Join us in Las Vegas

Conference Description | Conference Date | Conference Session | Conference Outline | Conference Location | Conference Cost |  Who should attend

Learn how to...

Effectively Engage Families in Head Start!

4 in-depth days of strategies and tools for empowering families in Head Start!!!!

Conference Date:   October 10-13, 2011                  

Conference Outline: Coming Soon!

Conference Information: Are you engaging families in Head Start? The Family Engagement Conference gives you strategies for strengthening the capacity of HS/EHS and other early childhood programs to implement and use strengths-based and culturally-informed practices. Participants learn to develop family engagement methodologies that are systemically integrated across Head Start and communities which can be sustained over time.  Key skills will be given to help you build a productive staff-family relationship, by teaching you how to use family engagement processes as the foundation for family empowerment and stability. It is important throughout the life of a Head Start Families—from family literacy, parent involvement through community collaboration and decision-making; to service delivery, and ultimately transition, you will learn to build on a community resources and parent connections, family engagement activities focus not only on the family empowerment but also on the active involvement of parents, and the family’s natural support systems. Beyond engaging families you will learn how to engage families in their own destiny. This 4 day  conference is designed to give you the best tools for engaging families through communication, parent involvement and understanding of culturally diverse Head Start families. During this conference you will learn how to build the capacity of all Head Start staff to make Head Start's renewed vision for parent empowerment.

Upon completion of this in-depth family engagement conference you will acquire the skills to:

• Enhance the supportive relationship. A family’s belief that all its members are respected and that their feelings and concerns are heard strengthens their relationship with Head Start. Learning how to create this positive relationship, in turn, can increase the chances for successful family development.

• Promoting family "buy-in." When families are part of the decision-making process and have a say in developing plans that affect them and their children, they are more likely to be invested in the Head Start and more likely to commit to achieving Head Start objectives and become more actively involved in their own self-sufficiency.

• Expanding support options. Inclusion of family members—including fathers and extended family—early in the process provides a greater opportunity to explore the use of relatives as a stability for children.

• Improving the quality and focus of family support. The staff/parent relationship developed through family engagement strategies strengthens the assessment process and leads to more appropriate support services.

• Increasing family stability - learn how to develop services and resources that focus on family safety, health and financial stability and incorporate these strategies into a family’s values, culture and aspirations

• Improving leadership - learn how to implement leadership development, incorporate decision-making policies, and organize family activities to improve parent and child development and learning experiences.

• Building family decision-making skills. By helping families utilize strength-based decision-making processes and learn how to display appropriate problem-solving approaches, participants will learn to help families be more comfortable communicating their own problem-solving strategies and exploring new strategies that may benefit themselves and their children.

• Enhancing the fit between family needs and services. Working collaboratively, Head Start staff and families are better able to identify a family’s unique needs and develop relevant and culturally appropriate service plans that address underlying needs, build on family strengths, and draw from community supports. Learn how to design better services that leads to more effective self-sufficiency and establish family stability.

Conference Agenda:

Day 1 - Tuesday, October 10, 2011

8:00am - 12:00pm	Registration and Check-in
1:00pm - 2:00pm	Welcome Family Engagement: A Framework for Success (All attendees)
2:00pm - 2:30pm	Break
3:00pm - 4:00pm	Welcome Family Engagement: A Framework for Success (All attendees)

Day 2 - Wednesday, October 11, 2011

8:00am - 12:00pm	Workshop 1: Healthy Families:  Promoting Stability
	Workshop 2: Promoting Family "Buy In"
	Workshop 3: Family Support:  Strengthening the Family
	Workshop 4: Communication:  Speaking and Listening Respectfully
12:00pm - 1:00pm	Lunch on your own
1:00pm - 4:00pm	Workshop 5: Family Development: Creating Strong Parent-Child Relationships
	Workshop 6: Family Literacy: Elements of Family Learning
	Workshop 7: Children are "listening" all the time
	Workshop 8: Home Visits: A five step planning process
	Workshop 9: Transition Framework: Assessing Transition Practices

Day 3 - Thursday, October 12, 2011

8:00am - 12:00pm	Workshop 10: Parent Engagement: The Staff and Parent Connection
	Workshop 11: Working Effectively with Parents
	Workshop 12: Parent Involvement- Sharing the Responsibility
	Workshop 13: Strengthening the Community - Offering support to Parents
12:00pm - 1:00pm	Lunch on your own
1:00pm - 4:00pm	Workshop 14:Community Resources: Engaging Parents in the Broader Community
	Workshop 15: Parents as Teachers: How Parent Supports Children's Learning
	Workshop 16: Advocating Quality: Researching Good Results
	Workshop 17: Parenting Education: What Parents need to Know

Day 4 - Friday, October 13, 2011

8:00am - 12:00pm	Workshop 18: Cultural Diversity: The Influence of Family and Culture
	Workshop 19: Home Based Program Options: Services in the Home Environment
	Workshop 20: Collaboration Challenges: Managing Conflicts
	Workshop 21: Elements of Success: Successful Meetings and Facilitation

Conference Location:

Tropicana Hotel and Casino

3801 Las Vegas Blvd

Las Vegas , NV

Hotel Rate: $115.00 per night single/double

Hotel Phone: 702-739-2222

Toll Free:  1-800-G02-TROP

(Mention "HS University Training" when making reservations. HS University has reserved a limited amount of slots for this event.)
 

Contact Person:

Stephanie Martin or Michael Davis
Tel: 1-888-282-7817
Fax: 901-748-0297

Email: mdavis@hsuniversity.org
 

HS University has reserved a limited amount of slots for this event.  For those booking in HS University room blocks, the rate will be coming soon. 

REGISTRATION FEE

Registration fees are as follows:

• $795.00 per person

Confirmation will be mailed to you within 24 hours of your online registration.

The registration fee includes:

• Up to 24 hours of conference or 10 credits
• Comprehensive conference manuals
• All refreshment breaks, including daily light morning refreshments
• Comprehensive toolkit CD, containing printable forms and procedures

Cancellations. Cancellations made after September 10th will be charged $50 per person cancellation fee. If you cancel, you may send a substitute from your organization or transfer your registration fee to a future seminar (with a written request to HSU Conference), and we’ll waive the cancellation fee. Participants who register but neither attend nor cancel will be liable for their full registration fee.