Schools need parental involvement from pre-kindergarten through postsecondary. These session notes begin a series of ways to involve parents as well as students in education and eventually the college and/or career preparation process.
Putnam
City North High School, which has about 2,000 students, has one person, Dee Dee Stafford, dedicated to
scholarships.
Tools
- Open House (College Night/College Day)
- Financial Aid Night
- College Ap Day
- Calling tree, marquee, Twitter and other social media
The
school hosts open house in the evening with
about 10 colleges coming back in the
next day to talk to the students for about an hour. Announcements are made at open house. Parents are welcome. On College Ap Day, everyone fills out an
application on computers.
One audience member
mentioned using Remind 101, a
free service used for notification with parents in multiple ways, to remind
youths and parents about meetings, scholarships, etc. Someone later commented that Remind 101 can
sometimes be irritating. [Ruthie Rayner, principal, Stanley Hupfeld Academy at
Western Village, Oklahoma City, uses Remind 101 for her parents and mentors.]
“A safe way for teachers to text messages students and stay
in touch with parents.” https://www.remind101.com/
Brenda Stinnett at Putnam City High School, which has about 1,800 students, suggests getting students excited so they go home and tell their parents.
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| Putnam City's Senior Retreat Site |
Putnam
City also has a District
College Fair (no career or tech) in which students begin to
think about possibilities. In the first
year, 800-1000 students participated including all three high schools and
Bethany. The second year, 400 students
attended five sessions. Parents also had
a session. Examples of sessions were
career opportunities in the military, FAFSA (usually 50-75 people), etc. Each year has to be different that the
previous ones to encourage attendance.
Session - “Engaging Parents in the College Prep Process”
Access 360 Conference, September 23, 2013
Conference sponsored by the Oklahoma Regents for Higher Education
More to come...Conference sponsored by the Oklahoma Regents for Higher Education
