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Superintendent Diego Ochoa bringing together teachers, students, administrators, community members. decision makers, to discuss the San Mateo-Foster City School District.
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Thriving Together: How Community Schools Are Transforming Family Engagement
In this uplifting episode of the oneSMFC podcast, Director of Communications Diego Perez is joined by Lead Elementary Principal Natalie Delahant, Fiesta Gardens International School Principal Daniel Robles, Boys & Girls Club Site Director Lorena Alcayaga, and Hector Lopez, a proud parent from Sunnybrae Elementary.
Together, they explore the real impact of the San Mateo-Foster City School District’s Community Schools Initiative—one year into receiving a $5 million grant from the California Department of Education. From after-school enrichment like ukulele and coding to empowering parents through PIQE workshops, this episode highlights how wraparound services are transforming school culture, family engagement, and student pride.
Hear powerful stories of parent empowerment, growing student confidence, and authentic partnerships with the Boys & Girls Club that extend far beyond the school day.
If you’ve ever wondered what’s really possible when a school becomes the heart of a community, this is the episode to tune into.
Learn more about the Community Schools Initiative on our website.
Interested in learning more? Check out our recent On the Road to Year 3 Annual Report!
I feel the results in my daughter and the support I received from both the school and the Boys and Girls Club. The program is great, the teachers my daughter has encountered in her path it's been great. And Boys and Girls Club the support that they give me to bring the possibility for me to stay focused in work and also not to worry about homework and other issues. It's fantastic.
Speaker 2:Thank you very much also not to worry about homework and other issues. It's fantastic. Thank you very much. So for Pique, I know going there was one session that focused on educating parents about the school system, about how elementary schools work, high schools work and how to get students prepared for college and career. So knowing that our parents have been empowered to have that information and then having the second round of Pique that is really focused on what our community wanted, that's been really great to see our parents empowered in that regard.
Speaker 3:Offering all of those different opportunities. I think it kind of creates more equity amongst our schools, because we have schools in this district where children are coming from different means and they get all those things provided, luckily, by their parents and you know they don't think twice about having five different things. Activities after school.
Speaker 4:Hello everyone and welcome to the One SMFC podcast. My name is Diego Perez and I am the host in today's episode. Now we're so excited to be diving into how our community schools initiative is making a difference in our district One year into our five million dollar California Department of Education grant million California Department of Education grant. So, to provide our audience with a recap, the district initiated the community schools initiative during the 2022 to 2023 school year with a planning grant from the California Department of Education to design what a community school will look like through input from parents, students and staff. Now the model of the community schools provides a wraparound services approach, which is extending learning opportunities and active community engagement, aiming to address systemic barriers that prompt positive school cultures. Now, after two years of engaging, with 55 community school sessions totaling up to 110 hours and about 1,800 in attendance, we have submitted the application and became the recipients of this $5 million grant.
Speaker 4:Now, I know that was very brief, but it was so much work that went through this entire process and we want to say thank you to all of the folks the parents, the staff who participated, our students that were all in at the early steps of this entire initiative. But now let's check on to see what's going on. So how are our families doing? How are they feeling? What's in store as we continue the rest of the 2024-2025 school year? And we are joined with four amazing guests, and I will let them introduce themselves.
Speaker 2:Hello, I'm Daniel Robles, the principal of Fiesta Gardens Elementary International School.
Speaker 3:My name is Natalie Delahunt and I'm the principal of LEED Elementary School.
Speaker 5:Hello, my name is Lorena Alcayaga and I'm the site director at San Mateo Park for Boys and Girls Club.
Speaker 1:And my name is Hector Lopez, the proud parent of Mareny Lopez Bautista from fifth grade.
Speaker 4:Sonny Bray School. Perfect, thank you all so much for introducing yourself. Of course, we do have a wide range of audiences here listening to us being able to tap in from you guys' conversations, of course. So we do have a $5 million grant and I'm looking at my principals here. Since the $5 million grant has been initiated, what can you tell us? Either of you can go first that you've been excited to see flourish in your school since we've implemented these different programs.
Speaker 3:I'm going to start with a small moment. That kind of says it all. We had a soccer game last week in a tournament over at a local middle school and we had a TKK game happening against Sunnybrae and it was the best thing I saw all week these kids playing. Parents came out, teachers came out, our PE coach came out. It was wonderful to see everybody was cheering for each other. We did our own goal but it didn't matter. Boy were we so excited and everybody clapped and cheered the other team and it was just great to be in community with the whole school outside of school in a way that just felt really genuine and exciting to see the kids in the field with their little uniforms, on their owl uniforms, having a real sense of school pride. So that to me, that small moment says a lot about who we are now as a community school.
Speaker 2:Soccer has definitely been amazing for our community, but knowing just all of the components of our afterschool programs has been wonderful to see. We have our parent program, pique, we have programs like science, theater, all kinds of different sports, and just seeing our students and community families being able to take advantage of that has been wonderful.
Speaker 4:And I'm so happy that you touched base on that, natalie about the soccer and sports, especially like how both schools have it Seeing younger kiddos being able to at least enjoy a sport, whether or not they know what they're doing. They're just kicking the ball and they have a big smile on their face and I think that's the best part of it.
Speaker 1:I think it's not the game, it's the substance, it's the community being engaged in a game in a fast-paced, growing sport in America right.
Speaker 4:Yeah, no, definitely. And, of course, hector, you mentioned, as a parent, what has been the biggest impact for you since the $5 million grant in your school.
Speaker 1:I feel the results in my daughter and the support I received from both the school and the Boys and Girls Club. The program is great, the teachers my daughter has encountered in her path it's been great. And Boys and Girls Club the support that they give me to bring the possibility for me to stay focused in work and also not to worry about homework and other issues. It's fantastic. Thank you very much.
Speaker 4:And, of course, you did mention after school, lorena. So what are some of the things that we're incorporating with our after school program as it relates to the community schools and what we do in the classroom?
Speaker 5:Yeah, so I think that we were able to expand services, including more spots in our program for the students within the schools, and also our athletic department has been able to also be part of the enrichments we have been providing the volleyball and soon the basketball leagues so we are very excited about that too. To start with the kids, the kids are very excited. I think that they like that positive competition. They want to show their pride within the schools and, yeah, so we're very fortunate to be part of the community schools.
Speaker 1:By the way, my daughter has been training for volleyball. She's excited to start the league, whatever the competition it is, and whether she wins or she loses, she's going to be very happy to be part of these tournaments.
Speaker 4:And that's honestly.
Speaker 4:I think that's wonderful to know that she has that option to say, oh, I want to try volleyball this time and then, if it doesn't work out, well, there's still soccer, and having partners like Boys and Girls Club, also AYSO, who's leading the soccer right now.
Speaker 4:It's truly crucial for our families to have that access.
Speaker 4:I know at this age maybe other families are looking at club sports and what more can I put my student in so that they have these different networking abilities to make friendships across? But now we're bringing that to them, we're bringing that to these five schools and that's something that, at least how I've seen in the past two years, has been transforming, of course. But as we talk about, you know, the school culture and the shift of the community as a whole, we kind of like bring into the topic of what the community schools does. We kind of like bring into the topic of the what the community schools does, and one of those pieces is like parent empowerment, and so, of course, this is for the group. I mean, what has been your biggest shift in how parents are being more involved now than in the past two years and what has sparked more ideas for you to see, okay, this is something that we should keep going, or maybe we can refine this, but what's within parent empowerment? What can you speak on that?
Speaker 2:at fields to gardens. We've been really fortunate that a lot of our school did implement some of the models that were incorporated through the community schools model. So, for instance, we already had a community room. We had a specialist that helped support our community. So seeing that really recognized by the state as the standard for what we want for our community schools and knowing that we were able to continue with that. And then seeing the element of parent education, that we were able to continue with that, and then seeing the element of parent education so for Pique, I know going there was one session that focused on educating parents about the school system, about how elementary schools work, high schools work and how to get students prepared for college and career. So knowing that our parents have been empowered to have that information and then having the second round of Pique that is really focused on what our community wanted, that's been really great to see our parents empowered in that regard.
Speaker 3:So at our school we're doing PK as well, but what I love is that we actually wanted something different than the other community schools and our voices were heard.
Speaker 3:Parents at our school wanted support with literacy and how to support their kids in literacy at home, and that's something different than other schools. But we were able to make that happen and right now the parents are energized and they're learning simple ways to support their students at home and it feels like a real partnership between the teachers now and PK about the things that you can do, and it felt very reasonable and doable and they were very excited and energized about it, so I love that we were able to provide that. In addition, we have this wonderful new space called our Community Wellness Center that's attached to our NPR that our two community specialists use and it's a really welcoming space, got a couch and tables and coffee and feels very welcoming, with toys and supplies, too, that our families might need, and we're excited to be able to continue to fund that room to make sure it has all the things and it needs to support all of our families.
Speaker 1:Thank you for those words and let me tell you something that happens in the little community I have with my daughter. Mom lives in Mexico. She soon will join us here in America. Thanks to the school Pique and Boys and Girls Club, I got more involved in her education, with more established processes like how to read, how to understand her behavior, how to get her enrolled in the community. She just came back from science camp, so the way I saw her with her happy face coming down the bus it has. It's priceless.
Speaker 1:So the impact of our taxes is being shown in in the progress they do every day. And one thing that has changed our lives every night, half an hour to an hour, we read Every night. It's a commitment we have. And she says I don't understand it Right now, you don't, but you will. So eventually all the dots will connect and you will be proficient speaking Spanish, speaking English and probably in other languages, and it's going to be a great thing to be multilingual. So you guys are really helping and causing impact in our path. Thank you very much.
Speaker 5:And with Boys and Girls Club, I've seen the parents feel more comfortable. I think that they are understanding with the topics that they have been bringing through Pique. You know how to even advocate for their own students and I feel that they, like I say, they feel more comfortable. They already start using their resources. They know where to get help. We do also at San Mateo Park. They do have the Family Resource Center, so they're starting to make connections. But I think that they feel more empowered now that they have the tools and the techniques and how to do it. And with us, with Boys and Girls Club, given that we have become that bridge between the school and the parents, they feel more comfortable, they feel more supported and you know they can see that on the kids too comfortable, they feel more supported and you know they can see that.
Speaker 1:on the kids too, yes, I agree with you Something that we have to be aware of the needs of every kid. Every kid is different. Every kid needs different stimulus on her lives, right? Some kids are very proficient memorizing. Some kids are very proficient inventing things. So I see that my daughter especially they fit to what she needs. You know, and that's very important, you guys are able to locate the proper skill to transmit to the kids. And one thing that I want to say for what I've been experiencing in these months, two things are important Self-esteem and confidence make everything easier, because if you have good children growing up healthy, you will have healthy adults.
Speaker 3:Speaking on that self-esteem. It just made me think of something. So some of our students you know school can be a challenge. It's not always easy and it can be a challenge and they don't always have a chance to feel confident in school or doing something on our campus.
Speaker 3:But the great thing about community schools now is we are offering so many things after school computer coding, theater, dancing, soccer, volleyball, basketball, coding, ukulele there's all these different ways for them to shine a little bit, and so I love going into those spaces after school and seeing kids who sometimes in the classroom might be a little bit quieter.
Speaker 3:All of a sudden you see them coding or just sharing what they know with another student and I think just having that small moment of feeling empowered at school can translate into the classroom Like okay, well, I'm really good at this and I worked through it and I was able to do it.
Speaker 3:Let me try that again now with fractions or whatever it happens to be. But offering all of those different opportunities, I think it kind of creates more equity amongst our schools, because we have schools in this district where children are coming from different means and they get all those things provided, luckily, by their parents, and they don't think twice about having five different things activities after school and it just it broadens their horizons, it enriches them, it lets them figure out what they have an interest in life, and so to be able to provide that for our community, I just think is so important that we are creating these enrichment opportunities to support our kids and just make them feel like, yeah, oh yeah, I did coding in fifth grade. Or oh, look at me playing the ukulele, or you know, it's just, it seems small, but it really, really isn't.
Speaker 1:I agree with you. I think that as we keep growing better adults, the impact in our community it's better. We have less crime, we have more prosperity, we have more well-behaved people. There is a balance in the society, in the communities. So that's why we need education, right? Sometimes people say, oh, you don't need education to be a Bill Gates or this and that, yes, but that will give you values, whether you are not a good professional or you are a good inventor or whatever. Right? There is people who are born to be inventors and they don't need to study, yeah, but they need to behave, they need to learn values, they need to integrate to society, right? Otherwise, somebody who is a genius and they don't have the proper values, they're going to do bad things to the society.
Speaker 5:Correct, am I right or wrong? You're correct, you're correct. Yes, I wanted to add something, as I'm hearing them talking is like I've been thinking about that sense of belonging to is like seeing that all this is happening in their community schools, in their neighborhood. It's just they feel part of, and I'm just thinking about that cycle that we are creating, that they're here, they're taking advantage of everything that we're offering. You know they will go, you know to study, but hopefully they will come back and they will do it again with the next generation. So it's that pride, sense of belonging that we're creating within the community schools and Boys and Girls Club. You know, helping with that little thing.
Speaker 2:And even when you consider the PICA program itself, how we have it available in all of our schools in Spanish, but we also have it available in English for the families that need that, so that inclusion is so important as well.
Speaker 1:I was a speaker in the graduation of the first phase. At the end of the conversation many parents came and they felt inspired. So the facilitator did a great work guiding me and I was able to provide a good inspirational conversation with the rest of the parents and the kids. And now I was called to the district and they also I didn't know I was talking to teachers and directors and supervisors and I'm ready to speak in Spanish, not in English, so I had to convert everything in there. But then like 10 teachers came up to me. I was like I'm glad that you feel that way and we are glad that we see your daughter the way she is, because she's already student of the month, not speaking English, and she's doing great in math and other things, but she has sense of education, she has sense of being curious about things and and I see that translated in a well behavior and that she's looking forward to be somebody who is going to be successful, good for herself, and then laid it out to the community.
Speaker 4:I actually really love what you said there, hector. You said curiosity, and something that I'm hearing from the group is that we are constantly trying to find different ways to continue to fuel this curiosity from students that come from, whether they've never touched a ukulele or have never seen a piano in front of them or don't know what coding means. But the minute they get that, that curiosity just goes and it sparks interest from them to want to come back, to want to see, okay, what's the next level that I can get to, whether it's a project or how can I apply this elsewhere? And it's that bridge from in the classroom experience. That's connected to what the Boys and Girls Club are doing, that's connected to what the parents are learning in PICA and how to overall empower our community to know that we're here for them mainly, but also we have the resources needed for the students to thrive and how can we work together to make sure that that continues?
Speaker 4:And that's where I kind of go into the next question with the group, of course, and I'll look at to my principals. I'm like what's next? Right, we have all these sports happening, we have parent empowerments, we have wraparound services, so we have medical support, of course. What's next? What do you guys see coming forward for the community schools? I'll look into the principles and then we'll pass it along.
Speaker 3:So I think we offered at LEAD anyway.
Speaker 3:We offered so many things a lot of things, but I did that because I wanted to see what the kids wanted to do. So right now we're just collecting the data about what are the most popular programs so that we know which ones to really focus on. Next year, maybe we will offer all of them again. We haven't yet decided, but we're tracking the data and then we'll put out a survey to the kids. Did you enjoy this? Is this something you'd want to continue doing? Would we want to try something else? So we need to pay attention to how people feel about what they love. I already know soccer is going to be, which I really actually do appreciate, because soccer our kids get very competitive at recess and lunch and so having so many of our kids doing it through AYS so they're learning the rules and learning that sportsmanship and things like that so I'm I'm really grateful for that.
Speaker 3:Next steps I think there was one more component maybe we'd like to think about for next year, and that is providing some academic supports as well. You know, I think initially we want to just provide them with that enrichment, but maybe next year we could look into possibly some tutoring opportunities after school for some of our students who may need it Not a large group, but just something, because if we do have parents who say, what else can I do? I can't help them with their fifth grade homework, but if someone else could, that would be great, and Boys and Girls Club is fabulous with what they do, but maybe some educators being able to work with kids after school is something that we're looking into.
Speaker 2:Definitely also echoing that. Soon we'll be meeting with our community school steering committee and looking at our programs now and seeing what are we going to keep for next year. What are we going to focus more on? Hearing Natalie Principal Natalie, that was really great about providing that literacy for parents, so thinking about how can we continue to empower our parents. We're also looking forward to next year having more availability for after school care in general, where students can also get that tutoring support and all of that help. So we're really excited about these next steps.
Speaker 1:First of all, I've never been so close to a director or principal in school. It's a privilege for me. And what you're saying about the involvement of the community and getting everybody assembled like soccer. I am a soccer player since I'm little right and I remember my closest friends from school playing soccer with me and that creates a bond for life. And it's not the matter of sport, as I told you before, it's the substance and integrating those kind of sports basketball, whether it's volleyball, soccer it's great, it's really good. And also not only that, in Boys and Girls Club, as I told you, I never have to check the homework of Mareny. It's great. You guys are doing a great job, amazing.
Speaker 5:And for Boys and Girls Club. I think that we are here to support the schools, the principals. Right now we are Sunny Brace and Mateo Park in lead and next year we're coming into Fiesta Gardens and hopefully we can, you know, be also in that. We have one more community school that we hopefully be there, hopefully be there, but it's just supporting, as I'm hearing you guys with the academics. What else can we do to give you and support with that, our athletics department, more spaces for the kids? So I think that for us is just be there, be present, be aware of the needs of each school, so like that we can continue to support the work that is happening at the community school, so like that you know we can be there for many, many years more. I want to say two more things.
Speaker 1:First of all, as things get better. I'm sad that she's going to another, different grade and different school because she's going to miss what is going to be better next year. And the other thing is that you are right If we keep kids busy with family resources and with occupational things for kids not occupational as a labor, but I mean keep them busy. That is amazing because after school programs sometimes can be boring, but the amount of knowledge and skills that she's getting is priceless. So I encourage whoever is listening to this, whether it's in Spanish or English, take advantage of these programs.
Speaker 3:Yeah, I can't speak highly enough about Boys and Girls Club at our site and the partnership we have. It's not just that they're there and they're like running daycare or an after program or something. It is not that at all. It is a complete partnership. I meet regularly with the leadership from Boys and Girls. Daycare or an after program or something. It is not that at all. It is a complete partnership. I meet regularly with the leadership from Boys and Girls Club. Every week we meet and discuss students. We discuss what's going on. How can we partner?
Speaker 3:My language and literacy toses have been working with some of the Boys and Girls Club teachers as well, sharing how we are doing literacy through PATH. We even have our counselors meeting regularly with Boys and Girls Club staff and our registered behavior technician. He is there to support as well. So it is a true partnership. It's an extended school day really is what it is. It's like our teachers clock out and their teachers clock in, but it does definitely still just feel like it's part of the lead school day and we could not I'm going to be honest running all these after school programs, this park and rec, really without the help of Boys and Girls Club.
Speaker 3:It would have been? I don't want to think about it, to be honest. Well, we wanted to do it, but it just felt we needed help. And, with Boys and Girls Club stepped in, and they are helping in so many ways, not just with their own sports, but they're helping with student signups and getting kids where they need to go and just being that support on campus because they're there so late I mean, they're there till six or seven at night, and this program runs from three to six sometimes, and so their partnership in this has just been amazing and invaluable, and I'm so grateful that we have such great leadership with Becca and Lorena and Andrew over at LEAD. Shout out to those guys. They are oh, and Yadira, oh, yadira. Thank you, yadira, amazing.
Speaker 4:All I hear is it's community, and this is what it's all about. It's about community involving parents, students, our partners, to follow one mission, and our goal is to make sure that our students are thriving academically, we're doing it in an equitable manner, and that they are being social and emotionally attended to. And I just truly really want to thank you all for joining me on this episode of the One SMFC Podcast, and I'm excited to be calling you all again next year to see how we're checking in on but yeah, no. So thank you so much for joining me in the One SMFC Podcast and we'll see you on the next one.