The Harvard Family Research Project separated from the Harvard Graduate School of Education to become the Global Family Research Project as of January 1, 2017. It is no longer affiliated with Harvard University.
Harvard Family Research Project (HFRP) believes that a clear and commonly shared framework and definition of family engagement can—and will—inspire policy investments in family engagement. This support will, in turn, contribute to children’s learning and development and to their preparation for responsible citizenship in a global society. To this end, HFRP informs policy based on an expanded definition of family engagement—one that focuses on the multiple contexts in which children grow and learn, from birth through adulthood.
This expanded definition of family engagement contains three core principles:
- First, family engagement is a shared responsibility in which schools and other community agencies and organizations are committed to reaching out to engage families in meaningful ways and in which families are committed to actively supporting their children’s learning and development.
- Family engagement is also continuous across a child’s life and entails steadfast commitment but changing parent roles as children mature into young adulthood.
- Finally, family engagement is about promoting children’s learning anywhere, anytime. Effective family engagement cuts across the multiple settings where children learn—at home, in prekindergarten programs, at school, in afterschool programs, at faith-based institutions, and in the community.
All families want their children to succeed. Our expanded definition emphasizes shared responsibility, and thus, our policy work focuses on creating institutional capacity to provide all families with opportunities to enrich their children’s learning and nurture the character traits that are essential for educational and lifelong success.
Federal Policy | State Policy | Partnerships | Additional publications to help inform family engagement policy