Nearly 1,000 students, families, educators and community partners attended the ninth annual Family and Community Engagement Summit at the University of Redlands, San Bernardino County Office of Education staff said.

County staff said the summit featured a keynote from education expert Dr. Karen L. Mapp, more than 20 breakout sessions and about 40 vendors offering resources and support. "This summit is an important reminder that family engagement is a core strategy for achieving equity and excellence across our county," a county staff member said.

The county highlighted related events intended to deepen family–school partnerships. Staff described annual back-to-school "jams" at alternative education sites that give families a chance to meet teachers, connect with other families and access community resources.

A parent attendee said the events can reduce isolation for single parents. "It helps me to feel like I'm not alone," the parent said. "Single parents like me, I feel lost not having the community support. This school and a community like this can help you navigate. They can give you the resources that you need."

The transcript includes additional parent accounts of benefit. One parent described how the school helped a child grow and praised willingness from the principal to provide resources: "I get very emotional because this school has been a lot to my kids. They've grown in how they express themselves and how they wanna graduate, and they have different opportunities for them. ... And that's what's amazing." Another parent said events "give you the tools that you need to be able to go out here into the community and be successful."

Staff also described an East Valley SELPA resource fair designed for parents and caregivers of students with disabilities to find supports, connect with community organizations and learn about services. A parent who attended the SELPA fair said learning about the SELPA and community resources "changed our life as far as our son," helping the family access supports and understand available services.

County staff framed these programs as part of a broader strategy to build trust between families and schools and to improve outcomes by increasing family engagement. The county did not provide a multi-year attendance comparison or a detailed funding breakdown for the events in the transcript.