina parent at the meeting, who had
in school and their children’s experiences created a attended every meeting, had given the idea of the
space for contention between teachers and families. bazaar, and was working to get donations and
Although communication difficulties served as a booths. The president conceded without looking at
source of frustration, parents’ lack of attendance at the other parent, and gave the form to the school
school events garnered the greatest frustration. staff member to complete. The Latina parent accept-
Parents regularly attended school performances or ed without ever acknowledging the president. This
evening lectures on academic topics such as end of exchange was emblematic of the communication
grade testing, reading strategies, or homework assis- throughout the meeting: parents communicating
tance, but attendance at Parent Teacher Organization with the liaison, who was also translating, without
(PTO) meetings and more informal open houses was ever looking at the other parents.
nearly non-existent. A member of the PTO explained The lack of communication among parents in this
that the group had just three active members, not scene was transparent. However, no malice was

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 apparent. The meeting was very quiet and uncom- parents. Teachers and administrators should realize
fortable, even though the group had been meeting that cultural differences and practices, individual dif-
all year. The lack of communication demonstrated ferences, and misunderstandings that can occur
that, although the school was sensitive and respon- between teachers and parents and among parents
sive to the two cultures and languages within the themselves can impede parental involvement prac-
building, the two groups did not have the tools nec- tices (Lopez & Stoelting, 2010). Schools must
essary to communicate with each other. The result- reconsider their beliefs about parental involvement
ing discomfort may be one reason parents are reluc- to focus on individual families’ strengths and design
tant to attend informal events at the school. a more effective parental involvement plan (Epstein
& Dauber, 1991; Griffin, 2011; Lee & Bowen,
DISCUSSION AND IMPLICATIONS FOR 2006). For some schools, this may mean redefining
SCHOOL COUNSELOR PRACTICE parent involvement from purely academic roles
toward more collaborative roles with other parents,
The results of this study indirectly answer the such as parent support groups, parent teams for
research question, “Why does parent involvement school events, or presenters in classroom cultural or
Frustrations did not continue to remain a struggle at Hawk enrichment activities. These networks could impact
Elementary?” The authors hypothesize that schools academic achievement not only by helping parents
prevent Hawk and teachers are not building effective relationships engage more directly with the school but also by
with parents and continue to define parental empowering parents to serve as supports for each
Elementary from involvement through more traditional methods as other. Implementing some of these activities at
described by Lopez et al. (2001): using strategies Hawk Elementary may also help address the frustra-
attempting to geared towards inviting parents to school-based tions that exist for teachers.
activities, or helping parents become more involved Although Hawk Elementary did revise its defini-
engage parents, with academics. As already demonstrated in the lit- tion of parental involvement to include home-based
erature, these types of involvement activities fail to learning activities and created a more inclusive ver-
but they impacted adequately cover parental involvement of low-SES sion of a parental involvement plan, as suggested by
families and families of color. the Epstein Model, the school was unable to reach
the school’s The results of the study also indicate that Hawk their desired goals of parents attending informal
Elementary may need to develop new strategies of open houses and working together to improve the
attitude towards parental involvement that work better with the pop- school. Even with concrete strategies to involve indi-
ulation of the school. Hawk needs to take into vidual parents, as is the case at Hawk Elementary,
parental account the myriad cultural differences that can schools must bridge the cultural gap among families
impact how parents demonstrate parental involve- in order to foster these relationships—a strategy not
involvement. ment. Although teachers at Hawk may have included in existing family involvement models
employed different types of strategies, once the (Griffin, 2011). Perhaps these strategies—fostering
strategies failed, the teachers became frustrated and relationships among families, increasing parental
seemed to just consider the parents uninvolved. involvement efficacy, and empowering parents for
The authors also assert that the Epstein Model advocacy—are the keys to increasing parent involve-
may not fully capture how parents are or want to be ment in high-minority, high-poverty schools.
involved in their children’s education, indicating Relationship building, efficacy, and advocacy utilize
that new ways of working with parents in high- non-traditional strategies to empower parents to
minority, high-poverty schools are warranted. Hawk develop personal social networks and engage in
Elementary may need to explore parental involve- reciprocal relationships with schools. School coun-
ment in conjunction with the families to find out selors can facilitate this model to ensure that parental
their needs and what works for them. Parental involvement efforts increase not only parental
involvement is not an easy practice, and it takes time engagement in the school but also parental owner-
and a lot of investment on behalf of schools and ship.
school staff in order to build effective, collaborative Relationship building should be the first strategy
relationships with their families. Although African implemented by school counselors. Relationships
American, Latino, and parents in poverty may be among parents may increase the participation and
more difficult for schools to engage in traditional the impact of existing strategies within the school by
methods of parent involvement, the evidence both increasing ownership, accountability, and social net-
in the literature and at Hawk Elementary suggests works. School counselors might consider hosting
that these parents are involved in their children’s and facilitating cultural awareness workshops for
education (Barbarin et al., 2005; Fields-Smith, parents. These workshops would focus on cultural
2007; Freeman, 2010; Gaetano, 2007; Kroeger, norms as well as working with translators. Courses in
2007), and shows that teachers are trying to engage English and Spanish might also help improve com-

84 ASCA | PROFESSIONAL SCHOOL COUNSELING

munication and collaboration among parents from ly-community collaboration can enhance student
diverse cultures. Finally, these workshops could learning and understand how to work with families,
establish social networks and strategies to empower staff, communities, and students to promote aca-
parents to support not only their children but also demic, career, and personal/social achievement.
the school community at large. The implications listed above are specifically for
Further, parent work groups could be established school counselors. The lack of a school counselor
to create ownership within the school. Each work could be a detriment for Hawk Elementary, because
group would begin with natural parent leaders in the school counselors are trained not only to work with The Epstein Model
school, who may emerge in the cultural workshops. families and build strong relationships but also to be
Parent leaders from each subgroup of the school multiculturally competent, which is essential for may not fully
could work together to form work groups that would working in high-minority, high-poverty schools,
perform specific tasks within the school, such as pro- such as Hawk. capture how
viding cultural translations of school materials, creat-
ing home learning activities, or organizing events LIMITATIONS parents are or want
within the school. School counselors could serve as
the liaison between these groups and the school This study was conducted in one elementary school; to be involved in
administration. Parent leaders would recruit other therefore, as with any case study, the suggestions
parents to join, thus widening the social networks. about parent involvement cannot be generalized to their children’s
Once relationships are established through these other urban schools with high-minority and high-
work groups, parent efficacy should increase. As par- poverty populations or to different school levels education,
ents experience success not only with their tasks but (e.g., middle and high schools). Similar studies con-
also with working with additional families, they may ducted at other schools could certainly support or indicating that new
feel as though their efforts are rewarded. contradict these findings. Furthermore, the lead
Furthermore, social networks could allow for the author conducted all of the data collection and ways of working
leveraging of resources to assist families and students analyses. Although every attempt was made to
in meeting their individual and group goals. improve validity, additional studies conducted by with parents in
Finally, parent groups should be empowered for multiple researchers would increase the validity of
advocacy. School counselors could encourage par- these results. high-minority, high-
ents to share concerns and needs, and then assist in Another limitation is the lack of parent voices.
their efforts to advocate for change or additional Because parent involvement is fragile at Hawk poverty schools are
resources. For example, if a parent work group Elementary, administrators asked the lead author
tasked with creating math activities to reinforce con- not to conduct formal interviews. Although parents’ warranted.
cepts for standardized tests found they did not have views were obtained during informal conversations
adequate resources in the school’s curriculum and observations, future research should seek the
library, the school counselor could help the group voices of parents more formally and explicitly.
locate potential sources and then advocate to the
administration to obtain these resources. To increase SUGGESTIONS FOR FUTURE RESEARCH
empowerment and parental efficacy, school coun-
selors could also charge parents with locating indige- The parental involvement strategies and struggles
nous resources. Indigenous resources are those that presented in this analysis are unique to Hawk
include parent-oriented supports, strengths, and Elementary School. However, the themes presented
skills within the family and community that may be here could be utilized as a framework for further
useful in schools (Abdul-Adil & Farmer, 2006). study in other schools. Do other schools experience
As stated earlier, Hawk Elementary did not have similar successes with home learning activities? Do
a school counselor during the course of this study, other schools struggle to create parental engage-
which could also be a factor in low attendance in the ment and networks?
parental involvement activities. Due to the nature of Furthermore, additional research regarding the
their profession, school counselors are charged with types of workshops and work groups suggested
collaborating with stakeholders to optimize the aca- above is critical. Are schools able to build parent net-
demic, career, and personal development of their works across cultures? What would workshops and
students. Furthermore, the importance of network- work groups designed to facilitate parental engage-
ing and collaborating with the community is written ment look like? What would the curriculum entail?
into the framework of school counselors’ training. Furthermore, do these parental cross-cultural net-
According to the 2009 Council for Accreditation of works increase student achievement, parental advo-
Counseling and Related Education Programs cacy, and parental efficacy?
(CACREP) standards, school counseling programs Although significant research exists that outlines
must train students to understand how school-fami- the benefits of parental involvement for students’

15:2 DECEMBER 2011 | ASCA 85

 academic success, garnering what schools consider Fields-Smith, C. (2007). Social class and African-American
parental involvement. In J. A. VanGalen & G. W. Noblit
ideal parental involvement strategies remains a signif- (Eds.), Late to class: Social class and schooling in the new
icant challenge, especially for high-poverty, high- economy (pp. 167-202). Albany, NY: State University of
minority schools. More studies need to be conduct- New York Press.
ed to explore the best strategies to work in these pop- Fields-Smith, C. (2009). After “It takes a village”: Mapping the
ulations. The best practice research for parental terrain of Black parental involvement in the post-Brown
era. In L. Tillman (Ed.), The SAGE handbook of African
involvement for African American and Latino fami- American education (pp. 153-168). Thousand Oaks, CA:
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