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May 2014Vol. 15, No. 5Aligning Engagement Frameworks

The Strengthening Families approach and the Head Start (HS) Parent, Family and Community Engagement (PFCE) Framework were both developed to engage parents as partners in supporting children's early learning and development. The Center for the Study of Social Policy (CSSP) released a paper, How Strengthening Families Aligns With the Head Start Parent, Family and Community Engagement Framework, that explores the alignment between the two approaches. The paper provides an overview of both Strengthening Families and the HS PFCE framework and describes their similarities and differences.

Strengthening Families, a research-informed approach to increase family strengths, enhance child development, and reduce the likelihood of child abuse and neglect, is based on engaging families, programs, and communities in building five protective factors: (1) parental resilience, (2) social connections, (3) knowledge of parenting and child development, (4) concrete support in times of need, and (5) social and emotional competence of children. The HS PFCE framework, a research-based approach that demonstrates how programs and systems can work together to promote parent and family engagement and child learning and development, is a tool for implementing HS performance standards and best practices. The purpose of the paper is to help organizations understand the programs and their intended uses and to assist in making an informed decision about which program best meets their needs. The paper includes a section entitled Resources for Program Implementation that provides links to the Strengthening Families self-assessment tool and online training curriculum, as well links to the PFCE Assessment Tools and Guides and the Parent, Family, and Community Engagement Interactive Framework.

How Strengthening Families Aligns With the Head Start Parent, Family and Community Engagement Framework is available on the Center for the Study of Social Policy website:

http://www.cssp.org/reform/strengthening-families/2014/HOW-STRENGTHENING-FAMILIES-ALIGNS-WITH-THE-HEAD-START-PARENT-FAMILY-AND-COMMUNITY-ENGAGEMENT-FRAMEWORK.pdf