National Center on Parent, Family and Community Engagement
The National Center on Parent, Family and Community Engagement (NCPFCE) is awarded to Start Early (formerly Ounce of Prevention) in collaboration with Child Trends, LIFT, Fred Rogers Center, and Frank Porter Graham Center at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill.
NCPFCE provides training and technical assistance for Head Start (HS) and Early Head Start (EHS) staff who work with families. NCPFCE professional development activities reflect current evidence and lead to improved:
- Family outreach, recruitment, and attendance
- Family well-being
- Expanded family engagement in children’s learning and development
- Enhanced community partnerships that support families
- Strengthened outcomes for children and families enrolled in HS/EHS programs
NCPFCE also offers professional development in areas, including but not limited to:
- Staff-family relationship building that is culturally and linguistically responsive
- Family employment, career pathways, and financial stability
- Equity and inclusiveness in family engagement
- Parent leadership, advocacy, and transitions to kindergarten
The Parent, Family, and Community Engagement Framework for Early Childhood Systems Series includes a guide to the relationship between parents, ECE systems, providers, and community service providers.
The Foundations for Quality resource series is designed to support development and implementation of effective, family-friendly consumer education and engagement strategies.
The Promoting Informed Child Care Choices: A Training Guide for Child Care Subsidy Staff is a professional development guide which enhances skills and knowledge related to consumer education and parent, family, and community engagement.
Use the Consumer Education Websites: A Guide to Creating a Family-Friendly Experience to create or enhance a family-friendly consumer education website.
Explore the Supporting Children and Families Experiencing Homelessness: Interactive Learning Series for Early Childhood Professionals to enhance your knowledge around family homelessness.
Explore Consumer Engagement: Strategies for Engaging Families to learn more about engaging parents as consumers in plans, processes, and programs that are part of an agency’s everyday responsibilities.
The Relationship-based Competencies to Support Family Engagement series consist of four resources describing knowledge, skills, and individual practices that professionals need to effectively engage families.
Use the Key Indicators of High-Quality Family Engagement for QRIS to support early childhood state systems-building efforts to advance family engagement.