PSUSD’s Family Engagement Center offers free resources and fun activities for families amid pandemic

Palm Springs Unified School district has a Family Engagement Center that has been open for five years now. During a normal school year, the center offers important information and fun activities for families.

The center has recently made the necessary changes to continue helping families during the pandemic. 

“We’ve always offered workshops, courses and family fun events in person. So when everything changed and schools closed, we decided to offer just as much as we could virtually,” said Ruby Rivera, the coordinator for the center. 

“We have parenting classes...we have a lot of community partners that are even zooming in with our parents,” she said. 

The most popular parent course right now is “Distance Learning 101.” Parents can access the course through the center’s website. 

You can find more free classes and resources here.

“It just covers everything. It ranges from the different tools that students will be using in the classroom to really helping them understand the schedule,” she said. 

The center also offers fun and free activities each Friday for families to take part in at home. She says these have been especially popular now during the pandemic.  

“Every Friday we plan a family fun activity. Parents are asked to sign up in advance because usually we’re providing materials for those family fun activities,” she said. 

From cooking kits to at home scavenger hunts to painting projects, each Friday has something different in store for families looking for a fun way to bond with their kids at home. 

All the materials you’ll need for the Friday activity are packed in bags and available for pick up at the center.