The Community Connection

In my most recent Community Connection interview, I had the privilege of speaking with Kyle Palmer, educator, leader, and author of the book Parentships in a PLC. Our conversation centered on a theme that every school leader needs to hear right now: families are not guests in our schools, they are partners.

Kyle reminded me that the COVID-19 pandemic didn’t just disrupt learning. It pulled the curtain back on how our schools were operating, and in many cases, it revealed a lack of authentic partnership between families and educators. Parents suddenly had a front-row seat to classroom instruction, curriculum decisions, and school communication. Some saw excellence. Others saw gaps. Many began asking questions that should have been part of the dialogue all along.

The truth is, much of the distrust we’ve seen post-COVID wasn’t created during the pandemic. It was uncovered by it. The cracks in the foundation were already there because too often schools engaged parents transactionally, checking boxes rather than cultivating real relationships.

Kyle’s book Parentships in a PLC challenges us to think differently. Families don’t just need to be informed; they need to be invested. They don’t just want updates; they want a seat at the table. Most importantly, they want to know that schools see them as partners in the work of helping every child succeed.

For school leaders, this means a renewed focus on three big commitments:

1. Trust. Trust is built through consistency, clarity, and care. When families know what to expect from schools and see leaders following through, they begin to believe in the system.

2. Transparency. Silence creates suspicion. Schools must be proactive in communicating not just what decisions are made, but why they are made. Families don’t expect perfection, but they do expect honesty.

3. Togetherness. The days of educators working in isolation are gone. Schools thrive when they create meaningful structures for collaboration with families, listening to their insights, honoring their experiences, and inviting them into the learning process.

As Kyle and I discussed, meaningful partnerships don’t happen by accident. They require intentionality. They require leaders who are willing to see parents not as obstacles or outsiders, but as allies in the mission of high levels of learning for all students.

This episode is a reminder for every leader: rebuilding trust after COVID isn’t about going back to “normal.” It’s about moving forward into something better, a school culture where parents and educators stand shoulder to shoulder for the sake of kids.

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