Building Strong Partnerships with Families
The Children’s Centers are vibrant learning communities grounded in meaningful relationships and shared values. At the heart of our work is a deep commitment to engaging families as vital partners in their children’s early education.
Research and best practices in early childhood education consistently show that strong family engagement leads to higher academic achievement, improved social-emotional development, and greater motivation to learn. Within our learning community, we are intentional in fostering these partnerships from the very beginning.
We welcome new families with personalized tours and orientation sessions. Teachers follow up with welcome emails and information packets to ensure families feel informed and supported as they transition into our community.
During the first six weeks of enrollment, teachers conduct informal check-ins to build trust and open lines of communication. We also offer two formal family conference periods each year, with progress reports shared in between to keep families informed of their child’s development.
At the start of the school year—or upon a child’s enrollment—we gather information about each family to better understand their background, values, and interests. This helps us create meaningful opportunities for collaboration. Families are invited to visit classrooms to read stories, share talents, or teach us about cultural traditions.
Texas A&M Children’s Centers
Executive Director
Each center has a Family Advisory Board (FAB) that plays a vital role in shaping the direction of our programs. This collaborative group of family representatives provides valuable insights, feedback, and perspectives that help us improve our practices and ensure we are meeting the needs of the children and families we serve. By involving families in decision-making processes, we promote transparency, build trust, and strengthen the partnership between home and school.
Consistent, open communication fosters trust between families and educators. We want our families to feel we are a supportive extension of their family. To encourage continuity between home and school we share daily, weekly, and monthly updates with our families. Daily communication occurs during drop-off and pick-up times, and we utilize a communication app to share messages, photos, and updates. Teachers send weekly storyboards highlighting documented growth and learning taking place in our classrooms. In addition, we send out this monthly newsletter.
The Texas A&M University Children’s Centers believe that children thrive when families and educators work together. We are grateful for the trust our families place in us and are committed to nurturing these partnerships every day.