Photo courtesy of AP and the Long Beach Press-Telegram
Thanks to Parent Trigger laws and Race to the Top, there is more effort to give families the power they deserve in being kings and lead decision-makers in education. But as seen last week with Calif. Superintendent Tom Torkelson’s decision to essentially push to weaken that state’s Parent Power law, it will take armies of parents — especially those from poor and minority households — to beat back opponents of school reform and Parent Power. Although PTAs and other organizations serve critical roles in family engagement, the need for a more powerful force remains.
Gwen Samuel, the outgoing president of the State of Black CT Alliance, is working to form a parents union in her state, following in the path of the Parent Revolution effort in California. In this Voices of the Dropout Nation, Samuel explains why it will take a more-robust vision of parent power and family engagement to improve education for all children.
Across America, there is a need for increased levels of civic engagement from parents, family and community toward implementing and sustaining education and economic reform platforms.
Voting, increasing parental, family and community engagement within schools, attending local and state board of education meetings and legislative public hearings is paramount as America attempts to stabilize the current economic meltdown, the crippling rising unemployment rates, unprecedented educational achievement gaps for vulnerable populations, and unprecedented poverty rates for children and families.
As a parent, I would work with community leaders to mobilize a boycott before I allow someone to tell me year after year that I must accept failure as school choice for my child, your child, any child. I do not have to allow my child to be exposed to years of failing schools and neither do you! Not when I know a prison cell will be built for them based on low reading levels of 3rd and 4th graders. This is also true for so many parents.
But when it comes to discussing parent engagement, everyone is answering âforâ parents about what âparentsâ need. When discussing parents,   itâs not about parents having input, because many educational systems âgiveâ parents some input. But itâs about the actual âpowerâ to transform their input into meaningful action toward meaningful reform that is the challenge. What happens if a school district does not comply with the No Child Left Behind Act or the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act as it relates to parental engagement? The answer is nothing!
That why we need to look at the parent trigger laws such as those in California and Connecticut because it gives parents legal power to transform their educational experience from low-performing to high performing. This is a start because parents went from nothing to something. Parents arenât asking for money or fancy cars. They aren’t asking to do this on their own. They just want the legal power to transform their childâs low performing educational experience to a high quality experience that will produce successful outcomes towards a bright future.
But it takes more than parent trigger. Therefore, parents, guardians, and families need an organized power base that can level the playing field within the public policy arena thus ensuring that each student graduates high school ready for life, college, technical school or career. What they need is what is being formed in Connecticut and already a reality in California: Parents unions.
Teachers have a teacherâs union to protect their rights! Carpenters have a union to protect their rights! Students and parents need a parentâs union to protect their rights! Teacherâs Union protects teacher pensions. A parentâs union will protect their childâs access to a âfutureâ pension.
âSqueaky wheels get the oilâ The more squeaking⌠the more oil!