Celebrating RMFEC’s First Graduating Cohort
- Kate Garvin
- Aug 28, 2025
- 2 min read
This spring, seven school teams in Montrose County School District became the first to graduate from RMFEC’s two-year partnership. In May, the teams shared their co-design projects with district leaders, school board members, and community members.
Over two years, these teams changed how they partner with families. In Year 1, educators strengthened their family engagement practices and developed new skills for partnering with families around student learning. In Year 2, they moved from learning about family engagement to designing solutions alongside families.
Listening first
The school teams interviewed more than 115 families to better understand what helps families feel connected, informed, and able to support learning at home. Rather than assuming what families needed, they listened first, identified shared challenges, and tested small improvements designed with families, not simply for them.
That process led to practical, family-informed ideas already making a difference in schools, including:
Positive communication campaigns
Student leadership teams
Family learning resources
More useful, streamlined newsletters
New support for families of online learners
What the teams learned
Families want communication that is clear, consistent, and useful: communication that helps them support learning, not simply stay informed.
Listening to families challenged long-held assumptions and led to more meaningful solutions.
Small tests of change created momentum and helped schools learn what worked before expanding an idea.
Family voice became an essential part of school improvement, rather than an add-on or one-time event.
Two reflections from participating teams capture that shift:
“We learned that parents want to be engaged, but on their terms, not necessarily the school’s terms. We must meet them where they are.”
“From more communication to more useful communication.”
As RMFEC’s inaugural cohort graduates, these educators and family leaders become the foundation of a growing alumni community. Their work leaves behind more than successful prototypes. It demonstrates a sustainable approach to family engagement rooted in listening, shared leadership, and continuous improvement.
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