Navigating the education system
Workshop Series
Step into your power and become your child’s best advocate to set them up for success!
Translations are available in all workshops
CPLAN engages parents with a capacity building model to address educational inequities and social needs to ensure a high quality, whole child educational experience for all learners. Our workshop series centers family engagement and building parent leaders. We strive to create thriving self-reliant parent advocates by building on their confidence and capacity through training, coaching, and community building.
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Our Parent Leadership training series is designed as a peer leadership model for parents to train one another, share knowledge and experiences, and help one another develop their communication and community organizing skills. Our training focuses on building knowledge of parent advocacy, shaping and sustaining parent councils, engaging community leaders and other key stakeholders, partnering with school administrators to inform or co-design school policies and practices.
Creating an Equitable and Inclusive Education
A workshop offering ideas on how we can create and advocate for an equitable and inclusive climate to ensure our children have fulfilling educational experiences. The deep understanding of this practice guarantees a school environment that is conducive to reaching academic success while maintaining social and emotional wellness.
Navigating Technology
in partnership with Boston Public & Brockton Public Schools
A workshop helping families navigate the technical component of education such as email account/ accessing and communicating with teachers, navigating and understanding the parent portal (ASPEN), understanding the report card, or how to find information on school websites.
Mental Wellness
Dr. Gayl Crump Swaby of New Generation Consultants & Associates offers a workforce development program pilot that trains individuals on how to have mental wellness discussion by pouring into this combined curriculum on the teachings of mental wellness, clinical mental health, mindfulness, embodiment, and racial healing/decolonization that replicates their respective holistic approaches to mental wellness and dialogue.
Special Education for Beginners
Presentations given in English, Spanish, Haitian Creole, & Portuguese
In partnership with the Federation for Children with Special Needs, this interactive workshop is for families that are new to Special Education about their rights, how to organize Special Ed. documents including the information that should be collected and learn the most commonly used terms to help them start this journey with knowledge, confidence, and empowerment.
Special Education for Experienced Families
This session is held in English, Spanish, Haitian Creole, & Portuguese
In partnership with The Federation for Children with Special Needs, this workshop is for parents who already know the basics and have some experience in navigating the Special Education system, but have very unique needs, questions or concerns. This is a Q&A Session with a to take a deeper dive into Special Education scenarios helping parents learn what options and resources are available to them to better support their children.
Special Education for the Transitional Period
Presentations given in English, Spanish, Haitian Creole, & Portuguese
In partnership with The Federation for Children with Special Needs, this presentation takes parents through the transitional period of students with special needs and how to prepare for post-graduation, college, employment, and independent living.
Leading from Decision Making Tables
This workshop is designed to share advocacy strategies with families to build strong, effective, parent-driven and student-focused parent councils working in collaboration with schools to achieve equity in education.
Our goal is to work with parents’ skills, experience, and comfort level to increase education advocacy on local, districtwide, and statewide levels, including legislative bills.
Parent Rights in Education
in partnership with the Justice Center of Southeast Massachusetts
CPLAN has partnered with the Justice Center of Southeast Massachusetts, a subsidiary of South Coastal Counties Legal Services, to keep families informed about their rights in education. The Justice Center also offers families legal services and referrals, as needed.
