Reconceptualizing Parent Engagement through Cafecitos

• In Event: Room to Grow: Examining How Schools Can Cultivate Successful Culturally Relevant Arts Initiatives

Abstract

Objectives or Purposes
This objective of this paper will be to delineate the process of providing agency and voice in parent engagement by reconceptualizing cafecitos (Conde, 2021). Cafecito is a term used in the Latin X community as a space to drink coffee, socialize and grow one’s knowledge. In school districts, as well as in this specific school context, cafecitos have traditionally been used as a time to invite parents to listen to a pre-programmed activity. These types of approaches result in minimal parent attendance. The CULTIVAR grant provided the vehicle to connect with parents in the community, and their children, using art at the monthly cafecitos held by the school.

Perspectives or Theoretical Framework
The theoretical framework used for this paper is parent/community engagement. Reynolds (2010) made the distinction about ways to engage vs. involve, “the term ‘Involvement’ refers to school designated activities that parents can participate. The term ‘Engagement’ is conceptualized as encompassing those activities parents’ structure for themselves and their self-directed relational interactions with school officials” (p. 144). We examine the ways in which a school can move from parents involving themselves in an activity or event organized and created by the school, to parent engagement where parents and students design and facilitate the events based on community needs and desires.

Methods, Techniques, and Modes of Inquiry.
Based on low parent attendance as previously mentioned the campus leadership team wished to reconceptualize the cafecitos to include art where parents and their children could co-create an art experience. Additionally, an adjustment was made to include undergraduate university students as part of service to the community in a Working with Diverse Families course. The data used for this paper are qualitative interviews conducted after the cafecitos. These interviews consisted of the parents and students who participated in the cafecitos and the university students who engaged in planning with the families and helping to facilitate and implement the arts portion of those monthly events.

Data Sources, Evidence, Objectives, and Materials
All written data sources were coded using document analysis methods (Creswell & Creswell, 2018). The data sources of students and parents were analyzed using Saldaña (2016). This included the initial pre-coding and determination of categories and continuing coding to identify emerging themes. The modifications brought through the connection to the CULTIVAR grant brought about a greater audience to the cafecitos. And the transformation from involvement to engagement took place by providing agency to the parents in the topics of conversation for the cafecitos. Furthermore, individual parents presented topics of interest to rest of the school community at the cafecito.

Scholarly Significance
The approach from involvement to engagement is a lengthy process that requires all school stakeholders to be in sync with the vision of authentic parental engagement to truly alter and nurture family engagement. This paper can provide valuable insight into the ways in which schools can change their approaches to parent and students’ interactions with the school to create more meaningful and consistent family engagement.

Author

• Socorro Garcia, Texas A&M University - San Antonio