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CHAPTER 1

HARNESSING THE POWER

OF FAMILY LEADERSHIP FOR
IMMIGRANT STUDENTS
Aurelio M. Montemayor
Intercultural Development Research Association

Nancy Feyl Chavkin

Texas State University

ABSTRACT

Members of Education Community Action Forums for Excellence (Educa-

tion CAFEs), which began in the immigrant communities of South Texas,
are working with school-university-community collaborations to model a new
kind of family engagement focused on family leadership. The Intercultural
Development Research Association (IDRA) developed the Education CAFE
approach through its groundbreaking work in family leadership in education
and serves as an intermediary with the school-university-community collabo-
rations. This chapter describes three education action projects developed and
carried out by immigrant families. The chapter concludes with critical lessons
learned and recommendations for the future.

A Place Called Home: School-University-Community Collaboration and the

Immigrant Educational Experience, pp. 1–23
Copyright © 2021 by Information Age Publishing
All rights of reproduction in any form reserved. 1
 2   A. M. MONTEMAYOR and N. F. CHAVKIN

Education Community Forums for Excellence (Education CAFEs) evolved

from the history of the Intercultural Development Research Association
(IDRA) and its approach to family leadership. This family leadership
approach was part of IDRA’s early efforts related to bilingual advocacy orga-
nizations, parent training institutes, PTA Comunitario (community parent
teacher association), and most recently Education CAFEs. These earlier
efforts laid the foundation for the current work in family leadership with
immigrant families. The Education CAFE approach uses school-university-
community collaborations to enhance family leadership in education with
immigrant families in the Rio Grande Valley of south Texas. Each Educa-
tion CAFE is a parent group rooted in a community-based organization
rather than in a single school. The purpose is to collaborate with schools to
improve the success of students in the community. Families from multiple
AU: “nonprofit” schools who live in the same geographic area work together. Sometimes
is one word the schools are feeder schools on different grade levels.
in Webster’s
dictionary. In The chapter reports on the history and background, theoretical frame-
APA, write work, case examples, evaluations, and lessons learned using this family
most words leadership approach with immigrant families. The chapter describes three
formed with education action projects conducted by immigrant families as case exam-
prefixes (non,
co, pre, post, ples to illustrate the benefits of family leadership. The rich stories from
and others) these three education action projects conducted by immigrant families
as one word. from south Texas with the support of schools, universities, and community
Hyphens
organizations are the central focus of this chapter.
in words
preceded with
prefixes will
HISTORY AND BACKGROUND
be removed
where not
needed in this History of Family Leadership in Education
document.
----------> IDRA is a nonprofit organization focused on educational equity and
excellence. Over 45 years, IDRA provided a stable link between multiple
collaborating organizations. For example, IDRA facilitated the school-uni-
versity-community collaborations (featured in this chapter) that provided
technical assistance and training to immigrant families and their schools
in the Rio Grande Valley of Texas. Through IDRA’s history, a strong model
of family engagement has evolved, constructed from the experiences in the
field, especially with Title I schools and the families whose children attend
them. The practice and experiences evolved into the IDRA Education
CAFE approach for family leadership in education. Since the beginning,
new immigrant families have been important and consistent participants
in this work.
Sometimes entire school districts such as the Pharr-San Juan-Alamo
Independent School District (PSJA-ISD), Los Fresnos School District, or
the Brownsville School District has participated in these collaborations.
 Harnessing the Power of Family Leadership for Immigrant Students   3

The key universities working with the projects at various times included
faculty and staff from the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, Texas State
University, South Texas College, and others. College/university participa-
tion sometimes involved specific professors as collaborators or evaluators,
including myself (Chavkin) and at other times involved institutions offering
dual enrollment courses together with secondary schools, providing space,
hosting planning meetings, or sponsoring conferences.
The IDRA approach for family leadership in education began to take
shape in the early 1980s. With support from the then Federal Office of
Bilingual Education and Minority Languages Affairs, IDRA held training
institutes in Texas for parents of children in bilingual education. From the
beginning, the approach honored participants’ language and culture and
focused on parent engagement in nontraditional ways. The method was
participatory, bilingual, and focused on parents having influence on their
children’s education. The parents, most of whom were recent immigrants,
were seeking to have appropriate curriculum and effective teachers for
children who were learning English as a second language.
Over the years IDRA continued to train, support, and facilitate family
leadership. Programs such as Mobilization for Equity, Families United
for Education: Getting Organization, the Annual La Semana del Niño
Early Childhood Educators Institute™, Texas IDRA Parent Information
and Resource Center, and PTA Comunitario have focused on family lead-
ership. Funders have included the Ford Foundation, U.S. Department of
Education, federal and state agencies, foundations, and many others.
Historically, an IDRA investment in a community organization called
A Resource in Serving Equality (ARISE) became the centerpiece for fam-
ily leadership efforts with immigrant families. ARISE was the first home
of an Education CAFE. Other organizations which became engaged with
specific education action projects included Equal Voice Education Working
Group-Rio Grande Valley and the Texas Association of Bilingual Education
(TABE).
Recently, a U.S. Department of Education Investment in Innovation
grant funded IDRA for a four-year project to work with immigrant families
in the south Texas colonias (unincorporated, rural, border communities) in
the lower Rio Grande Valley of south Texas. With these resources, the PTA
Comunitario network (subsequently named Education CAFEs) expanded
to eight groups; these, in turn, were connected to the larger Equal Voice
Education Working Group (a network of organizations funded by the Mar-
guerite Casey Foundation). With additional funding from the W. K. Kellogg
Foundation, IDRA expanded their network of local Education CAFEs
across Texas. Each group had its own unique name and local educational
goals while being connected to a statewide membership; local groups might
collaborate on common regional or state projects such as a parent voice in
4   A. M. MONTEMAYOR and N. F. CHAVKIN

the Texas plan for the federal Every Student Succeeds Act. In 2020, with
support from the National Center on Immigrant Integration Policy, IDRA
began to extend the work throughout all of Texas to facilitate collaboration
and networking of the Education CAFE groups. And now, thanks to new
funds from the U.S. Department of Education, an IDRA-inspired equity
assistance center (IDRA EAC-South) will serve schools and education agen-
cies in 11 states across the south.
The three case studies, which we highlight in this chapter, evolved from
many efforts in IDRA’s history of supporting immigrant family leadership
in education specifically with school-university-community partnerships.
Through the Education CAFE approach, IDRA has been successful in
building, growing, and sustaining school-university-community partner-
ships that focus on equity and excellence for immigrant students.

Components of the Education CAFE Approach

In all three case studies discussed in this chapter, there are three com-
ponents that are central to the Education CAFE model:

• Community-based, Distributive Leadership. Education CAFEs

are born in their communities. They must be connected to a lo-
cal organization that commits to focus on education (among its
other mission areas). Meetings are attended by parents, grand-
parents, students’ older siblings, neighbors, and all who consider
themselves custodians of children’s academic success and future.
By rotating leadership roles, the Education CAFE is not depen-
dent on a central charismatic leader and instead is based on a
distributive leadership model.
• School Partnerships. Education CAFE members come together
and partner with schools in their neighborhood to ensure stu-
dent success. Collaboration includes coplanning and sharing
responsibility for outreach and ongoing activities that improve
education in their neighborhood public schools. Collaborators
include schools, school districts, universities, and community
organizations. In the three case examples in this chapter, the col-
laborations began in communities and then extended to schools
and school districts and now also include universities as key
partners.
• Education Projects. Education CAFEs carry out education
action projects using actionable data. For example, they bring
families together to examine education policies and their impli-
cations for children’s access to advanced placement, dual enroll-
 Harnessing the Power of Family Leadership for Immigrant Students   5

ment, and pre-algebra courses; the state’s education budget; and

college readiness strategies. They also meet with school adminis-
trators to talk about shared concerns. Some group projects have
included campus visitations to introduce the new organization,
open hearings with school board candidates, large public events
to protest cuts to the state education budget, and surveys about
how new graduation plans are being implemented and their im-
pact on poor and minority students. Education projects engage
the most appropriate collaborators for each specific education
issue. Most projects involve schools, universities, and communi-
ties at some point but not always at the same time. The depth of
involvement of each collaborator varies with the nature of the
project. Collaborators can change over time depending on the
education action project chosen.

An Education CAFE begins in the community and has multiple key

collaborators who join forces at varying times in different projects to sup-
port family leadership in education. In the three education action projects
described in this chapter, there are different key players depending on
the nature of the project. All involve collaboration between schools, uni-
versities, and communities at some stage in their development. There
are no single, super-parent leaders. Leadership is shared. Families work
together on education action projects that are of interest to them and their
communities. Education CAFEs do not focus on fundraising or gathering
volunteers; instead, Education CAFEs focus on shared family leadership
on education action projects that will improve their schools.

THEORETICAL FRAMEWORK

The IDRA Quality Schools Action Framework (Figure 1.1; Robledo Mon-
tecel & Goodman, 2010) is the key theoretical framework and provides
the foundation for family leadership in education. This framework was
strongly influenced by emancipatory pedagogy (Freire, 1970) in which
education has a fundamental role in creating a just and democratic society.
The framework was enriched by the work of Epstein (2011), Henderson
and Mapp (2002), Hong (2012), Mapp and Kuttner (2013), Sheldon and
Turner-Vorbeck (2019), Weiss et al. (2014), and many others who laid the
foundation for engaging families in their children’s education. These
earlier works provided a strong research base for the essential relationship
between student success and family engagement.
As Figure 1.1 illustrates, the Quality Schools Action Framework is
grounded in school reform research and practice. The framework integrates
family engagement and leadership in key sections of its comprehensive
6 A. M. MONTEMAYOR and N. F. CHAVKIN

Figure 1.1

IDRA Quality Schools Action Framework

Source: Robledo Montecel & Goodman, 2010)

change model and illustrates how to achieve quality public education for
all students. This is particularly important when working with immigrant
students and their families. The framework affirms the following:

• Though often neglected, coalition-building and community

capacity-building are critical change strategies in improving
graduation rates.
• One hundred percent high school graduation and preparation
for success should be the goals for all children and the measure
of success.
• While critical for students who are at immediate risk of dropping
out, discrete dropout prevention programs cannot change the
systems that give rise to risk in the first place.

CASE EXAMPLES:
FAMILY LEADERSHIP IN EDUCATION ACTION PROJECTS

The following case examples describe in depth three education action proj-
ects conducted by immigrant families working in partnership with schools,
universities, and communities:
 Harnessing the Power of Family Leadership for Immigrant Students   7

• A Mesa Comunitaria (community table) on graduation require-

ments and college preparation. This event was the culmination
of a grassroots effort by immigrant families to survey other immi-
grant families by going door-to-door to ask about their knowl-
edge of recently-changed graduation requirements in Texas and
then to hold a community roundtable to discuss the results of the
surveys.
• TABE Parent Institute on excellent dual-language programs.
Immigrant families planned and held highly dialogical sessions
resulting in the formation of local committees to advocate with
their school districts for strong dual-language programs.
• Mini-Mesa events conducted by immigrant students and parents
to present outstanding model programs in which they partici-
pate. The fifth of these annual events took place February 2020.
Students and families (primarily Spanish-speaking immigrants)
led these community conferences for other immigrant families.

Mesa Comunitaria on Graduation Requirements and

College Preparation

Families in the ARISE Education CAFE and other south Texas organiza-
tions were concerned when Texas adopted new graduation requirements
in 2015. The standard four-by-four curriculum was weakened. Algebra II
was no longer a required course. House Bill 5 (HB-5) caused apprehen-
sion among families who remembered the history of poor and minority
students being shunted into vocational education classes and graduating
with minimal preparation for college. HB-5 might encourage immigrant
families not to enroll their students in college preparatory courses.
The ARISE Education CAFE acted quickly. The president of the ARISE
support center cochaired the Equal Voice Education working group. ARISE
also was part of a network of PTA Comunitarios that IDRA organized into
innovative models of family leadership in education. PTA Comunitarios
operated in south Texas in Alamo, Brownsville, Donna, La Joya, Los Fres-
nos, Pharr, San Benito, and San Juan—all communities with large numbers
of recent immigrant families. All worked with local schools and school
districts.
ARISE was incensed with a notice sent by the Texas PTA office to its
membership rejoicing in the new graduation guidelines, which stated,
“Don’t let the school force your child into Algebra II. It is no longer
required.” ARISE had been hearing troubling reactions by officials to the
new rules: “We don’t have to force those students into courses they can’t
handle.” “No more than ten percent of our students can handle higher
8   A. M. MONTEMAYOR and N. F. CHAVKIN

math, chemistry, and physics. That’s why they drop out.” These sentiments
were the opposite of what the ARISE Support Center President and other
immigrant families wanted to hear. She and others declared, “We want our
children and all the children of the families we serve to be prepared for
college. Many schools don’t consider our families college material because
they are poor, don’t speak much English, and live in isolated colonias.” As
cochair of the Education Working Group, she led the effort to conduct a
regional survey of the families they served to determine what the commu-
nity knew about the new HB-5 standards and requirements. IDRA helped
develop the questionnaire and analyzed the results.
One of the core elements of a PTA Comunitario was that members con-
ducted projects that were both laboratories for leadership and furthered
the key goals of influencing educational policy and practice. Thus, this
survey effort and what followed were the family leadership in education
action projects. Over a two-month period, the Education Working Group
and immigrant families collected door-to-door more than 1,629 bilingual
surveys across 24 school districts and 30 cities across the Rio Grande Valley.
This survey was one of the first—if not the only—community survey
on Texas’ curriculum tracking policies during the first year of its
implementation in schools. The numerous survey respondents with
children in public schools in the Rio Grande Valley consistently gave similar
responses: Many parents had not received information on HB-5 graduation
requirements. IDRA analyzed the survey data and developed a report with
the survey’s key findings, implications, and recommended next action steps
for communities.
Most parents (85%) knew little, if anything at all, about Texas’ gradu-
ation plans and tracking procedures, and 84% had little or no idea how
the new graduation requirements were impacting their children. And 66%
of parents who had children in either middle school or high school did
not know which graduation plan would prepare their children for a four-
year university. Over half of respondents (58%) with at least one child in
Grades 7–12 reported they had not been asked to sign off on their child’s
graduation plan, and almost one third (31%) did not know if the school
had asked them. Four out of five respondents (82%) with at least one child
in Grades 7–12 did not know the procedure for changing their child’s
graduation plan. It was clear that families did not know about the new
graduation requirements, but they wanted to know more, and they wanted
to be involved in the decision about which high school courses their chil-
dren would take. Almost 100% of the survey respondents signed their full
names and contact information so that they could continue the dialogue
and take action. The full report is available online (Education Working
Group, 2015).
 Harnessing the Power of Family Leadership for Immigrant Students   9

The underlying assumptions of the immigrant families—which the

network of organizations knew well—were that their children would be
prepared for college when they graduated from high school. Most were
shocked that, under the new graduation requirements, many of their
children would follow educational paths that might severely limit their
possibilities to enter and succeed in college.
A year before the survey, in 2014, IDRA had held a regional meeting to
introduce the new, proposed Texas education guidelines to this network.
That bilingual, regional convening modeled how conferences can inform
the community about educational issues. With the subsequent findings of
the 2015 survey and the report created by IDRA, the Education Working
Group held the large Mesa Comunitaria on Graduation Requirements and
College Preparation event. In August of 2015, at the South Texas College
campus in Weslaco, Texas, more than 120 participants came together:
parents, members of community organizations, school district superinten-
dents, school family engagement staff, and college faculty representing 16
school districts and two colleges. Parent leaders from the seven former PTA
Comunitarios (now called Education CAFEs) led table dialogues. Colleges
and school districts became collaborators with immigrant families at this
stage in the education action project.
The organizers designed the event to be highly participatory. The open-
ing session conveyed key information from the report. Every participant
had a bilingual copy. Opening presentations were short. Each table had
agendas, task sheets, and key questions to discuss. The facilitators and
reporters/scribes were from the grassroots organizations sponsoring the
event. All conversations reinforced the centrality of family involvement,
stressing authentic engagement in contrast to traditional volunteering and
fundraising. Participants listed such barriers as limited communication and
the absence of invitations from schools for meaningful engagements. The
families desired communication in Spanish and special support for partici-
pation, such as transportation. Family leadership was critical. Discussions
reinforced the value and importance of family and parent involvement in
education. Lack of information dominated reports (either because school
staff do not have it or because it is not communicated effectively). College-
readiness was a priority. Some observed that school counselors were spread
too thin or were discouraging their children from a college track. More
connections to colleges and universities were needed.
The Mesa Comunitaria on Graduation Requirements and College
Preparation produced action plans with strategies for community-based
organizations, universities, and school staff.

• Share information effectively: All the action plans involved

changing the manner of information sharing with families in
10   A. M. MONTEMAYOR and N. F. CHAVKIN

meaningful and effective ways. Some examples included having

counselors host interactive workshops with parents and students,
sharing information at community social events, and using a va-
riety of media outlets (e.g., social media, press, radio, television,
mass text messages, videos, and websites). The Mesa Comuni-
taria modeled communication, dialogue, and true respect for
families’ opinions and desires.
• Improve communication with schools and universities: Par-
ticipants expressed a desire to have good communication with
school and university representatives. They suggested inviting
teachers and counselors to become members of the Education
CAFES; collaborating with parent centers and the Texas Educa-
tion Service Center in their region; visiting schools; visiting col-
leges and universities; and communicating directly with counsel-
ors, district administrators, and superintendents.
• Take community action: In particular, the community-based
organizations committed themselves to playing a larger role in
helping to disseminate information by integrating educational
components into their current community programming.

Community-led initiatives, such as the Mesa Comunitaria, are an embodi-

ment of our family leadership in education principles at IDRA, which state
(among other elements), “Family leadership is most powerful at improving
education for all children when collective efforts create solutions for the
common good” (Montemayor, 2007, para. 11).
After the Mesa Comunitaria, participants, including school staff,
reported that they were more familiar with the high school graduation
requirements than they were before the gathering. Participants also
found the event useful for strengthening strategic partnerships and col-
laborations. They identified clear action plans to better inform immigrant
families about the policy change and its implications for their children.
Additionally, parents reported feeling more comfortable with reaching out
to school staff to discuss the high school requirements because of partici-
pating in the Mesa Comunitaria.
After the event, the Education Working Group met monthly to monitor
follow-up projects. They documented the plans of action and distributed
summaries to the participating groups. While the groups continued to
inform the community about these issues, some activities were specifically
effective. In Brownsville, the three Education CAFES, in collaboration with
the Los Fresnos group, conducted a Saturday workshop for 90 people. The
Brownsville Independent School District superintendent was present and
offered a welcome address to the group. Representatives led a presentation
on the graduation requirements, and the participants received information
 Harnessing the Power of Family Leadership for Immigrant Students   11

on the jobs available and average annual salary in nine different disciplines
for those with at least a bachelor’s degree to help students select appropri-
ate high school coursework.
The Los Fresnos group conducted regular workshops on the graduation
requirements. Immigrant families, schools, community organizations, and
universities continued to work collaboratively for immigrant families in the
Rio Grande Valley. Another specific follow-up, mini-mesas comunitarias
led by ARISE, PSJA-ISD, and IDRA are described in the third case study
for this chapter.
Another group that actively participated in the Mesa Comunitaria on
graduation requirements and college preparation was the College Schol-
arship Leadership Access Program (CSLAP, 2020). This program, often
referred to CSLAP, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded by a
PSJA North High School alumnus who recently graduated from Princeton
University. CSLAP hosts workshops and provides near-peer mentorship
for high school students applying to college. Based in the Rio Grande Val-
ley in South Texas, CSLAP offers personalized services for local students
while also offering one-on-one mentoring sessions. They began by hosting
summer institutes for rising seniors at PSJA-ISD and raising awareness
about applying to college through workshops and seminars; they also
provided mentorship through year-long communication and served as a
support system for graduating seniors. Their curriculum served as the basis
for the PSJA-ISD’s “University Scholars Enrichment Course.” In 2019, they
became an incorporated nonprofit organization in the state of Texas and
are now serving students nationally through digital technology. CSLAP
continues to grow and connect immigrant students and families in Educa-
tion CAFES with college/university admission and success.

TABE Parent Institute

Every school district in south Texas has English learners. The majority
of all students (both immigrant and nonimmigrant) in south Texas start
out as English learners. English learners in a Texas elementary school
must receive bilingual education, and other grade levels must receive
instruction in either English as a second language or other transitional
language instruction. Despite this strong policy that has been in place for
decades (Texas Education Agency, 2020), English learners and particularly
immigrant students who are English learners face constant struggles and
challenges. For example, the state severely underfunds English learner
education, and many programs attempt to transition students into all-
English programs too early. Another great barrier has been the limited
12   A. M. MONTEMAYOR and N. F. CHAVKIN

meaningful engagement of immigrant families in support of bilingualism

and biliteracy.
Bilingual conferences for immigrant parents and by immigrant parents
can be excellent opportunities for family leadership. Family leadership
can lead to advocacy and public defense of excellent bilingual programs.
But many advocacy organizations tend to give little attention to the power
of collective family action in support of excellent bilingual programs. And
when they do, individuals attending have little support back home and no
peer advocacy team.
An opportunity presented itself during the planning for the TABE
statewide conference in October 2017. The parent representative on the
TABE board had previously been a coplanner and facilitator of parent
institutes with a leadership focus. IDRA had been providing these insti-
tutes to national, state, and local bilingual advocacy groups for decades.
The approach was always highly participatory with underlying Freirean
principles facilitating critical dialogue.
The proposed TABE parent institute looked to be happening at the
right time and place, with the collaboration of IDRA as a backbone organi-
zation, the University of Texas Rio Grande Valley, ARISE Education CAFE
and her sister organizations, and the PSJA-ISD Dual Language Depart-
ment. This community network was already experienced in planning and
executing community conferences such as the Mesas Comunitarias. The
school district had been unique in graduating hundreds of high schoolers
with a biliteracy seal on their diplomas. Those students were fully biliter-
ate, and all were on college tracks with significant dual-enrollment credit
hours on their transcripts. Colleges from all over the United States were
welcoming these fully biliterate students.
A school-university-community planning team designed the institute
and set up training sessions for the immigrant family and community
members who would facilitate the table discussions. The university pro-
vided the space and support for the planning and training sessions. The
school district’s dual-language department invited parents and students
to be panelists to give personal testimony on the benefits and efficacy of
the dual-language program. The institute was to be conducted in Spanish.
TABE provided the space and the food for the event. Two parents served
as emcees for the full-day institute. A student and parent panel opened
the presentations. Bilingual administrators were present for support, but
immigrant families and community persons handled the facilitation.
The first round of table conversations focused on the benefits of an excel-
lent dual-language program. In the second-round, participants discussed
the possibilities for advocacy. The third round was organized around the
school districts represented and was action-oriented. At the parent insti-
tute, PSJA families and students demonstrated to other immigrant families
 Harnessing the Power of Family Leadership for Immigrant Students   13

how effective the dual-language program had been in their one school
district. The presenting panel of one student and three parents had great
impact demonstrating to the participants that academic experts were not
necessary to present and lead in such an effort. The conversations at the
tables were very dynamic and allowed everyone to express their opinion.
Several elements of the institute gave it the power to influence school
policy and practice. All the participants were from the lower Rio Grande
Valley, that is, from the same region. There were significant numbers
representing 10 different school districts; no attendee came as sole repre-
sentative of a school or community. Each specific community-school group
committed to carry out the plan that they developed for their particular
district. For the first time in the history of these bilingual education advo-
cacy conferences, teams of mostly immigrant parents would emerge with an
organized plan for follow up. The Equal Voice Education Working Group
committed to overseeing follow-up and serving as the reporting body for
each group. The university-school district-community organizations and
IDRA would ensure support for continuity. Just as graduation requirements
and college preparation had become a regional concern for the commu-
nities, so now effective dual-language programs became the target of an
education action project.
There were several notable successes of the TABE institute. Conference
participants returned as advocates for excellent bilingual programs while
pushing for authentic family engagement. Immigrant families experienced
the power of critical dialogue to form groups and teams in support of bilin-
gual education. This school-community-university collaboration was by and
for families, most of whom were recent immigrants. Participants ensured
that the work would be sustained by planning follow-up activities. A year
later, in 2018, the same network held a third regional Mesa Comunitaria.
The theme was effective dual-language programs. The follow-up to the
TABE parent institute provided the content to the event.
Currently, this work is being extended by efforts to expand curriculum
and programs on Mexican American studies. A Mesa Comunitaria was held
on this topic in June 2019, coplanned and cohosted by the University of
Texas Rio Grande Valley in collaboration with the community organizations
and school districts that had been part of the previous Mesas. Another
expansion of the work of the TABE parent institute has been the growth of
the annual statewide training for Mexican American studies. Recently held
online with its largest summer enrollment ever, the training was hosted by
the University of Texas San Antonio and included representatives from
schools and families in the Rio Grande Valley and reports of the work of
the ARISE Education CAFÉ and its work with immigrant families.
These projects illustrate the interests and desires of the immigrant fami-
lies. They want their children to achieve academically, to be prepared for
14   A. M. MONTEMAYOR and N. F. CHAVKIN

college and postsecondary studies, and to maintain their home language

and culture leading to full biliteracy at graduation. Immigrant families
continue to actively collaborate with schools, universities, and community
organizations on biliteracy.

Mini-Mesa Comunitarias

The Mini-Mesa Comunitarias exemplify a third example of family lead-

ership in education projects. These events developed from a collaboration
to inform the Spanish-speaking, primarily immigrant community of the
Rio Grande Valley through intergenerational leadership. Immigrant fami-
lies, including their youth, PSJA-ISD, IDRA, ARISE, and local universities
were key partners in these school-university-community collaborations.
The process of these mini-mesas, held at middle schools and family
centers, was to highlight students and parents as emcees, presenters, and
facilitators. Instead of just informing the community about graduation
requirements or how to examine students’ classes to ensure they were col-
lege-bound, students themselves recounted the benefits of these programs
that put them on an advanced academic strand. The event served as a
laboratory in leadership development for the presenting students and
parents. They prepared by answering a set of simple questions, and each
presenter spoke from their experience and gave their own testimony. Those
in the dual enrollment classes spoke about the benefits and challenges as
did those in the dropout recovery center and those in the high school dual-
language program.
Students participated from the very first mini-mesa, a Saturday event,
where they presented to the families about several key educational issues
related to high school graduation and college entrance. Sessions focused
on:

• dual enrollment classes and why these were significant

• full biliteracy that results in biliteracy honors at graduation
• dropout recovery that leads to college enrollment and success
• adult education that gives parents opportunities to learn English
and continue their education

Students were the emcees, presenters, guides, and participants at this Mini-
Mesa Comunitaria. Adults helped with planning and preparation, and the
students shone as leaders with great verve and assertiveness. Many had
never presented at a conference like this, much less to adults. The student
voice was powerful, informative, moving, and highly motivating to all who
attended.
 Harnessing the Power of Family Leadership for Immigrant Students   15

CSLAP was an active participant in these mini-mesas. They collaborated

with the ARISE Education CAFE and provided additional connections
between immigrant families, schools, and colleges/universities. Recently,
college-degreed alumni of CSLAP have been offering sessions on how
to use technology for online learning during the pandemic. They have
reached out to assist immigrant college students who are facing financial
and logistical problems. This college youth program has been a promising
partner with the family leadership approach that started with the ARISE
Education CAFE
The culture of service and community spirit that the family leadership
in ARISE Education CAFE engenders is clearly reflected in both secondary
students and college students. Immigrant students are now challenging
counselors and others who attempt to dissuade their peers from taking
advanced courses in math and science. These youth are challenging the
stereotypes of their neighborhoods and peers, saying instead: “Yes, we are
college material. Yes, we can excel in difficult courses. No, we do not wish
to take the easier routes much less drop out.” In doing so, they are fulfilling
their vision to earn college degrees and make their families “very proud of
our accomplishments.” From field trips to colleges, to having high school
and college counselors give them tips and support, these young people
are demonstrating leadership for college preparation and admission. The
universities and colleges continue to partner with the schools that award
both high school and college credit. The mini-mesas have continued for
five years with the last one being held in February of 2020, a month before
the pandemic crisis closed in-person conferences and events. The mini-
mesas have enriched the family leadership approach and the collaboration
among schools, universities, and communities.

EVALUATION

As we reported in Chavkin (2017) and Montemayor and Chavkin (2016,

2020), the school-university-community collaborations in these three edu-
cation action projects used several methods to help understand the process
and outcomes. We begin here with a review of the outcomes of the three
case studies. In addition, we analyzed thirty parent interviews conducted
in Spanish and conducted a focus group with family leaders from three
Education CAFEs to learn more about the process.

Three Case Studies

The Mesa Comunitaria, which was held to discuss the results of the
grassroots survey conducted with 1,629 immigrant parents by immigrant
16   A. M. MONTEMAYOR and N. F. CHAVKIN

parents using a door-to-door survey, resulted in increased awareness of

educational law and local policies. A major positive result was the action
plans produced and the buy-in from 100% of the parents attending the
Mesa Comunitaria. Each of these plans had strategies for sharing infor-
mation, improving communication with schools, taking community action
with collaborators, and remaining a community-led initiative. After the
event, several local family groups conducted additional workshops and
initiated the mini-mesas which were the subject of the third case study. The
education action project clearly led to both awareness and follow-up action.
The TABE parent institute case study resulted in enhanced family lead-
ership opportunities. One important outcome was that it became clear that
immigrant families wanted their children to be fully biliterate. Families
formed a network, connected with colleges and universities in the area,
and took action in their local communities to increase opportunities for
biliteracy.
The Mini-Mesas saw the collaboration with colleges and universities con-
tinue to grow. The focus was ensuring that school classes helped students
be college-bound. The relationships with the colleges and universities were
strengthened and continue to be sustained through programs such as dual
enrollment, full biliteracy, dropout recovery leading to college enrollment,
and adult education.
All three projects are ongoing, fully sustained, and growing. The col-
laborations among schools, universities, and communities are strong and
focus on immigrant families taking leadership roles. New issues continue
to challenge immigrant families, but immigrant families in partnership
with school-university-community collaborations are ready and willing to
work on them.

Analysis of Family Interviews

The family interviews expanded our understanding of the process.

These thirty interviews were semistructured with open-ended questions.
The key questions centered around general parent role and engagement,
general involvement in the education action projects, and the impacts of
family leadership. We conducted the 15- to 20-minute interviews in Span-
ish. The interviews were coded and analyzed in both Spanish and English
by an independent university evaluator.
There were multiple themes related to information shared by IDRA
(Texas HB-5, understanding standardized test scores); removing barriers
(language, information gap, reserved parents); empowering parents to
help others; learning the school system; redefining parent involvement
(rights and responsibilities, four-year degrees, monitoring); increased par-
 Harnessing the Power of Family Leadership for Immigrant Students   17

ent involvement, influence at the district level; influence at the school

levels; and goals for the future. We note particularly the documentation of
critical conversations that took place on multiple fronts. First, families were
talking to each other about schools and education. Second, families were
talking with their children about their education and the education of their
community. Third, families were talking with schools at both the school
and district levels about policies, practices, and goals for their children. It
became abundantly clear that the conversations were true dialogues. These
were not one-way communications. These conversations emphasized the
“with” and not the “to” of true communication.
The interviews highlighted what had been accomplished and how it had
been accomplished. It was clear that immigrant families had learned much
about HB-5. They had become critical consumers of data and knew that
numbers might not tell the whole story. For example, knowing the number
of high school graduates did not tell you how many graduated with the
credits necessary to enter college. Parents were now assuming an “expert
role” as they were able to explain to both their own children and some-
times the counselors why their students should take advanced or different
courses. Parents were able to advocate for input into the course selection
process so that students could make informed choices and take rigorous
courses. Parents felt empowered by their increased understanding of poli-
cies and were willing to take a more active role. Parents become “more
aware of what is happening at the state and local level.” Parents reported
that IDRA “helped them read the reports that accompanied standardized
tests.” Parents articulated that this was an important contribution because
these reports were vastly different from the grading systems in their coun-
tries of origin.
Two quotes about the process showed the importance of the group effort
and the benefits it had on individual families:

I believe that we have made an impact. We are impacted and we are united,
and it hurts when it happens to one of us, what happens to another. And
we try to get together, embrace, and help each other. I believe that there is
a union in the group.

In addition,

We’ll learn about my rights at school but also my responsibilities because

sometimes we only take the part we need. But also learning that as a
mother I also have obligations and responsibilities to teach my daughter
that she must learn that she also has her rights, but also her responsibilities
as a student.
18   A. M. MONTEMAYOR and N. F. CHAVKIN

Small Focus Group with Leaders

In addition to the thirty family interviews, we held a small focus group

with three leaders of Education CAFE groups. For three and one half hours,
the three leaders shared their experiences with each other and with me
(Chavkin), a university evaluator who had observed the mini-mesas and
several other meetings. The goal was focused on four overarching objec-
tives: (a) share experiences in family leadership, (b) document processes
that led to success, (c) document best practices, and (d) reflect on next
steps.
As the participants shared their successes, they told rich and detailed
stories of the processes that led them to their successes. Often these stories
included overcoming barriers of prejudice against low-income families,
non-English speaking families, and immigrant families. Sometimes schools
ignored them, sometimes they worked in partnership with them, and some-
times they seemed to be working against them. While these discussions of
barriers set the context and explained the troubles overcome, the partici-
pants agreed to focus the conversation on what did work and how they got
there by overcoming obstacles. As one said, “It is like magic that I have
seen—when I see a principal get it! It creates that dynamic team that leads
to transformation.” This comment led to the observation that sometimes it
is the superintendent who is your champion and other times it is the indi-
vidual school principal. In another community, they felt that their biggest
support came from community organizations and not the school. These
family leaders recognized that the context of the community, schools, tim-
ing, and external events are all important influences on their work. They
valued having connections with colleges and universities.
The list of strategies that led to success (in no particular order and
with the repeated caveat from participants that some of the suggestions
will depend on one’s community) included the following: be present at
school board meetings; partner with teacher groups, community groups,
and universities; have a constant presence in the school; revisit your values
often; have regular meetings (weekly at first); help participants with public
speaking; reach out to all; develop materials; have newsletters, a website,
and an email address; and work within the rules. Most of all, they wanted
to share that participants should “stay in it for the long haul.” Successful
coalitions involved youth and always had activities for younger children.
They provided training and resources for members to grow. They wanted
to remind others that some parents are not able to participate right now
because they are in “survival mode” but may be able to contribute later.
There were some powerful statements about the work of immigrant
families in all these regions: “Parents are leaders. Every one of them is a
leader.” “Parents who don’t care are very, very few.” “Or it may be that it’s
 Harnessing the Power of Family Leadership for Immigrant Students   19

because they’re in survival mode right now or they have some other crisis or
issue going along with circumstances where they are that time.” “We need
to meet the parents where they are.” “The knowledge that we have received
and the information we have received have empowered us as parents to be
able to go and advocate not only on behalf of my child but all.” “We come
as a group and go away with knowledge.” “My child has rights and you
have a responsibility.”
They described some specific success stories such as individual parents
getting the courage to speak in front of a group, about parents knowing
about HB-5 and graduation requirements, about parents able to communi-
cate better with their children about which courses to take to get academic
endorsements, about a district where 100% of the students took college
coursework, about a district where 100% of the students graduated with an
associate’s degree along with their high school degree, and about a school
where dual-language curriculum is now offered.
In addition, they talked about the long-term success of forming a com-
munity of immigrant families, of educating families about issues, and about
preparing families to be advocates and to work in partnership with schools
to achieve the best education possible for their children: “We now know that
we have these planning abilities … these are strengths.” Regarding tight
budgets: “We are very familiar with a situation with not enough dollars.
We know how to stretch dollars.” One repeated success was the newly-
recognized confidence to support other immigrant families. One leader
illustrated the importance of voluntary mentoring with a group hug by ask-
ing families to hold hands and surround the school. They wanted families
to realize that they have each other. They have not been abandoned: “We
are going to fight until the very end because it’s our kids, it’s our future,
it’s their health … no matter what the outcome is … it’s how we develop
the women and their families to be able to have some sense of community.”
When the question of next steps arose, there were many eager responses:
“First of all, we don’t have all the information. Second, we have some new
information. How do you put it together?” “You need to be able to do a
certain process … it has to be very much rendered a certain way.” “For us,
the organizing strategy, we have it pretty much … but now it’s like having
all this different information.” “How do you really work on it?” “We need
base standards of what is a strong Title I school … guidelines, recommen-
dations … and then we can come up with our own plan.” They did not want
to only be responding to the choices offered by the districts.
There was a clear consensus that they needed more training and support
for understanding the data. They now know how to get a lot of data, but not
how to analyze it, or ask for the right data. They gave an example where
they asked for data and got more than 600 pages, but they did not know
how to analyze it or what to look for. Some of the pages were duplicates
20   A. M. MONTEMAYOR and N. F. CHAVKIN

and some just seemed to be numbers without context. They went back to
statements about how you must put data together and know the process
for asking for the right information and then know what to do with the
findings. They wanted training so they could help others learn how to work
with data: “This training provides us an opportunity to train others and to
empower others and to continue giving the resources for other communi-
ties in other areas.”
They realized that this is not a short-term effort: “It’s not a one-year
effort or a two-year effort.” They asked for more “train the trainer work-
shops.” They also wanted more “networking and mentoring.” They wanted
examples of successful schools (case studies) and help with strategies to
prepare families as leaders and advocates.
Working with peer organizations and universities has been helpful
to them. They valued the “connection in how IDRA will just honor and
respect, and we value the partnership. It was clear that these participants
understood the value of families and community to education: “In a com-
munity … you have to embrace … you have to respect the community.
Regardless of its conditions, there is a community you need to respect. And
that there is a process, good or bad. But there is a process of education.”
They understood their responsibilities to learn about policy and decision-
making processes: “It makes me evaluate beyond. If they are going to
implement a decision, then it allows me to evaluate how that decision is
going to affect my children. Something that I didn’t have before.”
It was clear that these participants not only wanted their efforts to con-
tinue but that they were going to make sure they did continue. Early in the
discussions, the words “legacy,” “future,” and “sustainability” were used. “It
is not in how many home visits … how many volunteer hours or how many
events. But our process that we went through and exactly what we want to
talk about today.” “You have to have that sense of community.” One partici-
pant referred to a quote by César Chavez about how you cannot intimidate
an educated man. She believed that we really need to continue training
more immigrant families to understand educational policy and processes.

Next Steps

The sustained school-university-community collaborations that are

continuing and thriving are a positive sign. As the case examples make clear,
immigrant families not only learned more about HB-5, but they changed
ongoing policy and practice at their local schools. They are continuing to
actively analyze annual data and ask questions. When appropriate, they
are conducting additional research. They are partnering with local colleges
and universities to help them work with their schools. The TABE parent
 Harnessing the Power of Family Leadership for Immigrant Students   21

institute led to increased programs for biliteracy. The connections among

immigrant families, schools, and universities are stronger. The mini-mesa
comunitarias continue to occur, and the youth and family engagement
keeps getting stronger with increased collaboration from schools and
universities.
Additional evaluation is needed to understand more about family
leadership in education and the roles that school-university-community col-
laborations can play. In addition, IDRA’s role as an intermediary, facilitating
organization requires more detailed exploration. Studying organizational
advocacy which introduces and sustains institutional transformation in
efforts such as this family leadership approach with immigrant families will
not be easy, but additional evaluation is essential to understanding more
about this complex school-university-community collaboration.

LESSONS LEARNED

There are important lessons learned from this work. School-university-

community collaborations that see immigrant families as equals and
support family leadership have been successful in changing educational
practices. The school-university-community collaborations have harnessed
the power of family leadership to improve equity and educational out-
comes for immigrant students.
Some of the key lessons learned were:

• Immigrant families want equitable and excellent programs for

their children.
• Immigrant families want educational programs to retain na-
tive language literacy and help students become fully literate in
English as well.
• Effective facilitation and training with immigrant families works
well if conducted in the languages of immigrant families.
• Bilingual conferences for immigrant parents and by immigrant
parents are excellent leadership opportunities.
• Schools, universities, and community organizations can work
together with immigrant families.
• Family leadership with immigrant families can lead to effective
educational advocacy and change in policy and practice.

There is more work to do in the Rio Grande Valley, but school-uni-

versity-community collaborations have made much progress. The Mesa
Comunitaria on graduation requirements and college preparation, the
22   A. M. MONTEMAYOR and N. F. CHAVKIN

TABE parent institute, and the mini-mesa comunitarias are examples of

three education action projects which have harnessed the power of family
leadership for immigrant students by working with school-university-com-
munity collaborations.

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