Meeting needs: studying the impact of parent education programs in early education

A growing body of literature corroborates the linkage between parental involvement and student academic achievement. With educational policy shifts in No Child Left Behind (NCLB), Elementary and Secondary Education Act (ESEA), and Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), which have emphasized increasing parental involvement, under the assumption that it creates a positive impact on student achievement, a need for schools to create conditions to facilitate it exists. This study aims to understand the ways in which targeted programs—such as "Latinos Conectados"—work to establish favorable conditions to make parental involvement possible, in terms of the connections and mechanisms. More concretely, this study focuses on the ways in which the mentioned program may facilitate an environment for these parents to discuss perceptions and experiences, as well as support one another in their community.