Families & the Community News in Brief

‘Parent Trigger’ Organizers Say School Staff Retaliated

By The Associated Press — January 25, 2011 1 min read
  • Save to favorites
  • Print

Two organizers of California’s first “parent trigger” petition have filed complaints with the U.S. Department of Education’s civil rights office, alleging that they and their children have been targets of retaliation by school employees.

Marlene Romero and Hebert Hidalgo said in documents filed Jan. 14 that teachers at McKinley Elementary School in Compton, Calif., are using intimidation to turn their children against them. Ms. Romero said her 3rd grade son said he hated her for supporting charter schools after a teacher told him charter schools are a “bad thing.” She said the same teacher harangued her in a meeting.

The state’s “parent trigger” law allows a majority of parents at a failing school to force a district to make drastic changes, such as charter conversion.

Compton Unified School Districts acting superintendent, Karen Frison, promised an investigation of any harassment complaints.

Related Tags:

A version of this article appeared in the January 26, 2011 edition of Education Week as ‘Parent Trigger’ Organizers Say School Staff Retaliated

Events

Mathematics K-12 Essentials Forum Helping Students Succeed in Math
Student Well-Being Live Online Discussion A Seat at the Table: The Power of Emotion Regulation to Drive K-12 Academic Performance and Wellbeing
Wish you could handle emotions better? Learn practical strategies with researcher Marc Brackett and host Peter DeWitt.

EdWeek Top School Jobs

Teacher Jobs
Search over ten thousand teaching jobs nationwide — elementary, middle, high school and more.
View Jobs
Principal Jobs
Find hundreds of jobs for principals, assistant principals, and other school leadership roles.
View Jobs
Administrator Jobs
Over a thousand district-level jobs: superintendents, directors, more.
View Jobs
Support Staff Jobs
Search thousands of jobs, from paraprofessionals to counselors and more.
View Jobs

Read Next

Families & the Community Q&A Want to Reach Parents? Try a Podcast
A district technology leader discusses the value of podcasts and how to start one.
3 min read
D. M. Therrell High School student Ja'Marion Hulin, 17, who runs the school's record company, Panther Records, laughs with another student in the school's podcast recording room on Jan. 27, 2025, in Atlanta.
D. M. Therrell High School student Ja'Marion Hulin, 17, who runs the school's record company, Panther Records, laughs with another student in the school's podcast recording room on Jan. 27, 2025, in Atlanta. Podcasts can be another way for schools to increase family engagement.
Brynn Anderson/AP
Families & the Community How to Go Deeper on Family Engagement
There is a discrepancy in understanding what family engagement is and how it can be utilized to support schools in their COVID recovery efforts, according to a new report.
5 min read
Miranda Scully, Director of Family and Community Engagement (FACE) for Fayette County Public Schools, serves food to students and parents during a ACT prep class held at the Family Connection Center on Dec. 12, 2024, in Lexington, Ky. The Family Connection Center offers programs like ESL classes, college preparation, and household budgeting and money management classes. Family engagement is crucial for COVID recovery, but not all in the education field define it in the same way.
Miranda Scully, director of Family and Community Engagement (FACE) for Fayette County Public Schools, serves food to students and parents during a ACT prep class held at the Family Connection Center on Dec. 12, 2024, in Lexington, Ky. The Family Connection Center offers programs like ESL classes, college preparation, and household budgeting and money management classes.
Michael Swensen for Education Week
Families & the Community The Low-Cost, Low-Lift Way These Districts Used to Reduce Student Absences
Dozens of districts tested this strategy as one component of their absenteeism-fighting strategy.
6 min read
Photograph of the front of a schoo lbus driving on a country road with trees, fencing, and a yellow sign reading School Bus Stop Ahead.
iStock/Getty
Families & the Community ‘Where Are Your Blind Spots?’: How Schools Can Create a Sense of Belonging
District leaders share their advice for creating frameworks to help students feel like they belong in their schools.
3 min read
Ty Harris, Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for Virginia Beach City Public Schools, delivers closing remarks and applauds students for their work during the Power of We event at the Virginia Beach Higher Education Center at Old Dominion University in Virginia Beach, Va., on Dec. 18, 2024.
Ty Harris, Director of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion for Virginia Beach City Public Schools, delivers closing remarks and applauds students for their work during the Power of We event at the Virginia Beach Higher Education Center at Old Dominion University in Virginia Beach, Va., on Dec. 18, 2024.
Parker Michels-Boyce for Education Week