WHEREAS:	It is a goal of the City Council to see that families are fully engaged in their children's education, health and well-being and the community; and
WHEREAS:	One of the strongest predictors of success for children and youth is engaged families; and
WHEREAS:	The city's vision of successful family engagement in Cambridge is genuine partnerships grounded in respect between families and the organizations and institutions that serve them; and
WHEREAS:	Not all families are equally engaged or have equal access to information, support and services; and
WHEREAS:	Over the last year the Coordinating Council for Children Youth and Families (a/k/a Kids' Council) has gathered information through various means and concluded that family engagement is viewed as a priority and providers are interested in collaborating with others who serve families to overcome the barriers to effective family engagement and providers are interested in collaborating with others who serve families to overcome the barriers to effective family engagement; and
WHEREAS:	It is the shared responsibility of our community to reduce barriers and create the conditions necessary for families to be engaged; now therefore be it
RESOLVED:	That it shall be the goal of the City Council to further examine strategies to support families and strengthen relationships and partnerships between families and the organizations and institutions that serve them and develop recommendations; and be it further
RESOLVED:	That the City Council adopts the following goals in support of family engagement. The city government will: Strive to welcome all families and encourage their input regarding decisions affecting their children. Intentionally continue to build community and relationships between families and with families and work to ensure all families feel included. Promote coordination between the city services, schools and community service providers. Support training for service providers. Assure easy access for families to information, resources and services Evaluate the methods of outreach and engagement on a regular basis; and be it further
ORDERED:	That the City Manager and the Mayor work with the Kids' Council and its members-including the Department of Human Services, School Department, Police Department, Public Health Department, the Library and community partners-to further the goal of developing effective city-wide family engagement.