Public Employee Press

Schools chancellor and union honor Parent Coordinators

Parental involvement is one essential ingredient of a successful school system, and the Dept. of Education’s 1,200 Parent Coordinators — approximately one for every school — are the people who make that happen.

On July 22, DOE held its first Citywide Best Practice Fair for Parent Coordinators at the Borough of Manhattan Community College.

Chancellor Joel Klein commended the group for their work and hailed their accomplishments during the past school year. He then introduced Lillian Roberts, DC 37’s executive director, and Veronica Montgomery-Costa, president of DC 37 and of DOE Employees Local 372.

“You have taken up the newly-created title of Parent Coordinator and adopted the mission of making the school system more parent-friendly,” said Ms. Montgomery-Costa. “It is my pleasure to congratulate our Local 372 Parent Coordinators at the first DOE event acknowledging your contribution to public education in our city schools.” She encouraged participants to take advantage of the opportunity for professional development offered by the day’s activities.

The contributions made by the Parent Coordinators throughout the system demonstrate the commitment and imagination of the Local 372 members who fill these critical positions. Many projects were singled out for special recognition and all were included in the printed program provided at the fair.

Involving the parents
Efforts to involve the parents took many different forms, from quilting clubs and “family fun nights” to “creating a safe haven” for parents of children with special needs. Despite the diversity of the experimental programs launched last year, they all shared the common denominator of bringing more parents into the educational process by breaking down barriers between parents and schools, such as language and bureaucracy.

Hundreds of high-spirited Parent Coordinators applauded the achievements of the past year and gained new tools and inspiration for the coming school year. Chancellor Klein was able to offer some material incentives as well. Washington Mutual Bank donated $500,000 to support the Parent Coordinators Best Practices Awards — $250,000 for the Leading Fellows Grant and $250,000 for separate grants — so that each program received some monetary motivation towards developing future projects.

— Jane LaTour