Building Authentic Family Engagement

Part 4 of 4 in our Science of Reading workshop series. 
Format

Live via Zoom with pre-work

Workshop Date

April 21, 12-2pm ET / 9-11am PT

Facilitators

Liz McChesney

Credit Hours 

4 Credit Hours

Additional Series Sessions

Find all sessions here
Member Price

$400 or $1250 for the 4-workshop series

About this Course

Authentic engagement goes beyond just marketing to families and instead brings them into collaboration with the library. In this workshop, participants will learn how to move beyond ‘come to storytime’ messages to build authentic, culturally respectful family engagement strategies that support home decoding practice, caregiver confidence and referral if needed.

Guest Speaker: Denise Diaz, Family Engagement Specialist, Harmony Academy

Learners are expected to attend and actively participate in the live session. Recordings will be provided should a conflict arise, but registrants should plan to attend live in order to benefit from the learning.

About the Science of Reading Workshop Series

The Science of Reading, a research-backed approach to reading education, is building momentum in schools across the country and showing clear results. Library leaders who serve youth have an opportunity to partner with schools and the broader community to implement and reinforce science-based methods of reading instructor and improve local youth literacy. In this four-part workshop series, ULC Senior Advisor and early literacy expert Liz McChesney will provide library leaders with the information they need to strategically implement science of reading concepts and practice in their daily work with youth. 

Course format: This course is designed to provide library leaders with key foundational information over the course of four 2-hour workshops. Staff may choose to register for the entire series, or pick and choose which workshops seem they will be most beneficial. Each workshop will have some pre-and post-work designed to help enhance and apply the learning to the library context. 

Audience: Library leaders who work with youth and have the capacity to implement practices that support the Science of Reading whether in a system or an individual branch. 

Course Facilitator:
Liz McChesney

Senior Advisor, Urban Libraries Council

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Liz McChesney is a career-long children’s librarian and administrator and under her leadership numerous national initiatives have been spearheaded including the move to broaden summer offerings for youth. Liz serves as a Senior Advisor in Educational Equity at The Urban Libraries Council, she is a Fellow at the National Summer Learning Association and is the Community Partnerships Director for the Laundry Literacy Coalition. A frequent author and speaker, Liz has earned numerous national awards including the 2024 David M. Rubenstein Award for Literacy Excellence from the Library of Congress and the ALA Library Service to Children Distinguished Service Award. Her book, The Path Forward, was published in 2023 by ALA Editions. 

Denise Diaz

Family Engagement Specialist, Harmony Academy

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With nearly three decades of service in the Clark County School District (CCSD), Denise Diaz is a seasoned education leader specializing in family engagement, community partnerships, and whole-school support systems. An educator for more than 20 years, she advanced from Family Engagement Project Facilitator to Executive Director of the Engagement Unit, where she led districtwide initiatives supporting families, staff, and students.Today, Denise serves as Director of Strategic Partnerships for Harmony Academies at National University, building multi-year partnerships nationwide to advance healthy relationships and belonging. She continues to champion research-based, collaborative approaches that strengthen communities and improve student outcomes.