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Have you enrolled in parent university?
Written by:
admin
| 25 Mar 2009 01:39 AM
| Comments: 0
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CMS program offers parents chance to be full partners in their children's education.
Michael Solender
Posted: Sunday, Mar. 22, 2009
Abril and Anthony Oliver attended a recent Parent University program. Parents can chooseprograms such as building study skills and avoiding homework headaches.
It is no secret to educators that one of the keys to success in the classroom is involvement by parents and guardians in their children's education. One way that Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools is addressing this need is through Parent University, a collaborative effort led by CMS to help parents become full partners in their children's education.
Launched in September 2008, Parent University was developed in response to input from school administrators, teachers, parents and community agencies that serve children and parents.
With the second semester under way, the program has more than doubled its offerings from last semester, featuring 64 programs in four areas of concentration, including parenting awareness, helping your child learn in the 21st century, health and wellness, and personal growth and development.
Parents can choose programs such as managing behavior through positive discipline, building study skills and avoiding homework headaches, and preparing for end-of-grade and end-of-course tests.
More than 2,700 people – parents, grandparents, foster parents, guardians and mentors – participated in the first semester, said Jerri Haigler, executive director of the program. More than 9,000 people attended the Fall Family Fun Day in October at the U.S. National Whitewater Center. And on program evaluations, 93 percent of parents who responded said they learned information and techniques that they planned to use.
“We are determined to help make a positive impact in key performance outcomes for our students,” Haigler said. “Behavior, test scores, attendance and graduation rates are all areas where we believe greater parental involvement will have positive results.”
Haigler emphasized that the operational funding for the program is provided by sources outside of CMS: charitable foundations and corporate and community sponsors.
Irania Patterson, a bilingual outreach specialist for the Public Library of Charlotte & Mecklenburg County, is a program presenter for Parent University.
“‘Living in a Bicultural World' is a program that explores cultural and educational aspects from the United States and Latin American countries. We feature positive values from both educational systems and address bilingual resources that are available to both parents and students.”
She said the response to the program has been good.
The library is one of a number of community partners that have teamed up with Parent University. Other partners include Carolinas HealthCare System, Presbyterian Healthcare, Central Piedmont Community College, the YMCA, the YWCA, the Urban League, Teen Health Connection, The Council for Children's Rights and many others.
A comprehensive program overview and schedule of course offerings can be found online at http://www.cms.k12.nc.us/parents/ParentUniv/Pages/About.aspx or by calling 980-343-0318.
Parents such as Pam Dolaher are enthusiastic about the program. Dolaher, mother of three children at CMS's Torrence Creek Elementary, says that Parent University is “right on target with their goals and offers a much-needed service to the community. The programs offer a wealth of strong parenting information and other helpful content that is extremely valuable, from improving financial literacy to health and wellness offerings.”
Michael Solender is a local freelance writer. He writes about the SouthPark, Cotswold and Myers Park areas. Reach him at michaeljsolender@gmail.com.
Filed in: Featured
Updated: 25 Mar 2009 01:39 AM
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