By Karen Gutierrez
Enquirer staff writer
and Jessica Fisher
Enquirer contributor

 

Ellis Pullen, 9, of Union, Kentucky, gets help from her cousin Scott Baker, 16, of Houston, Texas, as they help put up a "back to school" sign at the New Haven Elementary School in Union, Ky. (Craig Ruttle/The Enquirer)

If you want your child to do well in school, volunteer there. Research shows that children perform better when their parents are involved.

Considering joining your school's PTA or similar parent-teacher group. They focus on raising money for school activities and planning events like after-prom parties and family fun nights.

In Kentucky, you can also lend your professional expertise to your school's site-based council. These consist of the school principal, and three teachers and two parent representatives elected by other teachers and parents.

Site-based councils have enormous power in Northern Kentucky schools. They set policies, approve hires and even select new principals. For information, call (859) 238-2188 or log on to www.kasc.net.

Some Ohio schools have similar councils, called local school decision-making committees, but they generally have less influence. In the Cincinnati Public Schools system, you can find out more by going online to lsdmc.cps-k12.org/ or by calling (513) 363-0123.

For other parent-involvement tips, we talked with Carey Heuer, a PTA dad at Alexandria Elementary School, and Melissa Pryor, spokeswoman for Campbell County schools.

Among their suggestions:

• Call your school and ask for the specific person with whom to speak about volunteering. Many PTAs or principals designate someone to coordinate volunteers.

• Call early in the year. Schools like to know right away whom they can turn to for help.

• Be prepared to undergo a criminal check, especially if you're working one-on-one with children.

• Read the school newsletter; volunteer opportunities are often announced there.

• Use open house, meet-the-teacher-nights or parent-teacher conferences to ask teachers what you can do.

• Consider that you can do a lot of good with simple morale boosters. Leave a voice mail for the principal or teachers just to say you appreciate the work they do.

• Consider leadership training. Kentucky's Commonwealth Institute for Parent Leadership offers free seminars in Northern Kentucky. Parents learn how to analyze test-score data and use it to design projects that will help improve student achievement.

More information can be found on the Web at www.cipl.org, or by calling the institute at (800) 928-2111.

E-mail kgutierrez@enquirer.com