Parent Leadership

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Parent Leadership

• Presenters
• Vicky Roper, Director, Kansas Childrens Service
  League
• B. J. Gore, Supervisor, Kansas Childrens Service
  League

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Parent Leadership

• Parent leadership occurs when parents
  actively, creatively and resourcefully contribute
  to promoting and developing the well being of
  their families and their communities.
• Through such involvement, parents can build
  interdependent relationships with family service
  providers and other family-focused agencies that
  seek to enhance the quality of life for families
  and children.

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Strength-based Approach

• Parent leadership is a strength-based approach
  to family support that is founded on the belief
  that parents are knowledgeable about the families
  and communities and can provide valuable insight
  into programmatic and community changes to
  benefit children and families.

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Parent Leadership Model

• Shared leadership
• Parent engagement
• Parent involvement
• Parent encouragement
• Family support
• A parent leader represents the needs and
  perspective of the parents to an agency.

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Who Can Be Parent Leaders

• Biological parent
• Grandparent raising a grandchild
• Relative raising a child
• Adoptive parent
• Foster parent
• Non-relative caregiver

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Principles of Parent Leadership

• Parents/professionals are equal partners
• No one has all the solutions
• Mutual respect, trust and open-mindedness
• Collective action based upon shared vision,
  ownership and accountability
• Consensus building vs. democratic process

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Parent Leadership Takes

• Time, resources and patience
• An organization-wide commitment
• An understanding and acceptance of the impact
  parents can have on their children, family and
  community

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Guidelines for Parent Leadership

• Commitment from program and agency
• Be clear and honest in your commitment to
  parents make the commitments in writing.
• Ask parents for straight feedback about your
  agencys performance in parent engagement.
• Use feedback from parents to look at
  agency/program services and support. Information
  from parents can help to continually improve
  services and support offered.
• Secure appropriate resources and funding levels.

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Gaining Support From Decision Makers

• Inform
• Explain
• Explore
• Partner
• Train

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Common Parent Fears

• I wont fit in.
• They wont value my input.
• Nothing will change.
• Ill have to take time off work.
• What is expected from me?
• I wont know what they are talking
• about or what they are doing.
• I have nothing to offer!

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Common Agency Fears

• Have to change work expectations to meet the
  level of the parent
• They will have past issues with the agency and
  see the issues as an agenda.
• Need to make too many concessions to function
• Other agencies will not accept their input as
  valid.
• Confidentiality issues
• No place for them in our hierarchical system
• You cant control them.

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Benefits for Families

• Improves services for families
• Provides opportunity to affect meaningful change
• Increases confidence in ability to affect change
• Provides opportunities to network with other
  families and providers

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Benefits for Families

• Models community involvement and empowerment for
  own children and family
• Parents develop advocacy skills
• Develops effective communication skills
• Increases sense of personal power
• Offers leadership role for other families

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Benefits for Providers, Programs Agencies and
Communities

• Enhances relationships between families and
  providers
• Increases responsiveness to family-identified
  needs
• Improves the quality of programs and services
• Keeps program relevant and realistic

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Benefits for Providers, Programs Agencies and
Communities

• Increases visibility of and respect for program
  in the community
• Develops a fresh perspective on how services
  should be delivered
• Improves ability to accomplish mission
• Increases appreciation of various cultures

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Developing Parent Leadership

• Interview and select parent volunteers with the
  same process and care you would with any other
  volunteer.
• - KBI
• - CANIS
• - Reference Checks
• Provide a written job description.
• Have a formal system for supervision and
  mentoring.
• Offer opportunities for parent leaders to support
  each other.
• Time! Time!! Time!!!

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Nurturing Parent Leaders

• Provide a mentor.
• Help them overcome the barriers to participation.
• Prepare them in advance with who will be there
  how will others be dressed what will happen at
  the meeting what will their role be.
• Provide role modeling opportunities.

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Parent Leadership Roles

• Members of task forces
• Board members
• Co-trainers for staff development
• Mentors for other families
• Grant reviewers
• Participants in quality improvement initiatives
• Public speakers
• Advocacy

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Benefits of a Parent Leadership Structure For the
Agency

• Supports aggressive program expansion and
  on-going program management
• Supports best practice standards for
  supervision and training
• Incorporates leadership development for members
  of the network

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Benefits for the Parents
Protective Factors The Center for the Study of
Social Policy Strengthening Families Imitative

• Nurturing and attachment of children
• Knowledge of effective parenting
• Knowledge of child and youth development
• Parental resilience
• Social connections and solid support for parents

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Evidence Based Research Studies Circle of Parents

• Circle of Parents
• Florida, Minnesota and Washington
• Increase in
• 80 in self-management skills
• 70 in parent-child relationship
• 70 in support systems awareness and use

• Circle of Parents
• Kansas (Latino Families)
• Increase in
• 78 in child development
• 74 in positive parenting skills
• 86 knowledge in crisis situations and problem
  solving

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Administrative Considerations

• Our budget is a reflection of our values. To
  budget
• for Parent Leadership include funding
  for
• Travel to Meetings, Training
• Child Care During Meetings, Training
• Food for Meetings, Training
• Registration, Travel and Incidentals to
  Conferences
• Recognition Events
• Training Activities
• Background Checks
• Marketing Materials

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Points to Remember!

• Agencies benefit from raising the consumer
  voice.  It makes us better.  It keeps us current
  and meeting needs. We need this lens.
• Parent leadership is a tool in the prevention
  toolbox.  By taking risks to get out of their
  comfort zone and learn new skills while on this
  parent leadership ladder, parents will often take
  risks to better their own lives and advocate for
  their children and their family.
• This is a strengths-based, empowerment model.

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