Looking to Increase Family Partnership?
The Equitable Family Engagement Fidelity Tool (EFE-FT) is a 15 item measure designed to help school teams self-assess the extent to which they are using effective family engagement practices and action plan to strengthen their implementation. The EFE-FT is comprised of four subscales, which are intended to be used in combination to guide schools as they assess and strengthen their approach.
The EFE-FT is currently being validated through a research study and we are inviting selected schools to use this newly-developed tool. In this phase of the study, school teams will score the EFE-FT as individuals and as a group to assess the reliability of the scores. Additionally, schools will evaluate the usability of the EFE-FT.
The EFE-FT validation is part of the E-PATH model demonstration project. You can learn more about the project here.
Participating In the Validation
The EFE-FT is designed to be completed by a school leadership team, composed of at least 3-6 individuals who are familiar with school operations, have access to school-level data, and contribute to the school’s professional learning plan. This includes Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports (PBIS), Multi-tiered Systems of Supports (MTSS), or Systems Planning teams.
We are looking for schools across developmental levels (i.e., elementary and secondary) and who are in varying levels of PBIS/MTSS implementation (i.e., initial implementation and advanced tiers).
Schools who are interested in accessing the EFE-FT and participating in this phase of the study will be asked to engage in the following study actions:
Ready to Get Started?
The study materials can be accessed below.
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- EFE-FT: completed by individuals and then school team (a fillable version can be accessed here)
- Usability Survey: completed by the school team after the second EFE-FT team administration
Questions?
Please feel free to reach out to the study team with any questions- we are here to support your participation!
Nicole Peterson (Nicole.Peterson@uconn.edu)
Katherine Meyer (Katherine.Meyer@uconn.edu)
Brandi Simonsen (Brandi.Simonsen@uconn.edu)
Study Considerations
- The EFE-FT should be completed by the same team members throughout each step of the study.
- It is most efficient for teams to identify one individual to distribute, record, and enter scores on behalf of the team.
- It may be helpful to provide paper copies to make completion more accessible.
- Scores should be entered after each step in the process.
- The timeline for participation is thorugh June, 2026.
Equitable Practices Resource Bank
A resource for school teams to turn their EFE-FT data into action!
Schools who use the fidelity tool have access to the Equitable Practices Resorce Bank. Organized by domain, the bank aims to connect schools with evidence-based practices, exemplars, and resources to help them take purposeful steps to strengthen family partnerhsip within their schools.
We've got resources ready for you!
