District Administration - November/December 2011 - (Page 41)

Parent Raul Ortiz, from Ecuador, tutors second-grade students in English literacy in the Mozart Elementary School in the Chicago Public Schools.Ortiz served for years as a parent mentor and tutor in the Logan Square Neighborhood Association, which empowers immigrant parents to be involved in their children’s school. mid-1980s, she focused on integrating into the association the more recent immigrants from Mexico, Puerto Rico and Cuba who had replaced the European immigrants who previously had dominated the area. But it wasn’t until 1988, when Illinois passed legislation conferring administrative powers on local school councils (LSCs) to determine major decisions, such as principal contract renewals and approval of school improvement plans and discretionary funds, that LSNA first became involved with schools. Working under the belief that school and community issues are intricately connected and that good schools are a reflection of a strong community, Aardema formulated a holistic plan to improve the neighborhood. The plan included a broad range of services focusing on health care, www.DistrictAdministration.com affordable housing, job retention, safety, education and immigrant rights. Through classes for parents and students, parentteacher team home visitations to encourage reading among children, and mentor and tutoring programs, LSNA has brought together more than 42 community institutions, including social service agencies and faith-based organizations. LSNA lead education organizer Joanna Brown estimates that more than 170 parent mentors and tutors, or parents who volunteer to help community children with school work and language difficulties, are working in the nine schools. Parent mentors are given a weeklong initial training that includes coaching to explore personal skills and goals. They are then placed in classrooms to work two hours daily for a year, for a $1,200 stipend. Brown says mentors often transition into jobs or return to school. Some work as tutors, childcare providers or parent program coordinators for LSNA schools. “We provide opportunity and a voice for parents whose dreams of education were disrupted by poverty or immigration,” says Brown. Meanwhile, the children of these volunteers see their parents as role models, and they perform better in school and participate in community service projects. In the past seven years, the percentage of students in LSNA elementary schools scoring at or above national norms on the Illinois Standards Achievement Test (ISAT) has more than tripled—from 20 to 70 percent. Leticia Barrera, who became a mentor in 2000 when her oldest son was in preschool and is now employed by LSNA as a parent coordinator and trainer, says the program November/December 2011 41 http://www.DistrictAdministration.com

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of District Administration - November/December 2011

District Administration - November/December 2011
Contents
From the Editor
News Update
Inside the Law
Administrator Profile
District Profile
CIO news
How to Update Your Network on a Budget
The Importance of IT Team Unity
Creating an Anti-Bullying Program With the Resources You Have
The Ultimate Empowerment Program for Parents
Taking the Helm in Cheating Scandals
Readers’ Choice: Top 100 Products
New Directions
Professional Opinion
Problem/Solution
Going Mobile

District Administration - November/December 2011

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