6TH ANNUAL WNY
FAMILY ENGAGEMENT
CONFERENCE
April 22, 2026
Strengthening Attendance Through
Family and Community Partnership
When families, schools, health care providers, and communities work together, partnership happens!
April 22, 2026
8:00 am - 3:45 pm
Classics V Banquet & Conference Center
(2425 Niagara Falls Blvd., Amherst NY 14228)
Registration
Single Ticket $100
Group of 4 - $300
$25 off each ticket for groups of 4!
If you are from a school and need to pay using a purchase order, please email nsc@parentnetworkwny.org to receive an invoice.
Join Us!
Family Engagement is a shared responsibility in which schools, health care providers, and other community agencies and organizations are committed to reaching out to engage families in meaningful ways and in which families are committed to actively supporting their children's learning, development, and overall well-being.
This 2026 conference supports those who want to develop and strengthen community partnerships. Participants will hear about best practices and high-impact engagement that they can use in their day-to-day work. Through discussion and work sessions, attendees will learn and share important information about family and community engagement. This conference offers a unique opportunity to build strong collaborations and take valuable information back to their schools and agencies.
It is our goal that you will walk away with the knowledge and skills needed to better prepare yourself to work with families.
Agenda
Registration
Keynote Speaker
Morning Break
Breakout Session #1
Lunch and Panel
Mid-Day Break
Breakout Session #2
Afternoon Break
Breakout Session #3
Please note: This agenda is tentative and subject to change. Final session times will be announced soon—please check back for updates.
Breakout Session Tracts:
Theme - Attendance
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The Bridge to Belonging: Addressing the Root Causes of Chronic Absenteeism through Multi-Tiered Partnerships
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Creatively Creating Caregiver Connections
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Family & Community Engagement in BPS: Building Foundations of Trust
-
A Restorative Approach to Chronic Truancy
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School Anxiety and Avoidance
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Why They’re Not Showing Up: Holistic Solutions to Chronic Student Absenteeism
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The Hidden Causes of Absenteeism: Exploring the Poverty Mindset and Its Impact on Children
Keynote Speaker
Dr. Pascal Mubenga
Afternoon Panel
Join us for The Empty Desk: Aligning Schools, Families, and Community, a lunch panel at the 6th Annual WNY Family Engagement Conference focused on tackling chronic absenteeism through family-centered, cross-sector partnership. Together, district leaders, educators, community partners, and those with lived experience will explore what’s driving missed school days in our region—and what works to get students back in the building. Expect practical strategies, real examples, and clear next steps participants can implement immediately to strengthen trust, remove barriers, and improve attendance.
Dr. Pascal Mubenga became Superintendent of the Buffalo Public Schools in August 2025 after being unanimously appointed by the Buffalo Board of Education. As Superintendent, Dr. Mubenga leads the second-largest and one of the most diverse school districts in New York State.
With more than 25 years of experience in public education, Dr. Mubenga has built a career marked by continuous growth, beginning as a math teacher and advancing through roles as assistant principal and principal before moving into leadership positions at the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction and serving as superintendent of Franklin County Schools.
Most recently, he held the position of superintendent for Durham Public Schools, an urban district that educates more than 30,000 students who attend 57 diverse schools.
Dr. Mubenga also served as a School Transformation Coach, District Transformation Coach, and School Transformation Team Lead during his four years at the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction.
During his tenure as high school principal from 2007 to 2011, Dr. Mubenga transformed a consistently underperforming school into one that consistently outperformed the state average on students' final exams. The passing percentage for high school students rose from 60 percent to nearly 90 percent.
Dr. Mubenga's emphasis on establishing high standards and rewarding the best teachers was featured in the New York Times in January 2024 as being crucial to Durham students’ academic recovery following the COVID pandemic.
The Sequence of School Turnaround: A Superintendent's Letters to Principals, written by Dr. Mubenga, provides authentic and effective insights gained from years of experience in transforming struggling schools and districts.
Mubenga earned a Bachelor of Science from Shaw University, a Master of Arts in Secondary Education from Liberty University, and a Doctorate in Educational Leadership from Capella University.
Dr. Mubenga was born in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and he and his wife, Chantal, have raised three beautiful children.
Superintendent of the Buffalo Public Schools
SPONSORS
We thank our sponsors for their continued support and commitment to our mission.
SPONSORSHIP OPPORTUNITIES
Title Sponsor - $5,000 - One Opportunity
Family Engagement Sponsor - $2,500 - Two Opportunities
Breakout Sponsor - $750 - Six Opportunities
Lunch Sponsor - $1,250 - Four Opportunities
Conference Partner - $250.00
Vendor Table - $125.00
Program Advertising Opportunities - Full Page Ad $125; Half Page Ad $75
Are you interested in being a sponsor?
Contact us below!
CONTACT US
Sponsorship Information
General Information
Who We Are
Mission
The CMC is a collaborative network which provides a wide range of human services to individuals and families, while improving access to organizations and systems.
1021 Broadway St. Buffalo, NY 14212
716.800.2120
Mission
Our mission is to promote mental health and wellness in our community and support individuals and families challenged by mental illness.
Mission
Supporting families and professionals to empower individuals with disabilities to reach their full potential.
Mission
Helping families, schools, and communities raise children to become responsible and successful adults.
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Mission
Live Well Erie is a broad-based, data-driven initiative involving numerous partners in the public, private, and non-profit sectors collaborating to achieve greater health outcomes and improving the overall quality of life for its residents.