This study examined the influence of social workers placed at the elementary school level, who work with low-socioeconomic families. The intent of the study was to examine the role of the social worker, at identified Title I elementary schools, on parent involvement. Research Question 1 asked, “What influence do the family specialists have in family involvement as reported by parents and family specialists at the identified Title I elementary schools in the North East ISD, in San Antonio, Texas?” The results of this study strongly support that the family specialist on the campus did have a positive influence on parents getting involved at their child’s school. Research Question 2 asked, “What selected variables influence parental involvement as reported by parents and family specialists, who are participants of the Parent Academy at the selected Title I elementary schools in the North East ISD, in San Antonio, Texas?” The results of this study strongly supported that the variables of open communication between home and school and the school being inviting to parents are positive factors in getting parents involved. Research Question 3 asked, “What influence do community agencies have in assisting with the needs of families, as reported on the end-of-year summary sheets by the family specialists at the selected Title I elementary schools in the North East ISD, in San Antonio, Texas?” The results of this study showed that data procedures were inconsistent among the family specialists in the North East ISD. Data concerning the use of social service agencies was incomplete. No standard procedures are in place for tracking services provided to families. Research Question 4 asked, “What influence do parents have on determining the classes set forth for the Parent Academy, as reported by the parents and family specialists who are participants of the Parent Academy at the selected Title I elementary campuses in the North East ISD in San Antonio, Texas?” The results of this study strongly suggested that both parents and family specialists feel the parents have a voice in choosing the classes provided for them by the family specialists.

This study examined the influence of social workers placed at the elementary school level, who work with low-socioeconomic families. The intent of the study was to examine the role of the social worker, at identified Title I elementary schools, on parent involvement. Research Question 1 asked, "What influence do the family specialists have in family involvement as reported by parents and family specialists at the identified Title I elementary schools in the North East ISD, in San Antonio, Texas?" The results of this study strongly support that the family specialist on the campus did have a positive influence on parents getting involved at their child's school. Research Question 2 asked, "What selected variables influence parental involvement as reported by parents and family specialists, who are participants of the Parent Academy at the selected Title I elementary schools in the North East ISD, in San Antonio, Texas?" The results of this study strongly supported that the variables of open communication between home and school and the school being inviting to parents are positive factors in getting parents involved. Research Question 3 asked, "What influence do community agencies have in assisting with the needs of families, as reported on the end-of-year summary sheets by the family specialists at the selected Title I elementary schools in the North East ISD, in San Antonio, Texas?" The results of this study showed that data procedures were inconsistent among the family specialists in the North East ISD. Data concerning the use of social service agencies was incomplete. No standard procedures are in place for tracking services provided to families. Research Question 4 asked, "What influence do parents have on determining the classes set forth for the Parent Academy, as reported by the parents and family specialists who are participants of the Parent Academy at the selected Title I elementary campuses in the North East ISD in San Antonio, Texas?" The results of this study strongly suggested that both parents and family specialists feel the parents have a voice in choosing the classes provided for them by the family specialists.

The lack of positive communication between parents and educators in the Texas district under study is a problem because it interferes with learners' academic success. The purpose of this mixed method study was to understand the communication gap between educators and parents in Title I elementary schools in that district. Bronfenbrenner's ecological systems and Epstein's parental involvement model formed the theoretical framework to address the importance of communication between educators and parents as related to student academic achievement. The quantitative portion of the study was carried out through descriptive survey research. The case study method was used for the qualitative portion of the study with data gathered from interviews. The data represented responses from the parent (n = 42) and educator (n = 119) surveys, interviews (n = 10), and a focus group (n = 8) to uncover both educators' and parents' perceptions of communication in the learning environment. Results revealed constructive concerns associated with lack of accessibility, education trust, parent educational background knowledge, collaborative partnerships, continuous communication, and guides to blueprints of learning expectations. The findings indicated the need for an intervention involving a 4-session parent-educator training program designed to implement positive partnerships and to eliminate and bridge the existing communication gap. This project study could promote social change in Title I schools because it conveys an improved understanding of communication gaps within the learning environment. Specifically, this study provides a plan to help parents and educators engage in positive communication to support students' academic success.

The purpose of this study was to determine the relationship between second-order change leadership behaviors and the grade assigned to schools in large urban districts by the Florida Department of Education (FLDOE). A total of 101 Title I elementary school principals from large urban school districts with 60+% students on Free and Reduced School Lunch participated in the study. Specifically, this study analyzed 7 of the 21 second-order change factor responsibilities. They include (a) knowledge of curriculum, instruction, assessment, (b) optimizer, (c) intellectual stimulation, (d) change agent, (e) monitoring/evaluating, (f) flexibility, and (g) ideals/beliefs. The findings of this study were delineated through an examination of the data as it was related to the following questions: (a) What are the differences, if any, in the Principal Actions Survey scores of Title I elementary principals based on the 2008 school grade, according to the FLDOE? (b) What relationship, if any, exists among professional demographics of the principals (years at the school, years as an educator, years as an administrator prior to becoming a principal, years as a principal, highest degree earned, age, gender) and the second-order change leadership behaviors? (c) What are the differences, if any, in the second-order change leadership behavior subgroup scores based on the 2008 school grade according to the FLDOE? Although Research Question 1 had no statistical significance, principals who had a higher mean on the Principal Actions Survey led A and B-rated schools. Statistical significance was found in Research Question 2 for the second-order change leadership behavior of Change Agent and Ideals/Beliefs. Though statistical significance was not found in Research Question 3, each mean score for each sub-group in each grade group indicated consistent answers between Strongly Agree and Agree, which demonstrated a large degree of agreement. Additionally, comments from telephone interviews with selected principals determined that these leadership behaviors could positively impact elementary schools and the field of education. Recommendations of the study were to: (a) Conduct a follow-up study to gather the perceptions of teachers from the same Title I schools regarding their principals' second-order change leadership behaviors, (b) conduct a similar study with principals in Title I middle and high school settings, (c) conduct a qualitative study on second-order change leadership behaviors of non-Title I elementary, middle, and high school principals, (d) engage in further research to investigate professional development activities that may assist principals in enhancing second-order change leadership behaviors and improve instruction, (e) investigate the relationship between principals' second-order change leadership behaviors and achievement of Adequate Yearly Progress (f) replicate the study in states other than Florida (g) explore the relationship between second-order change leadership behaviors of district administrators and their district's academic success.