About Us
Transforming the lives of students through educator, family, and community partnerships.
Reimagining the educator, family and community partnership model.
A Collaborative of Change Agents Leading Family Engagement Transformation
designEDengagement is a network of thought leaders, researchers, authors, and practitioners who connect with purpose: to reimagine how families and educators partner for student success. Anchored by the Dual Capacity-Building Framework for Family-School Partnerships, our work is guided by a dynamic, research-driven compass—one that catalyzes the design of family engagement strategies, policies, and programs tailored to school and community contexts.
We harness a collaborative, relationship-centered approach that co-creates evidence-based practices addressing challenges such as attendance, student mobility, chronic absenteeism, academic gaps, and teacher retention—ensuring every student thrives through meaningful school-family partnerships. By merging cutting-edge research and lived experience, we bridge theory and practice to drive ongoing learning and system-wide transformation anchored in trust, humanity, and shared leadership.
We believe real, respectful partnerships between families and schools are the key to unlocking student potential.
Nationally Recognized Expert Founder
Marcela Andrés, Founder and President & CEO of designEDengagement, is a nationally recognized leader in family and community engagement, known for her unwavering dedication to building powerful partnerships that help every child thrive. An award-winning author of Purposeful Educator Connections and featured speaker at TEDx (“Breaking the Box: How Relationships Define Education”), Marcela is trusted for her humanity-centered, innovative solutions that advance the field.
Marcela’s vision shapes designEDengagement’s mission: partnering with organizations nationwide to co-create transformative programs, deliver impactful learning experiences, and drive measurable results for schools, communities, and families. Her expertise has been highlighted in NAEYC’s case study, "Roadmap of Family Engagement to Kindergarten," and her forward-thinking leadership has earned honors such as 100 Women to Know in America, Female Inc 500 Founder, and Enterprising Women of the Year.
With nearly two decades of experience in education and business, Marcela has led statewide family engagement initiatives, helped launch new schools serving thousands of students, and developed frameworks that inspire educators to embed meaningful, lasting partnerships into the fabric of school culture. As a proud daughter of Cuban and Mexican immigrants, Marcela’s journey is a testament to her commitment to equity, connection, and the transformative power of partnership in education.
Our Mission
We are bold champions of the pursuit of happiness through access, opportunity, and freedom.
⮕ We dream big to revolutionize education.
⮕ We are anchored by empathy and justice.
⮕ We believe in restoring humanity for kids, schools, and communities.
Values
Excellence
Equity
Democracy
Humility
Coherence
Integrity
Core Beliefs
Every life is a masterpiece.
Communities are created by families.
Families are the nucleus and backbones of our communities — the very fabric of our democracy.
Schools are just one part of the larger community ecosystem that support families and students.
Schools are the public institutions where we can deeply and meaningfully engage families.
Leaders at the helm of our public institutions are responsible and need support to create systems of equitable engagement and access for all.
Our Why
parent engagement
family engagement
Our logo embraces the Sigma and Fibonacci symbol as a representation of how we approach our work with partners.
The Sigma symbol denotes the technical nature and the Fibonacci symbol the adaptive aspect of our work - both critical to effective research and analysis of designing equitable systems.
