NPM-9: Percent of adolescents, ages 12 through 17, who are bullied or who bully others

 

Annual Report FY22:

 

This Performance Measure was achieved. The Performance Objective was 24.4% and the Annual Indicator was 22.9%

 

Program Activities:

 

The Violence and Injury Prevention Program (VIPP), the Healthy Environments through Active Living program (HEAL) program, and the Office of Maternal and Child Health use MCH funding to implement primary prevention activities shown to reduce the risk of bullying. Primary prevention of bullying refers to the various measures and strategies implemented to prevent bullying from happening in the first place. This includes interventions that aim to create a safe and positive family, school or community environment, promote positive social and emotional skills among children and youth, and increase awareness and understanding of bullying and its harmful effects. MCH's strategies to prevent bullying include 1) policy support, 2) increasing positive relationships, 3) Increasing family, school, and community connectedness, 4) increasing conflict resolution skills, and 5) increasing awareness and education. We have provided a more thorough description of these strategies below:

1) Policy support: Developing and implementing school-wide anti-bullying policies and procedures that clearly define what bullying is and how it will be addressed. Utah anti-bullying laws require districts to include training regarding bullying, cyber-bullying, hazing, abusive conduct, and retaliation in Utah schools. VIPP has been involved in educating lawmakers on evidence-based policies to reduce bullying. In addition, VIPP has participated on the SafeUT Commission since its inception. SafeUT is a crisis chat and tip line that provides real-time crisis intervention for students, parents/guardians, and educators through live chat and a confidential tip line through a smartphone app.

2) Increasing positive relationships: Children who have positive relationships with parents, adults, peers, and family members are less likely to engage in bullying behavior or become victims of bullying. Parenting practices that are warm, supportive, and involve clear expectations and consistent discipline can help children develop positive social skills and reduce the likelihood of engaging in bullying behavior.

Economic instability creates stress on the family and may contribute to poor parenting and familial relationships. The Earned Income Tax Credit (EITC) is a federal tax credit for working people with low and moderate incomes. It boosts the incomes of workers paid low wages while offsetting federal payroll and income taxes. There are several reasons why families who qualify for the federal EITC may not file for it, including lack of awareness, the complexities of filing, a fear of audits, lack of technology access, or language barriers. VIPP and the Office of Health Promotion and Prevention (OHPP) have actively engaged in increasing awareness and support for families to file for the federal EITC and to connect families with free-tax help.

The Adolescent Health Program (AHP) in the Office of Maternal and Child Health worked with parents on Teen Speak. Teen Speak was a program that equipped parents and other trusted adults with communication skills they could use to overcome the common challenges of connecting with a teen. Better communication with teens helps create a trusted relationship that supports their positive decision-making. Teen Speak was built on sound, science-based techniques and strategies that were taught through a practical, real-world approach. Due to funding issues, AHP has transitioned to working with a different program called Families Talking Together. This evidenced-based program focuses on helping parents communicate about sexual decision-making.

AHP also provides the Wyman's TOP program. Wyman’s Teen Outreach Program (TOP) promotes the positive development of adolescents through curriculum-guided, interactive group discussions; positive adult guidance and support; and community service learning. TOP is designed to meet the developmental needs of middle and high school teens. The TOP Curriculum is focused on key topics related to adolescent health and development, including building social, emotional, and life skills; developing a positive sense of self; and connecting with others.

Emotional intelligence: Children who are emotionally intelligent, can recognize and regulate their own emotions, and have empathy for others, are less likely to engage in bullying behavior.

3) Increasing family, school, and community connectedness: Children who feel connected to their family, school and community, have positive relationships with parents, neighbors, teachers and staff, and feel like they belong, are less likely to engage in bullying behavior or become victims of bullying. Families, schools, and communities can create a culture of respect, inclusion, and empathy, which will increase connectedness and in turn decrease bullying.

The HEAL program works with schools to increase physical activity. Practicing physical activity is a fundamental factor in health promotion in childhood and adolescence (Ramos et al., 2016). Non-competitive team sports promote social relationships for adolescents, which may reduce the incidence of bullying.

VIPP has created a connectedness toolkit for families, schools, and communities. This toolkit gives concrete recommendations for increasing connectedness for children and adolescents and can be accessed at health.utah.gov/vipp.

4) Increase conflict resolution skills: Children who have skills in conflict resolution and problem-solving are less likely to engage in bullying behavior and are better equipped to resolve conflicts in a peaceful and respectful manner.

The Safe Dates program is a school-based intervention program designed to prevent dating violence among teenagers. The program covers topics such as the prevalence and consequences of dating violence, communication and conflict resolution skills, and gender roles and expectations. The program also includes interactive activities, role-plays, and discussions to engage students in the learning process. The goal of the Safe Dates program is to help students recognize the warning signs of dating violence, develop healthy relationships, and prevent future incidents of dating violence.

VIPP's Upstanding curriculum is a school-based program designed to prevent bullying and promote positive social norms among students. The program was developed by the Utah Department of Health (prior to the formation of DHHS) in collaboration with the Utah State Office of Education and community partners. The Upstanding curriculum consists of four modules, each of which focuses on a specific aspect of bullying prevention. The modules cover topics such as recognizing and reporting bullying, promoting empathy and kindness, developing positive social skills, and creating a safe and inclusive school climate. The curriculum includes interactive activities, role-plays, and discussions to engage students in the learning process. It also provides teachers with lesson plans, handouts, and other resources to support the implementation of the program. The goal of the Upstanding curriculum is to help students become "Upstanders" rather than bystanders when they witness bullying or other negative behaviors. The program aims to empower students to take positive actions to intervene in bullying situations and promote a culture of respect and inclusion in their school communities.

5) Increase awareness and education: Providing training for school staff, parents, and students on how to recognize, prevent, and respond to bullying.

Mental Health First Aid is a training program designed to help people identify and respond to signs of mental illness and substance use disorders. The program covers topics such as identifying risk factors and warning signs of mental health disorders, crisis intervention and de-escalation techniques, and effective communication strategies for helping individuals in distress.

QPR stands for Question, Persuade, and Refer, and it is a suicide prevention program that aims to educate individuals on how to recognize and respond to warning signs of suicide. The QPR program provides individuals with a simple and effective way to intervene when they suspect that someone may be at risk for suicide. The program teaches participants how to ask the right questions, persuade the person to seek help, and refer them to appropriate resources and services.

Overall, primary prevention of bullying involves a comprehensive and proactive approach that involves all members of the community in creating a culture of respect, empathy, and inclusion.

 

Accomplishments/Successes:

 

1. Increase the number of Adolescents who receive bystander training (Upstanding). During this time the pandemic hindered VIPP's and sub-recipient's ability to provide the Upstanding program to adolescents because students were remote learning. In response, and with some unexpended funding in another grant, we began the process of converting the training to an online delivery. This effort is still in progress and will likely be another year before it is ready to implement. VIPP and partners delivered Upstanding to 6,651 students.

2. Percent of adolescents who are physically active at least 60 minutes per day. According to YRBSS, 21.7% (20.0-23.4%) of 9-12th graders are physically active 7 days a week 60+ minutes per week in 2022.

3. The number of youth participating in the Wyman Teen Outreach Program (TOP). In the 2022-2023 school year, DHHS worked with local partners to implement the program at nine sites, reaching 138 youth served and completing over 1,300 hours of community service.

4. Strengthen household economic security through an uptick in Utah filings for the EITC. In 2021-2022 VIPP distributed 11,000 flyers to partners with information on the benefits of filing for the EITC and how to access free tax help through the Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) program. In addition, we ran television and radio spots with Spanish-speaking channels because the Hispanic population has higher rates of not filing for the EITC. EITC filings increased from 178,000 in 2020 to 249,000 in 2021. Much of this increase may be due to the availability of stimulus funding.

5. Number of Utahns who have been trained in QPR. In FY 2022, VIPP staff have trained 350 people in QPR and an additional 135 people in Mental Health First Aid. In addition, our partners in the Office of Substance Use and Prevention provided funding to community partners to provide the QPR and MHFA programs in their own communities.

 

Summary of successes and accomplishments on “Moving the Needle” in relation to NPM-9:

 

• In 2021-2022 VIPP distributed 11,000 flyers to partners with information on the benefits of filing for the EITC and how to access free tax help through the VITA program. EITC filings increased from 178,000 in 2020 to 249,000 in 2021. (January 1st, 2022 - April 15th, 2022)
• VIPP and partners provided the Upstanding curriculum to 6,651 students. We are working to provide a digital Upstanding program to reach more students that are not able to receive the program for a variety of reasons. (July 1st, 2021 - June 30th, 2022)
• VIPP worked with partners, CDC, and researchers to develop a "Connectedness Toolkit." The toolkit was in development and completed during FY22 but just received final approval for distribution. (July 1st, 2021 - June 30th, 2022)

 

Challenges/Gaps/Disparities Report:

Challenges: COVID created conditions that made it difficult to meet some of our objectives. As a result, we are working on creating an online delivery option for our Upstanding program.

 

Disparities: Based on Federally Available Data, parents of Children with Special Healthcare Needs (CSHCN) report more bullying victimization (55.5%) compared to parents of non-CSHCN (28.7%). YRBS data also shows disparities with adolescents in grades 9, 10, and 11 more likely to report being bullied compared to those in grade 12. Females were also more likely (29%) than males (19.9%) to report being bullied. Adolescents who identify as lesbian, gay, or bisexual (36.3%) or who are not sure of their sexual orientation (35.9%) were also much more likely than adolescents who identify as straight (22.6%) to report being bullied.

 

Agency Capacity/Collaboration:

 

We are committed to ensuring a statewide system of service. We do this through engaging stakeholders from across the state, identifying and prioritizing disparities through data and stakeholder feedback, and including stakeholders with lived experience. We work with multi-disciplinary, multi-sectoral partners across the state and the country. Additionally, we will use evaluation to identify and improve our partnerships.

 

Report of ESMs related to NPM-9

 

ESM 9.1: Number of parents with youth between 10-18 years of age that complete the communications course (Teen Speak).

 

Goal/Objective:

Implement the Teen Speak training with 500 parents in Utah over 5 years. Parents will learn and implement one strategy learned through TEEN SPEAK.

 

Significance of ESM 9.1:

TEEN Speak is a communications program (total 8 hours: including self-study and in-person presentation) that provides parents a menu of strategies they can use to improve communication with their youth

 

ESM 9.1 Progress Summary: Due to a lack of funding, the program was unable to complete any work around Teen Speak in FY2022. We are therefore deactivating this ESM and replacing it with ESM 9.7.

 

ESM 9.2 - Increase the number of Adolescents who receive bystander training (Upstanding).

 

Goal/Objective:

Increase the number of adolescents who have received the Upstanding curriculum.

 

Significance of ESM 9.2:

 

Bullying is the unwanted, aggressive behavior among school-aged children that involves a real or perceived power imbalance. Passive bystanders provide the audience a bully craves and the silent acceptance that allows bullies to continue their hurtful behavior. A bystander to bullying is anyone who witnesses bullying either in person or in digital forms like social media, websites, text messages, gaming, and apps. When bullying occurs, bystanders are present 80 percent of the time. A bystander has the potential to make a positive difference in a bullying situation, particularly for the youth who are being bullied. Studies show when youth who are bullied are defended and supported by their peers, they are less anxious and depressed. The Upstanding program teaches children simple strategies for standing up to bullying that effectively removes, rather than provides, more peer attention.

 

ESM 9.2 Progress Summary:

Strengthening youth’s skills is an important component of a comprehensive approach to preventing youth violence such as bullying. The likelihood of violence increases when youth have under-developed or ineffective skills in the areas of communication, problem solving, conflict resolution and management, empathy, impulse control, and emotional regulation and management. Skill-development has an extensive and robust research base, which shows building youth’s interpersonal, emotional, and behavioral skills can help reduce both youth violence perpetration and victimization. Enhancing these skills can also impact risk or protective factors for youth violence, such as substance use and academic success. These life skills can help youth increase their self-awareness, accuracy in understanding social situations, ability to avoid risky situations and behaviors, ability to intervene when necessary, and capacity to resolve conflict without violence. Multiple systematic reviews of various universal school-based programs demonstrate beneficial impacts on youth’s skills and behaviors, including delinquency, aggression, bullying perpetration and victimization, and bystander skills that lower the likelihood of violence and support victims. In one bystander program, a longitudinal evaluation found after the second year of implementation, participants had a 31% decrease in bullying and victimization, a 36% decrease in non-bullying aggression, and a 72% decrease in harmful bystander behavior. A large-scale replication evaluation found significantly lower levels of physical bullying perpetration among participants relative to controls, and significant increases in school anti-bullying policies, positive school climate, and positive bystander behavior. We have been able to contract with local health departments (LHD) and community-based organizations to provide bystander programs. Because of this, we have far exceeded our projection of 200 for FY 2022.

 

ESM 9.3 - Percent of adolescents who are physically active at least 60 minutes per day.

 

Goal/Objective:

Increase the number of students who are active for at least 60 minutes a day through a variety of options throughout the school day.

 

Significance of ESM 9.3:

Physical activity has brain health benefits for school-aged children, including improved cognition (e.g., academic performance, memory) and reduced symptoms of depression. Regular physical activity in childhood and adolescence can also be important for promoting lifelong health and well-being and preventing risk factors for various health conditions like heart disease, obesity, and type 2 diabetes.

 

ESM 9.3 Progress Summary:

Local Health Departments (LHDs) provided support to local education agencies to get students physically active through Safe Routes to School (SR2S) activities. These included monthly the Walk and Roll Challenge, Walk to School Day, safety assemblies, strengthening SR2S policies and maps, and/or assisting in applying for SR2S grant funding to improve infrastructure. They also participated in community meetings and coalitions to encourage city planners to incorporate active transportation with city improvements and new infrastructures. Local health departments ensure that SR2S are included in city master plans.

 

LHD staff continue to have high turnover, and it has been difficult to continue training new staff throughout the year. However, by the end of 2022, most LHD staff have been trained to provide support, resources, and technical assistance to local education agencies to strengthen policies and procedures around physical activity. They help assess local wellness policies by using an assessment tool that provides comprehensive language to enhance policies.

 

State staff worked with the Utah State Board of Education to create a Model Health and Wellness Policy for local education agencies to follow when creating new policies. An educational meeting was held with three local education agencies to begin the process of improving their health and wellness policies.

 

State staff also chaired the SHAPE Utah conference and provided health, PE teachers, and athletic coaches sessions on various health and wellness topics. There were over 500 people that attended the conference.

 

ESM 9.4: The number of youth participating in the Wyman Teen Outreach Program (TOP).

 

Goal/Objective:

Increase the opportunities for 175 youth to build positive connections with others through weekly TOP peer meetings and participation in 20 hours of community service learning.

 

Significance of ESM 9.4:

The Wyman Teen Outreach Program® (TOP®) is an evidence-based positive youth development program that allows youth to develop a positive sense of self, positive connections with others, and practice social-emotional learning (SEL) skills through lessons, a weekly supportive peer group environment, and community service learning. The program addresses risk and protective factors that contribute to various adolescent health outcomes, such as teen pregnancy, sexual activity, substance abuse, bullying, mental health, and academic performance.

 

ESM 9.4 Progress Summary:

TOP® is an evidence-based positive youth development program that allows youth to develop a positive sense of self, positive connections with others, and practice SEL skills through lessons, a weekly supportive peer group environment, and community service learning.

For the 2022-2023 school year, three local partners (Davis County, Weber-Morgan, and TriCounty Health Departments) implemented the program at nine sites, including schools and other youth-serving organizations. 138 youth participated and completed over 1,300 hours of community service.

Data shows improvements in participants’ SEL skills, an increase in positive connections with peers and the community, as well as an overall experience of TOP® as a safe and supportive environment. All these outcomes ultimately lead to more positive and healthy interactions with others, including decreased bullying behaviors.

 

ESM 9.5: Strengthen Household Economic Security through an uptick in Utah filings for the Earned Income Tax Credit.

 

Goal/Objective:

Increase the number of Utahns filing for the federal EITC.

 

Significance of ESM 9.5:

Bullying is associated with a number of community-level risks, such as concentrated poverty, residential instability, and density of alcohol outlets. Reducing exposure to these community-level risks can potentially yield population-level impacts on youth violence outcomes. Prevention approaches to reduce these risks include changing, enacting, or enforcing laws, city ordinances, local regulations, policies to improve household financial security, safe and affordable housing, and the social and economic sustainability of neighborhoods. Public-private partnerships and community-driven needs and services are important elements of these approaches. Strengthening household financial security through tax credits, such as the EITC, can help families increase their income while incentivizing work or offsetting the costs of child-rearing and help create home environments that promote healthy development. The evidence suggests that the EITC can lift families out of poverty. Simulations show that a Child Tax Credit of a $1000 allowance per child, paid to each household regardless of income or tax status, would reduce child poverty in the United States from 26.3% to 23.2%; a $2000 allowance per child would reduce child poverty to 20.4%; a $3000 allowance per child would reduce child poverty to 17.6%; and a $4000 allowance per child would reduce child poverty to 14.8%.

 

ESM 9.5 Progress Summary:

Every year, 1 in 4 eligible Utahns fail to claim the earned income tax credit. In 2019, 171,000 tax filers received the credit, while another 57,000 eligible Utahns did not apply for the credit. Last year, the average credit for a Utah tax filer with children was $2,130. For single people without children earning less than $15,000, the average tax credit was $300.

VIPP has teamed up with the Department of Workforce Services, Utah Tax Help, and the Utah Coalition for Protecting Childhood to raise awareness of the credit among Utahns. We saw a huge uptake in EITC filings since last year. While we would like to take the credit for that, stimulus money played a big part in an increase of tax filings.

 

ESM 9.6: Number of Utahns who have been trained in Question, Persuade, Refer (QPR).

 

Goal/Objective:

Utahns are trained to recognize bullying and suicide ideation and have resources to help them.

 

Significance of ESM 9.6:

While the QPR intervention was developed specifically to detect and respond to persons emitting suicide warning signs, QPR has also been more widely applied as a universal intervention for anyone who may be experiencing emotional distress. It has been suggested by independent researchers and federal leadership that originally funded and conducted QPR studies, that the QPR intervention could be useful in a much broader application, and not just for the detection of persons at risk for suicide. When QPR is applied to distressed youth with informed compassion and understanding, the intervention becomes useful for the detection of a wide range of "troubled" behavior, e.g., non-suicidal self-injury (NSSI), perfectionism, eating disturbances, sleep problems, bullying, and other behavioral indices of youth who may be at risk, identified, and treated "upstream" of the onset of suicidal ideation.

 

ESM 9.6 Progress Summary:

When QPR is applied to distressed youth with informed compassion and understanding, the intervention becomes useful for the detection of a wide range of "troubled" behavior, e.g., NSSI, perfectionism, eating disturbances, sleep problems, bullying, and other behavioral indices of youth who may be at risk, identified, and treated "upstream" of the onset of suicidal ideation.

VIPP is a member of the Utah Suicide Prevention Coalition and will continue to use partners from that coalition to advertise the availability of QPR training.

 

ESM 9.7: Number of parents who participate in the Families Talking Together intervention

 

Goal/Objective:

Increase the number of parents participating in the Families Talking Together intervention.

 

Significance of ESM 9.7:

This evidence-based program increases the ability of parents to communicate about sexual decision-making, set boundaries, and engage more positively with their teen(s). Ultimately, increased conversations and stronger relationships with parents decreases the initiation of risky behaviors, such as sexual activity. Local partners are trained in the intervention and assist MCH in reaching parents more broadly in communities across the state.

 

ESM 9.7 Progress Summary:

This is a new ESM, which replaces ESM 9.1. Work was already being done in FY 2022, and the program was able to enroll and train 112 parents in Families Talking Together.

 

State Priority Area: School Lunch

 

SPM-3.0: Percent of eligible students enrolled in the free or reduced price lunch program

 

Annual Report FY22:

 

This Performance Measure was achieved. The Performance Objective was 50% and the Annual Indicator was 86.1%.

 

Program Activities:

 

LHDs helped promote school meals by collaborating with community organizations such as the Women, Infant and Children program (WIC), Department of Workforce Services, community partners, and Local Education Agencies (LEA) to provide families with information about all of the school meals that are offered at school.

Start Smart Utah is an initiative promoting the expansion and availability of breakfast for Utah children. The main goal is to empower community leaders, school leadership, educators, and parents to provide kids with breakfast every day. With accessible breakfast to fuel kids, we fuel their learning. LHDs encourage LEAs to adopt best practices such as breakfast in the classroom, grab-n-go breakfast, and second chance breakfast.

LHDs also provided materials, resources and support to encourage students to eat school meals during national school breakfast and lunch week. These efforts have helped strengthen the relationship between the health department and schools.

The State and LHDs continue to work with schools to strengthen local wellness policy. WellSAT is an evaluation tool used to facilitate the strength and comprehensive language around school meals. WellSAT scoring reflects best practices. The purpose of using this tool is to identify strengths and weaknesses in the policy.

 

Accomplishments / Successes:

 

Two legislative actions have affected access to school meal programs:

• Utah Code 53G-9-205.1 Start Smart Utah Breakfast Program: This legislation requires all Utah schools operating the National School Lunch Program to also begin operating the School Breakfast Program by May 2023. Additionally, schools with 70%, 50%, and 30% free and reduced percentages will be required to provide an Alternative Breakfast Service Model, defined as service after the start of the instructional day begins, over the next 3 years, consecutively.
• Utah Code 32B-2-304 School Meals Program Amendments: This legislation allows state Child Nutrition funds to be used for reimbursement in meal programs outside of lunch, such as the School Breakfast Program. Prior to Utah Code 32B-2-304, these funds could only be used for lunch meals. This means, in future years, state reimbursement amounts may drop for lunches and the start of state reimbursement rate for breakfasts or other child nutrition programs.

LHDs continue to promote school meals within WIC, SNAP, double-up food bucks as well as food pantries and other government assistance programs. Many have created brochures that are shared by CHW's at community events and school districts for their use.

These programs focus on the targeted population and will help provide services and programs as needed.

 

Summary of successes and accomplishments on “Moving the Needle” in relation to SPM-3.0:

 

• Continue working with other government agencies to increase the number of families that participate in school meals. Offer services to families that need help with school meal applications. (July 1st, 2023 - June 30th, 2024)
• Work with LEAs to adopt the Utah State Board of Education Health and Wellness Model Policy. Provide training and technical assistance to LEA to create health and wellness teams, policy and implementation. (July 1st, 2023 - June 30th, 2024)
• Work with LEAs to strengthen Local Wellness Policies that promote student wellness, prevent and reduce childhood obesity, and provide assurance that school meal nutrition guidelines meet the minimum federal school meal standards by using the WellSAT tool to assess current policies. (July 1st, 2023 - June 30th, 2023)

 

Challenges / Gaps / Disparities Report:

 

Challenges: Employment became a challenge for the workforce during and after the pandemic. Hiring, training, and sustaining qualified individuals have made it difficult for LHD and LEAs to build trust between the two organizations. Local school boards’ processes and procedures can also be daunting and time-consuming for LHD staff. LHDs face political issues and lack of coordination and trust between LEAs, LHDs, and community based organizations.
 

Because of the pandemic, all students received school meals from 2020-2022. In October 2022, USBE advised us that data will only be available for income eligible students. This is the reason that the percentage participating increased from 2021 to 2022. Moving forward, our reporting will reflect the estimated percentage of eligible children who participate in school meal programs and have adjusted our targets accordingly (at or below 130 percent of the federal poverty level).

 

Emerging issues: Food Nutrition Services administers the child nutrition programs (CNP) in partnership with the State Board of Education, local School Food Authorities (SFA), other program sponsors, and local program operators. There were several operational challenges for institutions that operate or administer child nutrition programs, including state agencies, SFAs, and Summer Food Service Program (SFSP) sponsors. The operational challenges include but are not limited to supply chain disruptions, food costs, and labor shortages. Access to a timely and reliable source of data on these topics has become particularly important following the COVID–19 pandemic. In addition to changing the ways that school meal programs operated, the pandemic has contributed to lasting supply chain issues and substantial changes in the cost and availability of food and labor.

 

Agency Capacity / Collaboration Report:

 

Building relationships with the community has multiple benefits. During the pandemic, LHDs around the state were able to brand their health departments by providing services in their local jurisdictions in a variety of ways. LHDs were able to gain name recognition and a positive reputation. LHDs informed the community of local events and community resources, which enhanced their organization’s credibility.

LHDs were able to develop partnerships with community organizations and agencies. They offered referrals to community organizations such as connecting families/consumers to WIC and SNAP services, school and community food pantries, school meals, and other services that promote health and wellness to families. They coordinated events, publicized information, and invited representatives of community organizations and agencies to attend and participate in events and workshops.

The key to creating reciprocal relationships is to build mutual respect and appreciation for the common goal of providing the best experiences and resources for the community. LHDs and LEAs need parents and families to support schools and contribute in meaningful ways to the planning and implementation of programs and events. Family members also provide insight into the families' diverse cultural, linguistic, structural, and economic backgrounds.