Recognizing Caregivers at School

November is National Family Caregivers Month
 

Caregivers can come in many shapes in sizes. They are likely throughout your school’s community performing many roles throughout the day, and can include:

• staff members caring for aging parents

• students translating doctor’s appointments for non-English speaking family members

• military families coping with a deployment

For each of these caregiver groups and others in your community, school policies can be tailored to recognize the stresses of family caregivers and ensure the school community is supported regardless of the community member’s role in the educational environment.

As part of creating a supportive environment for staff, the Board should periodically review Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) policies, ensuring that information is available to staff members on their benefits and is current with changes in the law. Integrating the MN Pregnancy and Parental Leave requirements in your Family and Medical Leave Policy and defining procedures in your staff handbook is important to support clear communication and staff understanding. It is also important to include any rules on substituting paid leave and continuation of benefits such as health insurance.

Students acting as caregivers may not be visible until attendance or tardiness issues start. Connecting with school counselors, resource officers, or teachers on recurring absences or tardiness can identify students that may be facing time challenges due to family caregiving. Early intervention and reducing or eliminating mandatory minimum consequences from attendance policies provides discretionary flexibility for administrators and may be the best strategy to intervene with compassion when family caregivers struggle to meet competing time demands.