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Parent Advisory Council

Parent Advisory Council

Dr. Sessoms created surveys for interested PAC parents and caretakers to gain their anonymous insights to help identify district strengths, opportunities for growth, alignment with aspirations, and the results they wish to see.

  • The survey results were analyzed prior to the May meeting into a SOAR analysis to facilitate collaborative problem-identification and solution-building centered on parent and caretaker voice.
  • Additional survey questions focused on identifying ways to better support students’ sense of belonging, community resource mapping, positive student-staff relationships, parents' core values, and the personal strengths they will bring to the PAC.
  • Respondents were also asked to include the elementary school their child(ren) attended to help ensure the PACs are representative of each region.

Meeting Dates:
(all meetings will be at 6:30 pm in the LD Middle School cafeteria)

  • Monday, May 22 - The group met with more than 50 in attendance. A few ground rules were established including - be forgiving when people speak their truth; be open to new ways of communicating - the way that we speak and the way that we listen; live & model what we're saying; and believe people for the experience that they tell through their truth. Dr. Sessoms review the high school's survey results (the middle school had not met yet) and discussed the students' results with those of the parent group. They then discussed the Strengths, Opportunities, Aspirations and Results identified through the parent surveys and held in-depth discussions about that SOAR model.  Attached are the  SOAR results from the parent group and the PowerPoint Presentation used at the meeting. 
  • Monday, June 26 - The group met with more than 25 in attendance. Discussion was given to developing a mission and vision for the group. The majority of the meeting involved values alignment from emerging themes from the surveys. The group then broke into small working groups to discuss the emerging themes further. The themes included: Mental Health, Climate and Culture, Leadership Development, Skill-Building, Finances and Resources. Attached is the PowerPoint Presentation  used at the meeting. 
  • Tuesday, July 25 - The group met with more than 15 in attendance. The discussion focused on Dr. Sessoms' report to the board the night before which included recommendations based on the state Department of Education's Equity Pillars as they related to the themes identified in the surveys of district parents/caregivers, secondary students and school staff. They inlcude: 
    • Mitigating burnout and cultivating sustainable employees through capacity-building
    • Comprehensive mental health professionals and systems
    • Practicing equity, inclusion, and belonging
    • Developing effective social emotional skills to support positive relationships and collaborative problem-solving
    • Fostering a community of learners
    • Communicating a shared mission, vision, and values to model transparency and consistency
    • Leveraging external partnerships
    • Implementing tiered levels of support
    • Accountability through clear and consistent disciplinary policies, practices, and procedures

Download Dr. Sessoms' executive summary from the first phase of her work with the district here: Phase I Executive Summary

  • Monday, August 27 - About a dozen individuals met and discussed a mission statement for the group and a revised vision statement. The mission states "The LDSD Parent Advisory Council (PAC) amplifies student, family and staff voice through its collective of parents and caregivers who meaningfully engage in school, family, and community partnerships that contribute to each student's sense of belonging and overall success."

The vision states: "The LDSD Parent Advisory Council's vision is to be exemplars of family-school-community partnerships that achieve schools and communities where every student, family, and staff member feels seen, heard, and valued by collectively demonstrating

      • Honesty by speaking the truth;
      • Kindness by taking care of children, ourselves, and each another;
      • Accountability by owning our mistakes, apologizing, and making amends for harm caused;
      • Teamwork by working well as a group;
      • Fairness by not letting our personal feelings bias our decisions about others; and 
      • Respect by treating all people with appreciation and dignity."

Dr. Sessoms further reviewed the themes presented at the July meeting and discussed concrete examples identified in the surveys as a means to discuss indicators to improve the climate and begin to address the issues identified in the themes.

Download Dr. Sessoms' presentation from the meeting here:  Strategic Planning Worksheets - August 2023

  • Monday, September 25 - Around 10 parents and caregivers met to further discuss the identified themes and identified priority outcomes that the PAC members would like to see in each area. The top three in each pillar of equity (with the number of 'up-votes') included:
    • General Equity Practices - Adults monitoring inclusive behaviors - no misogyny (11); Listen and believe students when they speak of harm (11); and Providing supports to increase LGBQ+ and BIPOC students' belonging (10).
    • Self-Awareness - Safe Spaces to express grievances (11); Leadership develops more of a listening/learning posture (9); Students can identify and access trusted staff (8); Staff and students have courage to address/speak up when they witness racism, exclusion, discrimination, etc. (8).
    • Data Practices - Create a dashboard on the district website to address inequities and other measures to track progress toward identified goals (11); Clear communication from the Board on PAC expectations and mutual agreement (9); District must become vulnerable enough for self-critique (5).
    • Family & Community Engagement - Parent trainings - kindness, inclusion, social media, mental health (6); PAC members in school buildings to support change (6); Community events and trainings (5).
    • Academic Equity - Learn Spanish in elementary school (5 + 1 downvote); Ensure movement is incorporated into the school day (4); PRIDE recognition that doesn't exclude less recognized students (4); Elementary adoption of a shared language for acceptance and kindness (4).
    • Disciplinary Equity - Clear and transparent process for tracking incidents of harm - racism, sexual harassment, discrimination, etc. (10); Consistent, proactive processes and procedures to ensure staff and student accountability for use of race-based speech, harassment, cyber/bulling, and discrimination (10); Better surveillance and awareness of bullying hot spots (7); Ensure reporting policies protect the victims (7); Letter mailed to parents to provide transparency on disciplinary procedures for students - level of offense as in Code of Conduct (7)

Download Dr. Sessoms' presentation from the meeting here: Strategic Planning Worksheets - September 2023

  • Monday, October 23 - About 10 parents/community members met to review the status of various initiatives and Dr. Sessoms presented a graphic organizer to show progress toward identified needs goals. The group also reviewed the group's mission to provide a more "action-based" role for the group and reviewed the group's vision to include "community" as an important component toward progress. The group also reviewed the most upvoted solutions/opportunities based on voting in the group and prioritized the top emerging themes to develop strategic intentions.

Download Dr. Sessoms' presentation from the meeting here: Strategic Planning Worksheets - October 2023

  • Wednesday, November 29 - About 10 parents/community members met to hear updates from Dr. Sessoms on the district's progress toward its building-level action steps and to develop an action items regarding the district's proposed Code of Conduct and for providing the group's input toward the district's Comprehensive Plan. 

Download Dr. Sessoms' presentation from the meeting here: Strategic Planning Worksheets - November 2023