Perspective: PTAs offer expertise, enthusiasm and resources
By:
Jo A.S. Loss
Published: March 17, 2011
Our state’s schools—and their leaders—need PTA more than ever. We are on the ground, in 4,000 units throughout California, offering the advocacy and support that hold out the best hope for a bright future for our children, our schools and our state.
There’s a growing acknowledgment that parents are the key to success in education. A recent Time magazine survey found that 60 percent of Americans think parent involvement is the most important key to education reform. Research confirms that involved parents increase students’ chances for success.
“Parent empowerment” may be the latest buzz phrase for some, but PTA has been focused on it for 114 years, dedicated from its very beginnings to providing parents the support and education they need to speak up for all children, and to be full and effective partners in their education. Many people—nearly 1 million in California—are PTA members because they recognize and value the importance of the work we do on behalf of children.
One of PTA’s core purposes is to bring home and school together so that parents, or other adults involved in children’s lives, can work with teachers and school leaders as full partners in the education of children.
As advocates and volunteers, we draw strength from our numbers, as well as our expertise and a track record of effective activism. We are the only parent group that serves on the statewide Education Coalition, and our contribution greatly boosts the reach of its voice. As a coalition member, we are proud to work in partnership with labor and management groups to find ways to serve all children better. By joining and supporting the PTAs in your communities, you can strengthen the coalition’s message to the governor and legislators.
We have a long and proud history, but we remain relevant because we are truly a grassroots organization. Our members throughout the state direct our actions, from the resolutions adopted at our annual convention that guide our work to our in-depth Local Leaders Surveys, which let us clearly pinpoint the issues that are most important to our members. We know, for instance, that adequate funding for schools is our members’ No. 1 priority for our advocacy efforts, with 97.5 percent of recent survey respondents indicating they are interested or extremely interested in it.
We are continually developing resources to match our intentions. The National PTA Standards for Parent Involvement set clear and far-reaching goals. Our Parents Empowering Parents Guide, based on those standards and used in many schools, promotes effective and productive home-school partnerships through parent education and involvement.
We have a number of pilot projects that will help us build even stronger partnerships between schools and families. Our School Smarts Parent Academy program, being conducted currently in 14 elementary schools in California, is designed to equip parents with the knowledge and skills to advocate for children and their education. We have ramped up our outreach to the parent leaders of tomorrow, with Emerging Minority Leaders conferences and public service announcements, in English and in Spanish, that promote parent involvement.
All of our work is guided by the motto, “every child, one voice,” and we understand that we are truly effective only if we stand, speak and work together on behalf of all of the more than 9 million children who live in our state. More than half of all PTAs are at Title I schools. We are particularly proud to have PTAs in juvenile detention facilities, where they can make an enormous difference for children whose futures are at risk. We also have PTAs in preschools, Head Start programs and even in a community college.
Strong PTAs empower our educational institutions. We help parents understand how schools work and how to effectively partner with teachers and school leaders. Strong PTAs even grow the pool of potential public leaders in education. Many school board members started their careers of public service as PTA members. I have served on the board of education of the Castro Valley Unified School District for 15 years, and I spent five years on the superintendent of public instruction’s P16 Council, where we tackled the reality of the achievement gap in California’s schools.
We want all school leaders to remember that California State PTA is here—and has always been here—as the leading parent voice on behalf of all children. We are ready to share our expertise, enthusiasm and resources as partners in the crucial work of engaging parents so that all children may benefit. Join with us so together we can do even more.
Jo A.S. Loss is president of the California State PTA.