NRS385.635. Duties; annual report; posting of certain information on Department’s website.

      1.  The Office of Parental Involvement and Family Engagement created by NRS 385.630 shall:

      (a) Review and evaluate the programs implemented by the school districts and public schools, including, without limitation, programs which are supported in part with money received from the Federal Government, for carrying out and increasing parental involvement and family engagement in the public schools. The review and evaluation must include an identification of current strategies and practices for effective parental involvement and family engagement.

      (b) Develop a list of practices which have been proven effective in increasing the involvement of parents and the engagement of families in the education of their children, including, without limitation, practices that increase the ability of school districts and public schools to effectively reengage parents and families and provide those parents and families with the skills and resources necessary to support the academic achievement of their children.

      (c) Work in cooperation with the Statewide Council for the Coordination of the Regional Training Programs in carrying out the duties of the Office, including, without limitation, the establishment of a statewide training program concerning parental involvement and family engagement required pursuant to NRS 391.520.

      (d) Provide information to the school districts and public schools on the availability of competitive grants for programs which offer:

             (1) Professional development for educational personnel on practices to reengage disengaged parents and families in the education of their children;

             (2) Training for parents and families in skills of leadership and volunteerism;

             (3) Family literacy training;

             (4) Home visitation programs to encourage the involvement of parents and the engagement of families in the education of their children; and

             (5) Other innovative programs that are designed to increase the involvement of parents and the engagement of families in the academic achievement of their children.

      (e) Provide support to those school districts which have established an advisory council on parental involvement and family engagement pursuant to NRS 385.625 and encourage those school districts which have not established such an advisory council to consider creating an advisory council for the school district.

      (f) Build the capacity of public schools to work in collaboration with parents to establish policies for the involvement of parents and the engagement of families, including, without limitation, policies that focus on partnerships between public schools and the parents and families of children enrolled in public schools and the empowerment of parents and families in support of the education of their children.

      (g) Work in cooperation with the Commission on Professional Standards in Education in developing the regulations required by paragraph (k) of subsection 1 of NRS 391.019 and monitoring the implementation of those regulations.

      (h) Establish, in collaboration with the State Board, guidelines to assist parents and families in helping their children achieve the standards of content and performance adopted by the State Board pursuant to NRS 389.520.

      (i) Collaborate with the Nevada State Parent Information and Resource Center, the Parent Training and Information Centers, the Nevada Parent Teacher Association, the Advisory Council and the teachers who are trained to serve as liaisons to parents and legal guardians of pupils enrolled in public schools to plan and implement a statewide summit on parental involvement and family engagement, which must be held at least biennially. After each summit, the Office of Parental Involvement and Family Engagement shall evaluate the success of the summit in consultation with the entities identified in this paragraph.

      (j) Assist each school district and the public schools within the school district with incorporating strategies and practices for effective parental involvement and family engagement into the plans to improve the achievement of pupils prepared by the public schools pursuant to NRS 385.357.

      (k) Work in partnership with the Advisory Council to:

             (1) Review and evaluate the annual reports of accountability prepared by the board of trustees of each school district pursuant to NRS 385.347 relating to parental involvement and family engagement in the school districts and public schools;

             (2) Review and evaluate the plans to improve the achievement of pupils prepared by each public school pursuant to NRS 385.357 relating to the strategies and practices for effective parental involvement and family engagement incorporated into the plans; and

             (3) Review the status of the implementation of the provisions of this section and the effectiveness of the Office in carrying out the duties prescribed in this section.

      2.  On or before August 1 of each year, the Office of Parental Involvement and Family Engagement shall prepare a report which includes a summary of the:

      (a) Status of the progress made by the school districts and public schools in effectively involving parents and engaging families in the education of their children and an identification of any areas where further improvement is needed; and

      (b) Activities of the Office during the immediately preceding school year, including the progress made by the Office, in consultation with the Advisory Council, in assisting the school districts and public schools with increasing the effectiveness of involving parents and engaging families in the education of their children.

      3.  The Department shall post on its Internet website:

      (a) The list of practices developed by the Office of Parental Involvement and Family Engagement pursuant to paragraph (b) of subsection 1;

      (b) The report prepared by the Office pursuant to subsection 2; and

      (c) Any other information that the Office finds useful for the school districts, public schools, parents, families and general public relating to effective parental involvement and family engagement.

      (Added to NRS by 2011, 1962; A 2013, 1688)