Parent involvement in compensatory education through title I ESEA Parent Advisory Committees in selected school districts in Texas

Purpose. The purpose of the study was to examine the role, practices, and status of Parent Advisory Committees as required by Title I of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 (Public Law 89-10), and the extent of the PAC involvement in the educational decision-making process in selected school districts in Texas. Procedures. The population in this study consisted of 176 school districts in Texas. The sample was randomly selected based on the stratified random sample procedure used by the Texas Education Agency to sample a cross section of the school districts in Texas in the evaluation of certain programs funded under Title I. The sample consisted of 637 Title I PAC members representing school districts located in 41 of Texas' 254 counties. The data were gathered from responses to (1) an 80 item PAC member questionnaire, and (2) a 19 item administrator questionnaire. Title I PAC members were asked to complete the former and Title I administrators the latter. The PAC member questionnaire was designed to provide (1) personal knowledge about the participant, (2) knowledge and understanding of PAC members regarding Title I guidelines objectives, participation, etc., (3) the role and activities of the PACs, and (4) personal opinions and feelings on a variety of issues related to the PACs. The administrator questionnaire was directed at eliciting the type of problems encountered in the districts regarding parental involvement through the PACs, and the planning practices discovered in parental involvement through the Title I PACs. [...]