Flamboyan Foundation

🎉 “When you believe family partnership is core to your work, it transforms everything.” -Dr. Rushinda McCullough, Assistant Principal, Brookland Middle School

We’re celebrating the DC Public Schools school as they take the next step from the Family Engagement Partnership. Family engagement is now a lasting part of their school identity, and they're ready to continue this work on their own as a shining example for other secondary schools!

✅ Over 90% of new families have been reached for four consecutive years
✅ Sixth graders are reporting a strong sense of belonging
✅ Chronic absenteeism and discipline referrals have gone down
✅ Families are leading school-based initiatives, co-facilitating learning experiences, and seeing their roles recognized

At Brookland, every student feels seen, every family feels valued, and educators embrace partnerships as the secret to student success. Learn more about how they made it happen: https://flamboyanfoundation.org/ourstories/where-belonging-begins-brookland-middle-schools-family-engagement-journey/.

“When parents feel trusted and seen, they will partner with you in powerful ways.” -Dr. Victorie Thomas, Principal, W.B. Patterson Elementary School

That belief is at the core of Patterson’s transformation. Through Flamboyan’s Family Engagement Partnership, the DC Public Schools school built a culture rooted in trust, relationships, and true collaboration with families.

✅ Home visits are a priority for strong family-teacher relationships
✅ Academic Partnering meetings center on family voices and shared goals
✅ Real-time student data is used as a tool for joint problem-solving
✅ A schoolwide mindset shift truly sees families as partners

👏 We’re excited to celebrate Patterson Elementary School because they are now prepared to sustain this work on their own, with family engagement woven into the fabric of their school! We also look forward to what’s ahead and staying close to follow their future successes. 🎉

Read more about Patterson’s journey: https://flamboyanfoundation.org/ourstories/rooted-in-relationships-patterson-elementarys-family-engagement-evolution/.

Never underestimate the power of critical friendship. The Family Engagement Leadership Teams (FELTs) from five DC Public Schools and Meridian Public Charter School gathered this morning at Houston Elementary School to assess their progress, identify gaps, and develop goals that will focus their efforts to build strong relationships and authentic academic partnerships with families in the next school year.

The common planning allowed FELTs to push one another’s thinking, ask hard questions, and refine their goals. This work is not possible without the dedicated educators who step forward to make family engagement a school priority, and Flamboyan’s expert coaches who encourage them and guide the process forward.

We partner with educators to make a lasting part of school culture because we know when families and educators work together, students thrive. Through our Family Engagement Partnership, we provide training and spaces for school teams to connect, learn, and lead together. Our recent Community of Practice was a powerful event where educators reflected on their growth, shared strategies, and celebrated what's possible when families and schools have a strong partnership.

We also honored two amazing DC Public Schools, Brookland Middle School and W.B. Patterson Elementary School, for embedding family engagement into the heart of their school culture.

Read more about how we support educators in building strong, trust-based relationships with families: https://flamboyanfoundation.org/ourstories/celebrating-family-engagement-success-at-our-end-of-school-year-community-of-practice-at-mlk-library/.

Flamboyan’s Family Engagement Partnership (FEP) is possible because of the dedication and leadership of a handful of teachers in each school who make up the Family Engagement Leadership Team (FELT). These educators go beyond their classroom responsibilities to lead school-wide family engagement efforts, facilitate professional learning, support their peers, and help create a culture where families are true partners in student success.

This , we’re celebrating the incredible FELT members for transforming how their schools partner with families. They know that strong is essential. By building authentic relationships, honoring families, and staying rooted in their community, these teachers create lasting change for every student. The Flamboyan Foundation is honored to stand beside them in this work.

During this National Assistant Principals Week, we are proud to recognize the APs in DC Public Schools and charter schools with whom we get to work, especially…
- Rushinda McCullough – Brookland MS
- Sharneise Jones – DC Scholars Public Charter School
- Brimlay Snipes – Drew ES
- Sharnita Brockenberry – Kimball ES
- Rasheda Webster – McKinley MS
- Brandon Ortiz – Meridian Public Charter ES
- Fatima Johnson – Avery - Patterson ES

These dedicated APs are super-charging family engagement as members of their schools’ Family Engagement Leadership Team (FELT), a crucial component of Flamboyan’s Family Engagement Partnership. Thank you, APs, for all you do to build student achievement through strong school-family alliances!

“We’re now working with families not just on their concerns and day-to-day needs, but as a real academic partnership.”
“We build strong relationships with parents that are about more than parent events. It’s genuine two-way communication about helping their children succeed.”
These were just some of the words three DC principals shared during yesterday’s Cahn Fellowship briefing in DC about their experiences as Flamboyan Family Engagement Partnership schools. Donyale Butler of KIPP DC Inspire Academy; and Kerry Richardson of Brookland Middle School and Kortini Stafford of McKinley Middle School and McKinley Technology High School, both in DC Public Schools, showcased the transformative power of engaging families in deep and meaningful ways to accelerate student learning. We’re grateful these principals are sustaining their family engagement work, and proud to support the Cahn Fellowship program that sustains these high-impact leaders.

📣 Shoutout to our past, present, and future partner schools for being a bright spot for math in the District!✨

🎉 Congratulations to:
⭐ Anne Beers Elementary School
⭐ Cleveland Elementary School
⭐ W.B. Patterson Elementary School
⭐ Stanton Elementary School
⭐ KIPP DC Promise Academy
⭐ Powell Elementary School
⭐ Center City PCS Petworth
⭐ DC Scholars Public Charter School
EmpowerK12’s 2024 DC Math Report highlights the incredible academic growth in DC schools—and we know that strong family engagement is a key driver of this success! 👏

These DC Public Schools and public charter schools prove when families, educators, and students work together, achievement follows. 🚀
https://www.empowerk12.org/research-source/2024-dc-math-report

🌟 Big news for our partners at DC Public Schools! ✨ DCPS has been recognized as a Bright Spot in the National Education Recovery Scorecard, showing the highest reading and math growth among urban districts nationwide. This achievement is a testament to the dedication of educators, families, and students working together to accelerate learning.

👏 Join us in celebrating this incredible progress! Read more from EmpowerK12 here:

DC Recognized as Bright Spot on National Education Recovery Scorecard — EmpowerK12 The latest update of the Education Recovery Scorecard , which tracks academic progress in school districts across the country, has identified DC as a state and DC Public Schools (DCPS) as standouts making significant strides in student achievement and pandemic recovery.

Congratulations to Flamboyan Family Engagement Partnership DC Public Schools (graduated and current) represented last night at DC Public Education Fund’s Standing Ovation ceremony!

🌟 Beers Elementary School
🌟 Ida B. Wells Middle School
🌟 MacFarland Middle School
🌟 Maury Elementary School

Congratulations to H.D. Woodson High School on receiving the M. Shanita Burney Family Engagement Award! With our DC Public Education Fund partner, Flamboyan is honored to sponsor the award, which celebrates Shanita's more than twenty-year legacy of championing family engagement through her work serving the district.

Flamboyan is hiring! Our Washington, DC office has three open roles on our Program team:

📣 School Partnership Coach, Secondary Specialist
📣 School Partnership Coach, Training
📣 Program Associate

Help us work towards strengthening family engagement in schools and school systems across the country. Learn more about these opportunities and apply today at bit.ly/FF-Careers