Building “Our School”: Parental Perspectives for Building Trusting Family–Professional Partnerships

Abstract

All educational stakeholders benefit when families and school staff have trusting partnerships as they work together to achieve mutual goals. Eleven focus groups were conducted with parents of children with and without disabilities in six schools, which had been selected as knowledge development sites by the Schoolwide Integrated Framework for Transformation (SWIFT) Center. The purpose of this appreciative inquiry was to understand these parents' perspectives on the nature of trusting partnerships within their schools. The following four themes emerged: (a) communicating, (b) establishing a sense of belonging, (c) demonstrating professional competency and commitment, and (d) building family leadership. Multiple approaches are described for how professionals and families from the schools implemented these four themes. Implications for school practices, preservice education, and future investigation are addressed.