Community Outreach -- Your Giving Spirit...

Greetings Plainfield Family;

During our PEP meeting this past Monday it was shared with us that there is a young girl and her family who were displaced due to a fire that destroyed not only their home but all of their personal items.

As PEP is a community-minded organization I ask ALL of YOU to help this family regain some semblance of normalcy by donating needed items.

All Donated Items (this can include Gift cards as well) can be dropped off at:

Washington Community School

Darrow Avenue - In the front office.

The Little Girl (2nd Grader)

• Tops: Size 5-6
• Bottoms: Size 7-8
• Child’s Shoe Size: 11 ½
• Socks
• Under garments
• Toys, Games, Books, Puzzles etc..
  

Mother & Father

(We are still awaiting their clothing sizes)

However -- household items would be appreciated at this time:

• Dishes
• Towels
• Sheets
• Blankets
• Food Baskets
• Toiletries
  

Please provide this family with whatever your heart is lead to share with them. I’m sure your generosity will be appreciated.

Thank YOU!

The 1st 10 "I's" of Parental Involvement

Last night I shared with the PEP meeting audience a narrative philosophy of Principal Baruti Kafele. Along with being a Principal, Mr. Kafele is also a national educational consultant and motivational speaker. He is currently the Principal of Newark Tech High School, and as with all good sharing sessions -- I learned something new from Board Member Pat Barksdale – this very same gentleman had been the Principal at Hubbard a few years back and was instrumental in not only engaging and uplifting our children, but also garnering the support of parents through a very effective and highly engaged PTO. That in and of itself SPEAKS VOLUMES!!!

As promised and shared with the group last evening, I agreed to reprint 10 of the 50 “I” statements for Effective Parenting as authored by Principal Kafele. Over the next few weeks I’ll add the other 40 “I’s” and will also share these adages with the PEP meeting participants in “bite size” pieces at our upcoming meetings.

So Parents – use this list to create a vision wall for your home, for your family, for yourself and for your children. Let these affirmations remind us and reenergize us when we become too weary or feel overburdened just what our purpose in this life is all about. Let these words inspire you to continue to fight the good fight until every child understands that they are the embodiment of excellence! Second to NONE!

1. I am a parent to my children.
2. I am my children’s first teacher.
3. I require my children to read books and newspapers daily.
4. I require my children to write daily.
5. I read to my children.
6. I require that my children read African and Latino-centered literature towards their life long study of their history.
7. I educate myself in order to educate my children about their history.
8. I teach my children about the struggle and their roles in the struggle.
9. I talk to my children about having pride in who they are as young African Americans and Latinos.
10. I conduct myself as a role model for my children – I lead by example.

Citation and for more information regarding Principal Kafele and his many contributions as well as on going work log onto: http://www.principalkafele.com/empowerment.htm

A Concerned Parent -- SPEAKS

Dear Readers the following letter was sent to my attention Sunday afternoon for posting on this blog. Please take a moment to read it, and if you are a member of the Cedarbrook family -- please take a moment to respond with your support. A sample letter can be found on the following website: District to remove teacher assistants from kindergarten classes

Although this information may be specific to Cedarbrook for "right now" the chances are great that this can be and will be felt district-wide...

Dear Parents and Guardians:

During the monthly PATT (Parents And Teachers Together) meeting, we learned some very disturbing news regarding staffing at our school. Currently, one teacher and one teacher assistant is assigned to each kindergarten class. Due to district wide budget cuts, teacher assistants will have to be shared between two classrooms. The kindergarten classes have grown significantly since last year.

The average class size is about twenty two whereas last year is was approximately sixteen. Our teachers are very dedicated and committed however it simply is not reasonable or practical for them or our children to work under such circumstances. Our children will lose the one on one instruction provided by the teacher assistants that is so desperately needed. If we want our children to continue to meet and exceed goals set by the state and flourish socially and emotionally, then we must insist that our classrooms are adequately staffed.

It is strongly suggested that you send a letter or email to our superintendant, Dr. Steve Gallon,III(sgallon3@plainfield.k12.nj.us) to express your concerns whether your child is in kindergarten or not. Also, please courtesy copy our principal, Frank Asante (fasante@plainfield.k12.nj.us) on any correspondence. You may also choose to use the attached sample letter. This decision impacts all of our children and we need to act now, not later.

Sincerely,
A Cedarbrook Concern Parent

On Your Mark---Get Set: Let's PEP IT UP!!!

A. G. E. N.D.A.

* PEP Partnering For Progress..…………………….…Alicia Jones, PEP V. President
- Gang Awareness Seminar Announcement
- Parent Survey

* Parents In Action……………………………………Vicky Hubbard, PEP V. President

----- Establishment of Committees ----
o Parental Involvement Policy
o Community Outreach
o Student Summit
o Parent Workshops
o Membership
o PR/Communications

* Open Discussion……………………………………Public Share Time
o Concerns & Ideas
§ What are they?
§ How can we partner to bring about this program, recommendation, or resolution?
§ How committed are YOU to making it happen?

I have the AUDACITY to HOPE ...

I see YOU there!

Calling All Plainfield Community MEMBERS!!!

Tomorrow Night is THE NIGHT!!!

This is the 1-single-only BOE Meeting Platform where YOU can express your concerns, offer your recommendations and set the record straight!

7 PM - Old Jefferson Elementary School Auditorium
Tomorrow NIGHT is YOURS -- Ladies and Gentlemen!

-- Don't Sit BACK and LET it HAPPEN!
-- Make it HAPPEN!
-- This is YOUR CITY, YOUR SCHOOLS, YOUR TAX $$$'s & OUR CHILDREN!

Do you have the AUDACITY to HOPE?....The COURAGE to be HEARD!!!
See You THERE!

The Gift of Introspection...

This week has certainly been a hodgepodge of events. We had the usual Tuesday BOE meeting, the new PHS Administrator's– Let’s talk about it seminar, Maxson’s PTO Mentoring workshop, a very public City Council meeting, various PTO meetings including our district’s new PTO President’s Club (that’s my name for it) and of course PEP’s very own Board meeting. Many of these events occurred simultaneously making it impossible for us multi-interests individuals to partake in the many exciting and informative conversations. Nevertheless – I trust learning and value was afforded to all who were able to attend these respective gatherings.

At this point we have been exposed to enough information, opining, conversations and disagreements such that we should all have something to share that will help our community grow!

Here we are three months into our school year and what gains have we had thus far? I pose this question to YOU -- my readers. Really – what have you seen or experienced that is going well or not so well? And don’t just complain about it – please. Tell me what you’ve done over the past 3 months to make a difference in the life of this city’s children. Tell us what has worked and what needs some work. I’m not looking for show-stoppers. I simply want to celebrate our successes and highlight opportunities for improvements with some “REAL” value-add recommendations for how we can leverage our time, talents and resources to the benefit our schools and ultimately our children.

So here’s your opportunity Plainfield to do some well needed introspection and share your learning, experiences, successes and opportunities for improvement.

I look forward to hearing from this very creative and verbal community I love so dearly.

Be well!

FYI

Introspection is the self-observation and reporting of conscious inner thoughts, desires and sensations. It is a conscious mental and usually purposive process relying on thinking, reasoning, and examining one's own thoughts, feelings, and, in more spiritual cases, one's soul.

Acuity & You | Perfect Together!

I want to THANK all of you who chimed in and shared your experience/knowledge with regard to the Aquity testing platform. As some have commented it is a very valuable tool that provides teachers with a real-time understanding and scoring matrix of the individual child’s strengths and weaknesses, but more to the point it enables teachers to gear curriculum specific to the needs of the individual child learner in preparation for both NJASK and future learning in general.

You can’t beat that with a baseball bat!

Maybe next time we will have better communication and staging of this test so that the children are not off for a week and them have to come back to a testing environment. Or, at the very least – they are sent home with study materials so that parents can allocate study time to ensure their children’s test scores are a better representation of their academic acumen – or lack thereof.

Ooh well – it IS what it IS!

Below for your information are links to a site that will provide you with an in depth overview of what Acuity is, how it can be utilized and what the benefits are to our children and our teachers.

http://www.acuityforschool.com/why-choose-acuity/index.php

http://www.acuityforschool.com/our-research/index.php

http://www.acuityforschool.com/why-choose-acuity/faq.php

Be well and have a great weekend.

Testing, Testing 1, 2, Huh?

Parents as some of you (those with access to the internet at least) may know our children have been doing Acuity testing this week that will conclude tomorrow. Exactly which grades are involved – I do not know because I just found out today via my daughter (6th Grade) that they were testing. [According to my research it does appear this is a test geared towards grades 3-8; Algebra I preparedness for grades 6-12]

OK – so here’s the question(s) and please be honest – how many of you knew your child(ren) would be testing this week? And – how many of you understand what the Acuity (Assessment Management System) testing is all about?

This is a short post because right now – I’m just trying to wrap my brain around the pedagogical and communication style of this district. The children were off for a week... Return for a day and then go into testing the very next day. My child did not come home with any study materials for the week she was off --- did yours?

Parents I really need to hear from you. Please respond to the comments section of this post and tell me what you know about this testing.

Signed:
Curiouser and Curiouser

An Authentic Leader | Defined!

Yesterday I had the awesome opportunity to attend a conference on Leadership. The keynote speaker was a gentleman from Hades who shared with the attendees his struggles as a child that ultimately lead to his accomplishments as an adult and as a successful leader within one of the largest healthcare giants in the world. One of the more profound edicts he shared with the audience was his definition of a leader.

Being completely engrossed in this gentleman’s presentation I failed to take what one would consider “copious” notes, but here is the sum total of what he presented that explains the difference between an authentic leader and a disingenuous leader. An Authentic leader reaches out to the people of their organization and listens to what they have to say, but not as a consideration of their opinions, but rather as an invaluable aid to getting things done collectively. A disingenuous leader sets up a bureaucracy that makes it almost impossible for their people to reach out to them to share their concerns, dreams and opportunities. POWERFUL STUFF!

An authentic leader understands that the answers are among their constituents and leverages the skills, abilities and passion of their people to ensure they reach a united vision. A disingenuous leader posits and positions their own vision for personal gain and believes it is because of them that the vision exists and is achieved; they believe that the people “need” them more than they need the people. PROFOUND!!

Authentic leaders not only encapsulate the intellectual capacity to help their organization reach their vision, but they also have the emotional, social and civil intelligence to embrace the desires of their people to create the ultimate win-win – that being an inclusive (there's that word again) vision that considers all stakeholders as part of the success story. TAH DAH!!!

An Authentic Leader leaves a legacy that is respected, admired and benchmarked for years and years to come. They manifest their passion for people!

A New Wave of Evidence...

There is a growing body of work that not only provides statistically significant empirical data that supports the validity and necessity of school, parents and community partnerships, but the research also provides methodologies, examples and guidance on what works and most importantly what does not. It is this portion of the report that is most important, in my opinion, for the families and community members of Plainfield to understand. As shared by the CSA in his November address– he gets that parental involvement is critical to student achievement, however where we are faltering is in developing programs that include parents as part of the conversation for defining effective strategies and partnerships.

As I continue to read the more than 500 pages of information over the next few weeks I will share with you the highlights of the information gleaned from these bodies of work. I will also provide you with links to the reports and websites for your own perusal, use, edification and empowerment. After all -- this is what it is all about – Each one TEACH one! One parent, one teacher, one community at a time!

The following information is excerpt from an Annual Synthesis conducted in 2002 by the National Center for Family & Community Connections with Schools, Southwest Educational Development Laboratory (SEDL) entitled: A New Wave of Evidence: The Impact of School, Family and Community Connections on Student Achievement. The body of this research provides evidence of the positive contributions that partnership programs can make to student achievement. Ultimately, this report is about the need and value of families to support the educational efforts of their children.

Parents with high involvement ratings, compared with those with low or median ratings tend to have children with higher grades and scores. The finding held across all family income levels and backgrounds. When the researchers looked at the combined effects of teacher support and high parent involvement on grade point averages (GPA) the median GPA was 2.5, however at any point along the spectrum where either teacher support or parental involvement support were low the average GPA was .7 and .6 respectively. What a remarkable drop! But the MOST IMPORTANT thing to note is that neither teachers nor parents who operate at a high level of involvement can have a positive impact on a child’s GPA if they function as individual entities. It is the collective cooperative partnership between these two groups that lead to the greatest positive impact on a student’s GPA.

Researchers than look at the student’s sense of belonging and high parental involvement on GPA, and even more astounding was the results reported. Students with both a high sense of belonging and high parental involvement achieved a GPA of 3.4. Where either of these factors was low the GPA dropped significantly to 1.8 (low student) and 1.0 (low parental). Again – the value of collective partnerships in this instance (student and parent) is undeniable.

So where do we go from here. The first thing we have to do, before we can hold anyone else accountable is to do our part. If you are a parent – Parent…if you are a teacher – Teach…if you are a community member – Commune...if you are a student - Study and if you are a school administrator or board member – begin listening to your constituents and inviting them to the table to help reform the PPSD. You CAN NOT do it ALONE and nor can WE!

As I said before, I do believe our CSA has the intellectual capacity to move this district where it should be, however the lack is in his ability to reach the very people he serves and those in service to him. Authentic Leadership builds relationships -- not as defined by any one individual but rather that is inclusive and confident enough to embrace all stakeholders.

Family-School Partnerships?

In researching or shall I say benchmarking other cities in this great US of A with regard to Family-School Partnerships I came across this awesome resource: The Parent Education Network (PEN). The opening statement in the "eyebrow" section (page 2) of their brochure captured me immediately and it reads: "Partnerships among schools, families and community groups are not a luxury -- they are a necessity!" How profound!

PEN is the State of Wyoming’s PIRC Center (Parent Information and Resource Center) a NCLB funded resource. Their Mission is to provide a means of communication, cooperation and education to parents and professionals who wish to serve and support children with and without disabilities. They aim to help families become more active in their children’s learning and education, and obtain better programs and services through advocacy, education and referral.

Additionally, here are some of their key tenets:

• Partnerships help build and sustain public support for schools. Schools that embrace the partnership idea enjoy higher levels of respect and trust in the community. Partnership schools tend to have better teacher morale and higher ratings of teachers by families.
• Partnership and student academic achievement are closely linked. When schools, families and community groups work together to support learning, children tend to do better in school, stay in school longer and like school more. Research shows engaging families in children’s learning has a positive impact on student achievement.
• Families and the community can help schools overcome the challenges they face. A collaborative approach is needed to define the problems, discuss productive approaches and design and implement possible solutions.
• Teachers can benefit from parent and community partnerships. Involved families are more likely to understand the goals of the teacher and the school and to be supportive of proposed changes. Teachers who involve parents positively and consistently tend to rate families more positively.
  

Did you know Plainfield has a PIRC facility? Well we do. Tell me about it. Send me either a comment to this post or an email and provide your name, school affiliation and experiences with our PIRC facility. Tell me what it offers, tell me where it is, tell me if it even closely resembles the offerings and clarity of purpose that the PEN provides.

I went to our PIRC facility and it exudes possibilities, but like faith, possibilities without work is dead.

So Families – use your resources! It’s there – its paid for – now make it WORK!

The Year of PARADIGM Switches!

On every level there is evident a change with regard to how we think, how we teach, how we learn, how we partner, how we talk, walk or run and oh yes -- how we lead.

As a country, county, city and community we have been called to a greater consciousness not unlike those times during our most despicable historical events such as slavery, the holocaust, civil injustices, wars with no purpose, tyranny, terrorism (911), upheaval with no direction (WATTS, Newark, Plainfield Riots), unrest, mis-education, under utilization, and communal complacency.

It is time we all take our place in mending and redirecting what ails us! We can do this!!! Whether it is economic growth and stability, ending wars, or reforming the current educational system that plagues Abbott districts such as Plainfield – we CAN DO this!

No more excuses. No more games. No more time!

We are all uniquely gifted, perfectly designed and capable of doing our part in bringing our children, our schools, our community and our country to its full and God-given potential. Let’s be about the business at hand!

*Tootles*

Inside - Outside...Upside...Down?

If you have not had a chance, please take a gander at the CSA’s November Address on the district's website. Of course of interest to this writer is our CSA’s statement with regard to parental involvement. More to the point -- his continued need to siphon out a call for and a concentration on parental involvement at the school level – as oppose to what?

PEP, has always and will always be made up of parents who have children in the district’s schools. We just donot exclude our community members because we understand and embrace the concept that it "takes a village". The issues, recommendations and causes our parents undertake are as a direct result of their experiences within their particular schools. PEP only serves to bring them all together to have one UNIFIED conversation about what’s going on in the individual schools. More specifically – we are there to share recommendations and success stories on how to implement effective conversations and/or strategies to meet those needs identified.

As a PTO, President – I am still trying to understand why I am exclusively “uninvited” to the table of meetings with all other PTO Presidents. What’s up with that?!?

I have had the pleasure of meeting and speaking with 5 of these PTO Presidents over the past few months and quite honestly I am a little concerned with the District’s positioning of PEP with these parents. Please allow me to speak for myself. Nothing I have said or have to say or will say – will do anything less than lead us to a better parental involvement structure in our District. That is the goal? Right?

An organization; Parents for Public Schools shared this profound thoughts with regard to public awareness for parent engagement:

“It truly dawned on me that school is not a place I am shipping my kids off to everyday. The school administrators and staff work for me. It’s a nice feeling of empowerment. It’s nice to know parents should not be outsider.” Helen Barnes (PLI Graduate)

Parents – do you feel like “INSIDERS”?

For more information about this organization: Parents for Public Schools (PPS) has created a statewide parent leadership and public action strategy to engage parents to develop and support policy and program changes from the local school district to state policymakers. Public School parents are everywhere—and we want their voices to be heard so that high-quality public education opportunities are available to all families and their children. http://www.parents4publicschools.com/Work_advocacy.htm

Also for an outstanding research project and report on A New Wave of Evidence: The Impact of School, Family, and Community Connections on Student Achievement checkout: http://www.sedl.org/connections/resources/evidence.pdf