Despite their own busy schedules, parents are more involved than ever in their kids’ schools. The number of parent-teacher associations grew sharply—from 3,475 in 1995 to 11,453 in 2010, according to Social Science Resource Network. And money raised by these associations spiked from $197 million to $880 million within the same time frame.
Learning Community Charter School (LCCS)
Full disclosure: Both my sons have attended LCCS, which has a strong parent/teacher organization with many dedicated volunteers.
LCCS is one of the top-performing and most underfunded charter schools in town. It has almost 600 students, and it’s estimated that about 250 parents volunteer. LCCS depends on volunteers’ time and money to fund such things as field trips, building projects, performances, and technology.
Forty volunteers staff the Annual Spring Gala; more than 100 run June-A-Palooza, the Annual Summer Festival; 30 come together for Pie Day (a combined Math and Culinary Event) at Liberty Science Center; and about 50 run each of two annual Scholastic book fairs. Every class trip has about three or more parent volunteers, and each class has two class parents. Another 15 assist at smaller events, and 15 help with office administration. A handful of volunteers help in other ways, for example, parent and professional photographer Ken Chen shoots photos, and parent and professional landscaper Emma Lam tends the gardens.
Jennifer Hughes, LCCS’s director of development, who has two children at LCCS, says, “It’s amazing how many parents volunteer in so many ways. We have parents who clean and fix things, we have those who have highly specialized skills like accounting, photography, or computer programming, and they bring those skills to make the school better. We have people who do the fun things like work a cupcake booth at the street fair and the grunt work like counting out little box tops. It all makes a huge difference, and it’s a wonderful way that people feel part of the school community. Everyone’s contribution is so important, and we are so lucky to have such dedicated people.”
Charter schools receive less governmental funding than traditional public schools. To make up the difference, LCCS raises about $100,000 each year. A good portion of that is for basic operating expenses.
When kids see their parents involved in their school, it reinforces the message that education is important.
Shira Tavor, Book Fair co-leader for the past two years, class parent for five years, as well as parent of first and third graders at LCCS, agrees: “Kids view school as an extension to their home when they see their parents are involved, and parents view the school more positively since they are part of the creative thinking of how to improve the school.”
Our Lady of Czestochowa School (OLC)
OLC, pre-K through eighth grade, has a Parent School Association (PSA) as well as at least two class parents per grade, who volunteer to chaperone field trips and other activities.
The PSA board spearheads fundraising initiatives, such as Target’s Take Charge of Education in which Target donates one percent of participants’ credit or debit REDcard purchases. Another fundraiser is Boxtops for Education, in which participants clip box-top coupons on popular items to earn funds for the school.
The largest and most recent fundraiser has been Operation Playground, a tangible result of parents’ fundraising efforts. OLC has broken ground and phase one is well underway. The post-Irene and post-Sandy needs were vast and transparent, so wrangling volunteers was easy.
“Parental involvement absolutely has a positive effect on the kids’ education and overall school experience,” says Kathy Hendrickson, parent, volunteer, and artistic director of Jersey City Children’s Theater. Her son is in first grade and has been at OLC since pre-K 3. “Kids intrinsically care about things you care about,” she says. “Everyone talks a big game about community, but it is up to you to build it, to do your part.”
PS 5
At PS 5, PTA President Claudia Rosario’s goal is to get more parents and teachers involved. Parents are glad to help with events, especially those on weekends or after work. There are not too many opportunities for parent chaperones on class trips since many classes have aides.
Rosario says that they have had a few successful fundraisers over the past two years, including “dress down days.” They also did well with a catalog that sold eco-friendly products, silent auctions, and selling chocolate lollipops on the holidays. “This year, we are looking for different ideas that will help bring people together and grow the PTA,” Rosario says. “A few years back, we helped put air conditioners in all the classrooms, but we mainly fundraise to offer affordable afterschool enrichment programs. This year we are proud to have programs such as art, ballet, soccer, yoga, and breakdance. With the help of fundraising, we can grow the programs and expand the participation by offering scholarships.”
Speaking as a parent, Rosario says, “My kids love that I’m an active parent. They get a kick out of me being the PTA president, especially my little one. As far as she’s concerned, I’m like the President of the United States, even though it is in her own little world. The overall goal for many of us is to have a great working relationship with our children’s teachers and administration to gain insight on what’s going on in the classroom and help us better understand all the new standardized testing and evaluations.”
Tine Pahl, NYU research professor and parent of a boy who has attended the dual-language program for the past four years, has been very involved in the PTA. Pahl and other parents realized that the district afterschool programs were not invigorating, so they organized and recruited parents to lead affordable yoga and sports programs.
Pahl acknowledges that parental participation in an urban, low-income setting can be challenging because there are not many stay-at-home parents. However, in the past several years, middle-class and professional working parents have donated additional resources and money.
“Although we have a solid attendance with our PTA, you can’t measure parent involvement by the number of people showing up at meetings,” Pahl says. “For example, in November 2012 following Hurricane Sandy, our PTA organized a coat drive and family event where people could come and get hot food and warm clothes, and this event was extremely well attended.”
Though the school has 700 kids, it feels small, Pahl says. “The principal knows most all the children’s names, and children know that their parents are welcome. Parents work with teachers and administration, and there is a sense of community and belonging. These are good things.”
Stevens Cooperative School
Nancy Perls, the parent of both a lower- and middle-school student, says that Stevens does not have a PTA, but there are many opportunities to interact with the staff and other parents.
Parents volunteer as chaperones for class trips and other events. Perls says that everyone wants to go, so it’s first come, first serve. Each family also gets a crack at “helping parent day,” during which they spend a day in the classroom.
Parents are involved in fundraising because tuition covers only 80 percent of expenses and since Stevens is a cooperative, all parents are assigned to a committee. Parents might call on local businesses asking for auction donations, they might donate items of their own to auction off, or they may organize the event.
“Parents whose children are enrolled in the pre-K through eighth-grade program are part of the cooperative aspect of Stevens,” says Sergio Alati, Ed.D, Head of School. “Membership meetings allow families to learn about academics, events, and operations. Parents can be elected to board positions where they are responsible for fiscal, financial and real estate management, as well as strategic planning.
“When parents are involved in their children’s education, they are more engaged in the life of the school. Our parents have a better sense of our curriculum, the role of the teachers, and in turn demonstrate a greater connection to our school. For students, discussion about school is more prevalent at home, and we see high levels of achievement.”
Says Perls, “My children love that I am involved, helping to organize our Annual Harvest Festival. They know that in addition to helping raise money for the school it’s a wonderful way to give back to the community. I hear them talking with their friends about it with pride in their voices and it makes me smile. They feel a stronger connection to the school because it lets them be involved on another level.”
Waterfront Montessori
Fahima Andersen, parent of a second grader and president of the Waterfront School Foundation (WSF), says the foundation was organized in 2012 to provide parents a vehicle to participate in the school.
WSF, which gives parents social, creative, and interactive activities to extend the academic curriculum, is the intermediary between parents and school, allowing parents to get to know one another. This year, activities will include coffee socials, food drives for local charities, December holiday events, a winter carnival in January and an Annual Spring fundraiser. The year will conclude with a PTA-sponsored celebration of Waterfront Montessori’s second round of graduates.
Funds are used for such things as in-house assemblies (think in-house traveling planetarium for the Pre-K 3 and 4) and a community garden, which families plant in the spring and tend all summer. “We put the garden beds down so kids could enjoy growing their own cucumbers and tomatoes, realizing that vegetables can be grown, not just purchased in a store,” Andersen says. The children will use the gardens to study zoology and botany throughout the school year, providing an interactive science lesson. The foundation works with teachers to determine what activities best supplement the rigorous curriculum.
The group also arranges for speakers. One speaker will address the Montessori and International Baccalaureate educational systems. A second speaker is a reading expert and scientist who studies education’s effect on the brain.
“I feel that a parent should be very actively involved in the school,” Andersen says. “My involvement has allowed me to appreciate the tremendous amount of cultural diversity and also develop a network of families who depend on us and who, in turn, we can depend upon.” Prior to being on the board, Andersen ran her community moms group, which convinced her of the importance of families interacting with one another in an urban setting. “Many of our immediate families live far away, so for our own sanity, we need to develop a network of friendships and have a support network/system within Jersey City,” she says.
This year, WSF plans to publish a quarterly newsletter as well as host a membership drive.—JCM