Top 10 in America! Recognized by Education Week & Parenting!
Project Appleseed engages parents and families in America's public schools!
Welcome to the Home of National Parental Involvement Day & Public School Volunteer Week!
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Pathways for
Professional Development
Take the First Step!
Turning Family Engagement Into Schoolwide Momentum
Introduction: At Project Appleseed, we believe that meaningful family engagement is the key to student success. Our professional development workshops are designed to break down barriers and unleash the full potential of high-impact school-family partnerships.
Led by Kevin Walker, founder of Project Appleseed and creator of National Parental Involvement Day, these engaging sessions empower educators with the tools, strategies, and confidence to build lasting relationships with families.
Our Professional Development Pathways
We offer flexible training options tailored to your needs:
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The focused One & Two-Hour Family Engagement Toolbox Training
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Our immersive One-Day Essential Partner Workshop
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Or the comprehensive Two-Day Growth Partner Workshop for long-term sustainability
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Our Graduate School for Parents equips families with trauma-informed workshops, a powerful Parent University Series, and Leadership Coaching—all designed to strengthen resilience, communication, and advocacy at home and in school.
Key Learning Objectives:
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Understand the importance of parent and family engagement.
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Define high-impact family engagement and its role in schools.
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Explore the link between parent engagement and student outcomes.
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Identify essential aspects and resources for family engagement.
Ready to bring strong family partnerships to your school? Enroll below or Contact us to create a customized training plan for your educators and families.
Benefits of Our Professional Development Pathways
Research shows that high-impact family engagement correlates with student achievement. Project Appleseed helps schools engage parents, families and communities using proven, research-based models.
Former Sec. of Ed. Cardona has celebrated National Parental Involvement Day for eight years, including during his tenure as Connecticut’s state supt.
Key benefits include:
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Improved student outcomes
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Increased family involvement
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Enhanced communication and collaboration
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Stronger school-family relationships
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A greater sense of community
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Increased professional knowledge and skills
Who Should Attend?
We encourage participation from building-level teams, made up of school staff and family/community members, as well as district leaders and other educational partners who aim to foster collaborative school communities including:
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School administrators
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Teachers
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Counselors
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Parent liaisons
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Parent leaders
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Support staff
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Parents
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Community members
Professional Development Pathways
Reserve Your Spot Today! Flexible Options Available. Unlock the power of meaningful family engagement! Whether you're a school leader, educator, or community partner, our professional development programs are designed to equip your team with the tools to foster lasting school-family partnerships. Explore your options below—or visit our Family Success Shop to place your order and take the next step today.
Why Choose Project Appleseed?
Family engagement isn’t just important—it’s essential for student success. Our mission is to make it a lasting part of school improvement. Yet, many schools simply hope parents will participate rather than actively recruiting and guiding them. The reality is that many families want to be involved but lack clear direction. Project Appleseed bridges this gap with strategic, research-driven initiatives—like the Parent Engagement Pledge—that transform intention into action. Our approach not only engages families but also tracks and measures volunteer impact, delivering tangible results that strengthen schools and communities.
Our Partner Workshops on Family Engagement draws from research by our partners and leading experts in education, family engagement, and child development. This workshop provides schools and communities with proven strategies to foster meaningful, lasting change.
We Are Making a Difference
Coast-to-Coast!
Our Essential and Growth Workshops and Grad School for Parents are touring the country—working side by side with schools and communities to move beyond simple involvement and build real parent capacity that drives student success.
Here's a look at some of the schools and communities we've partnered with recently:
Project Appleseed President Kevin Walker was at Bear Creek Elementary School in Baltimore County Public Schools, where the parents and staff surprised him with a birthday cake during their Project Appleseed workshop.
Project Appleseed workshops have brought family engagement professional development to schools and districts across the country. Our recent partnerships include Baltimore County Public Schools, where we have worked with teams from Halstead, Hebbville, Pleasant Plains, Powhatan, Scotts Branch, Woodmoor, Winfield, Winand, Woodlawn Middle School, Timber Grove, and Bear Creek.
We have also partnered with Foster School in Evanston/Skokie School District 65, Hillcrest Primary School in Tasmania, Australia, and schools throughout Winston-Salem Forsyth County Schools, North Carolina, and Griffin-Spalding County School System in Georgia.
Our Pathways for Profssional Development bring educators, family engagement coordinators, parent liaisons, and school leaders together to build practical strategies for stronger family-school partnerships.
The journey continues. We look forward to partnering with more schools and communities ready to make family engagement an essential part of school improvement.
Across the country, schools are making a critical shift—from hosting events to building partnerships that strengthen families’ ability to support learning at home and at school. If your district is ready to turn family engagement into a measurable strategy for school improvement, we’re ready to work with you.
What Educators Are Saying
"Good afternoon, Kevin,
I would like to express my gratitude for the excellent family engagement workshop you offered today at Kern County Superintendent of Schools (Bakersfield, CA). I learned so much!
We would like to again extend an invitation to the Kern High School District Parent and Family Center Liaisons' meeting scheduled on Monday, Nov. 4 at 10 am. I think your knowledge and experience will help the team so much as we continue to plan and finalize details for the 30th Anniversary of the National Parent Involvement Day.
Kern County
Superintendent of Schools, CA
Also, if you have time, I would like to interview you about family engagement in education for a Literature Review I am working on for my master's in educational administration.
Thank you so much for everything you have done to make our educational system better and help students as well as families all across the country."
— Parent Education Liaison, Kern County Superintendent of Schools, Bakersfield, CA
Our Leadership in Family Engagement Training and Workshops
Project Appleseed’s award-winning leadership team brings over 50 years of combined experience in transforming family-school partnerships through research-based training and hands-on workshops. At the helm is Kevin Walker, President and Founder, a nationally recognized advocate in public education and family engagement.
Kevin Walker
Walker launched National Parental Involvement Day and Public School Volunteer Week—two of the nation’s longest-running family engagement initiatives. His efforts helped shape federal parental involvement policies under Title I, No Child Left Behind, and the Every Student Succeeds Act. Named one of Education Week’s Top Ten People in American Education, Walker has trained educators and future leaders at Washington University in St. Louis and led family engagement initiatives from local school councils to national education policy. Learn more>>
Joining him is Susan Graham, M.A.Ed (c), CFLE, a Certified Family Life Educator with more than 18 years of direct experience working with families, schools, and communities. Susan brings a trauma-informed, evidence-based approach to every training, informed by her graduate work in Trauma and Resilience in Educational Settings. A skilled curriculum developer and founder of Achieve Life Balance, Susan delivers customizable training formats—from live Zoom workshops and Parent University webinars to on-site institutes and interactive family engagement game nights. Learn more>>
Susan Graham
