February 1998
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Urban Scholars Aims
to Increase Family Involvement
in EducationThe Urban Scholars Program is trying to get parents more involved in their children's education.
Through the newly formed Urban Scholars Family Partnership Program, parents with children enrolled in the program for academically talented students are seeing more newsletters, progress reports, and invitations to open houses.
"We're doing a lot of things to try to get them more involved," said John Fife, Family Partnership coordinator. A 1996 graduate of UMass Boston, Fife said a variety of parents are involving themselves with the program.
"It's real clear to us that the stronger the partnership with the families, the more successful kids will be," said Joan Becker, executive director of the Urban Scholars Program.
The program is rethinking traditional approaches to parent partnerships, Becker said. Instead of inviting parents to attend meetings, for example, Urban Scholars formed a Family Partnership Action Team. Comprised of parents, students, teachers and staff members, the action team meets quarterly to assess present practices, identify and implement new partnership activities, evaluate new steps, and work to continue improving and coordinating partnership activities.
Some of the action team's short term goals are already being met. "The Family Times," a monthly newsletter, provides program news, offers tips to boost children's learning, and showcases student accomplishments and creativity. Parents are also getting more involved in field trips. Several parents signed up to chaperon the group's trip to see "Miss Saigon." In addition, parents are attending orientations and receiving weekly progress reports.
The students don't seem to have a problem spending time with their parents, Fife said. In fact, they have planned a Parent Gala, to be held Feb. 8 on the 11th floor of Healey Library.
Urban Scholars is also utilizing parents in setting long-term goals. "We're really taking a look at our curriculum," Becker said of one long-term plan. The program is reviewing its standards and statements of expectations of what students should know and be able to do, she said. In addition, staff members are weighing the possibility of holding individual counseling sessions with students and their parents.
Also as a service to parents, Urban Scholars offers workshops on topics such as financial aid and provide information on issues such as parenthood and adult education, Fife said.
Becker hopes the family partnership program will help schools, in addition to students in the program. "As we find things that work in terms of strengthening our partnerships with families, we want to share that with our partner schools," she said.
The Urban Scholars Family Partnership Program is made possible with funds from a three-year, $881,962 grant awarded to the Urban Scholars program by the Jacob Javits Gifted and Talented Student Program, which is funded by the U.S. Department of Education.