Schools need parents, community

Published 12:00 am Saturday, March 4, 2006

PTA meetings. Parent centers. Teacher conferences. There are plenty of opportunities, every day, for parents to become involved in their children&8217;s education.

And many of them are &8212; but not nearly enough, according to teachers and principals who are working hard to give students in the Miss-Lou the best education possible.

Parents who are not involved at all in their children&8217;s education have no excuse. Today&8217;s busy schedules notwithstanding, it is not impossible to make sure that children get to sschool on time, in uniform, ready to begin a day of learning. That is the least of what educators need parents to do.

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Beyond that, there are plenty of opportunities &8212; often at different times of the day &8212; for parents to be involved.

For example, Robert Lewis Middle School &8212; whose students are at a critical age &8212; has a parent center open all day. The parent center often hosts special meetings at night for parents who work during the day.

Parents must make their children&8217;s education a priority.

But that doesn&8217;t let the rest of us off the hook. Community support helps as well, whether in the form of sponsorships through Partners in Education or in more subtle ways, such as allowing parents time off to attend school meetings or simply offering positive words about the schools.

Our schools are a key to the future &8212; and we all can help them succeed.