Families & the Community Blog

K-12 Parents and the Public

In this blog, Education Week explored the substantive role parents play in helping set the course of their children’s education and the direction of America’s public schools. This blog is no longer being updated, but you can continue to explore these issues on edweek.org by visiting our related topic pages: families & the community.

Education National PTA Favors Expanding 'Charter Approval' Power
The National PTA favors expanding the authority to approve charter schools beyond the purview of local school boards, according to a revamped policy by the 5-million-member organization on this subject.
Sean Cavanagh, September 5, 2012
5 min read
Education PTA Opens Magazine to Public with Online Edition
"Our Children" magazine, the National PTA's publication provided to PTA leaders for more than 100 years, is now available online to everyone.
Michele Molnar, September 4, 2012
1 min read
Education Growing Population of Older Citizens Impacts Public Schools
Parents need to understand the demographics of their children's school districts, so they understand the potential impact when the aging population grows at the same time the number of school children may be declining.
Michele Molnar, August 31, 2012
1 min read
Education ED.Gov Unveils Web Page for Parents and Families
A new web page for parents and families has been added to the U.S. Department of Education's website. The page is a central repository for information relevant to this educational constituency from across ED.gov.
Michele Molnar, August 30, 2012
1 min read
Education Why Parents Need to Monitor Skipping School
Most parents are in the dark when their children skip school, according to the skippers themselves-many of whom are clueless about the consequences of taking unauthorized time away from getting an education.
Michele Molnar, August 29, 2012
4 min read
Education K-5 Parents, Teachers Share Opinions of Each Other
Parents of kindergarteners through 5th graders generally give their parent-teacher relationships an A or B, but share where they have concerns in a national survey.
Michele Molnar, August 28, 2012
2 min read
Education California School Board Bucks 'Parent Trigger' Effort
A California school board has approved a plan to restructure a school at the center of a closely watched "parent-trigger" dispute, but it's not the plan that a group of parents wanted—and it's not the plan they say a judge ordered put in place.
Sean Cavanagh, August 23, 2012
4 min read
Education When Mama Ain't Happy: Screening 'Won't Back Down'
Hollywood's response rate to real events is quickening. Less than two years after the first invocation of a "parent trigger" law in Compton, Calif., comes the first film inspired by that movement.
Ross Brenneman, August 23, 2012
4 min read
Education Police Chief: More Parental Involvement Reduces School Crime
An increase in parental involvement at Detroit Public Schools is one of the reasons crime has decreased in those schools, according to Schools Police Chief Roderick Grimes.
Michele Molnar, August 21, 2012
1 min read
Education Boosting Parent Engagement Before School Starts
Volunteer teams will take to the streets of New Haven, Conn. over the next week to greet kindergarteners and welcome their parents to the public school system in an effort to boost parent engagement and eliminate perceived barriers to navigating the system.
Michele Molnar, August 17, 2012
3 min read
Education Million Father March: Dads To Take Kids to First Day of School
More than a million fathers, grandfathers, uncles and father figures are expected to accompany their children to the first day of school in the U.S. this year, inspired by the vision of 10 men who met in a Chicago church basement eight years ago.
Michele Molnar, August 16, 2012
2 min read
Education Parents Take Lead in District's Engagement Policy
The Bridgeport (Conn.) Board of Education last night unanimously passed a new parent engagement policy for the Bridgeport Public Schools that was conceived of, written, and lobbied for by a diverse group of parents.
Michele Molnar, August 14, 2012
3 min read
Education PTA Champions of Change Share Ideas at White House
PTA Champions of Change, honored at the White House today, offer an array of ideas about how to have an impact in public schools.
Michele Molnar, August 10, 2012
3 min read
Education Parents Invited to Join White House/PTA Briefing Online
Parents can join the conversation on Twitter during a Friday, August 10 White House meeting with Parent Teacher Association leaders about challenges facing our nation's schools and communities. To participate, use the hashtag #WHPTA.
Michele Molnar, August 7, 2012
1 min read