High school students were not the only graduates this past May in the Knox County Public Schools.
On May 2, 2016, 12 families from Lynn Camp in grades K-5 graduated from the FAST program.
FAST is an eight-week program that focuses on families and education. The program helps empower parents to become effective family leaders and build supportive relationships while connecting with other families in their children’s school. During each 2.5-hour session, families participate in evidence-based activities that have been proven to increase protective factors, decrease risk factors, and improve community relationships for children and families.
Lynn Camp worked with Berea Colleges’ Full-Service Community Program to offer the program to Knox County fmailies. In order to graduate from FAST, the families had to attend at least six of the eight weekly sessions.
As part of the eight-week program, Lynn Camp and the Children’s Reading Foundation of Appalachia-KY provided a free book for every attending family each week through “Camp Read-A-Lot.” Special information was given to parents about the importance of reading with children for at least 20 minutes each day.
“Family involvement is one of the most important steps to a student’s success in school,” said Andrea McKeehan, family engagement specialist for the Berea College Full-Service Community Schools Program. “When a child has a parent who is engaged in their education, they have higher academic performance, fewer behavioral problems and are more likely to complete high school.”
Contact Andrea McKeehan, Knox County and Berea College Full-Service Community Schools family engagement specialist, at 606-528-5429 for information on upcoming events.