P a re n t Leadership Institute Contact Us For additional information or collaboration, please contact:
Marcela Levin Parent Coordinator
[email protected] 914 762-5850 ext. 6386
Proyecto ALCANCE
Preparing Parents for Leadership in our Schools
Preparing Parents for Leadership in our Schools Ossining Union Free School District PARK SCHOOL 22 Edward St Ossining, NY 10562 Carrieann Sipos Principal (914) 762-5850
Ossining Union Free School District Park School 22 Edward St Ossining, NY 10562
W h a t i s t h e P a re n t s L e a d e r s h i p I n s t i t u t e ? The Parents Leadership Institute in the Ossining Union Free School District was created to develop opportunities to foster leadership and community organizing among minority populations in the schools. The Ossining School District has always sought the involvement of parents and families in order to benefit students. The unique feature of the Leadership Institute is that the primary goal is training to lead. More than training parents to be involved for the sake of their own children; it asks parents who would be leaders to consider the needs of their neighbors as well as their own. History The Parents Leadership grew out of the work established by Proyecto ALCANCE, an association of Spanish-speaking parents in the Ossining Schools. The primary goal of Proyecto ALCANCE was to increase parental involvement among Latino parents through holistic services and support available through the schools. The Parents Leadership Institute goes further to actively
seek ways to change the system and become more inclusive by sharing in the power structures of the schools. The Parents Leadership Institute does not focus solely on a Latino population but reaches out to the traditionally underrepresented groups in a diverse community. Training parents to lead in a diverse community calls for articulating together the philosophies, research and educational strategies that benefit all children. It also calls for a unanimous understanding of the issues of race, ethnicity, class, socioeconomic status and immigration status that impact schools. How can minority, underrepresented parents enter school systems with the confidence and collective power to see their needs adequately represented? How can parents establish their own expertise and authority in any intervention aimed at their own “struggling” children? How do we truly empower people instead of offering to fix their problems? In response to these questions, we have defined the primary goals of the Parents Leadership Institute.
Goals To enact a democratic ideal of inclusion and meaningful participation for parents in public schools;
To promote community development in our AfricanAmerican, Latino and other immigrant communities as well as other underrepresented groups;
To create a curriculum of training and experiences focusing on relevant, timely topics impacting parental involvement, such as- Current research in education The achievement gap Heterogeneous groupings School law and governance
To create opportunities for parents to hold conversations with administration and the Board of Education;
To share models of leadership and community development with neighboring communities.
