My Nonprofit Reviews

February 16, 2014

Dear Karen:

I am pleased to write this letter of support of HOME WORKS! The Columbia Public Schools has been participating in parent engagement strategies for a long time, but it wasn’t until we connected with your organization that we felt we had a focused plan for connecting with families.

The Columbia Public School District has seen rates of poverty increase considerably over the last 10 years. Over that period of time the percentage of students qualifying for free/reduced lunch has climbed from 25% to 46%. The number of English Language Learners has climbed from 450 four years ago to 990 this school year. We are a community that is urbanizing at a staggering rate and it is going to take two-way, parent and school engagement in order to give our children the very best chance for success.

During this past year, two of our low performing, high poverty elementary schools began participating in HOME WORKS! The Teacher Home Visit Program. Teachers attended the high-level trainings before setting out in pairs to conduct home visits. The relationship with families was strengthened by the two family dinners hosted at the school by the teachers and the principal. Your program promised we would see improvements in both attendance and discipline. And we have.

We are all working hard to be allies for Missouri’s children. What will matter for a child from Poplar Bluff and Cape Girardeau and Independence is that we strive to remove barriers and improve communication with families. We believe that HOME WORKS! will reduce opportunity gaps (attendance and discipline), close enrichment gaps (access to college and career coursework), and give us a better tool for achieving our ultimate legacy – the elimination of academic achievement gaps.

I can be reached at 573-214-3400 or pstieple@columbia.k12.mo.us should you have other leaders interested in talking more about HOME WORKS!


Sincerely,



Peter Stiepleman
Assistant Superintendent for Elementary Education
Columbia, MO

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