Outstanding educators and citizens: Improving the connection between our public schools and our communities

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Outstanding Educators and Citizens:Improving the Connection Between Our Public Schools and Our CommunitiesEducators across the United States are findingnew ways to bridge the communication gaps thatoften exist among themselves, parents, and othercommunity members. As a result, entire communi-ties are coming together to build safe, seamless,and supportive learning environments for youth.In 2003, the MetLife Foundation and the NationalCivic League created the Ambassadors inEducation Award program to recognize publicmiddle and high school educators who work tostrengthen their schools and their surroundingcommunities by building relationships among allstakeholders.

This article highlights some of the outstandingexamples of community-building activities imple-mented by educators who earned the Ambassador inEducation award in 2003, 2004, and 2005.Hopefully, their actions will inspire others to follow.

The readiness of the next generation of leaders is acritical component of a healthy community. Highschool dropouts and graduates unprepared for col-lege or work can fuel an increased unemploymentrate, reduced business development opportunities,higher cost associated with crime and incarcera-tion, reduced disposable income among residents,reduced tax base for community services, andgreater costs for human service agencies. Despitethese negative impacts, many public schools acrossthe United States are struggling with record enroll-ments that could surpass fifty-four million studentsby 2008. Although teachers, administrators, andpolicymakers are largely responsible for the quali-ty of education, no school can single-handedlyincrease student achievement, reduce the dropout

rate, solve the teacher shortage, or ensure that stu-dents are ready to learn.

A successful educational environment integrates theefforts of families, schools, and a variety of institu-tions within the community. Many schools and com-munities understand this philosophy, but developingsuccessful working relationships among stakehold-ers is often challenging.

“We have found that families and members of thecommunity want to be involved in the school,” saidKenneth Hunter, the principal at Prosser CareerAcademy in Chicago. “The challenge for the schoolis to develop meaningful and mutually beneficialinteractions between the school, families, and thecommunity.”

In many cases, it’s up to educators to initiate, influ-ence, and manage all of these relationships to makethem supportive and productive. Schools thatimprove the quality of their partnership programsoften report that fewer students are sent to the prin-cipal, earn detention, or receive in-school suspen-sions. These findings suggest that schools’ overallefforts to improve relationships with families andthe community may help improve students’ behaviorin school.

Improving Connections Between Families andEducators

The two most influential forces in a child’s devel-opment are the family and the school. Childrenthrive academically when the family and the schoolagree that they are stronger together than apart.Unfortunately, many principals and teachers feel

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© 2006 Wi ley Per iodicals , Inc .Publ ished onl ine in Wi ley InterScience (www.interscience.wi ley.com)Nat ional Civ ic Review • DOI : 10.1002/ncr.137 • Summer 2006

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unprepared to engage families in the educationalimprovement process. In fact, 70 percent of teach-ers surveyed in a 2002 study by the MetLifeFoundation felt that relationships with parents weretoo adversarial.

“Parents can be our greatest allies or our worst ene-mies,” said Phyllis Turner, a teacher at Benjamin S.Carson Honors Preparatory School in Atlanta.“Most importantly, parents can offer insight thatteachers can’t get from a college textbook. They alsocan offer us assistance and support that no one elsecan provide.”

Schools must establish the tone and context for pro-ductive home-school partnerships by meeting familiesmore than halfway. Educators need to convey goals,philosophies, and policies that integrate parents’ per-spectives and skills into school life. School efforts topromote family and community engagement will suc-ceed only if educators are adequately prepared to sup-port them. When schools successfully engage parentsand guardians in the educational process, there areoften positive effects on grades, courses completed,attendance, good behavior, and preparedness forclass. Plus, these activities continue to reinforce therelationship between educators and families.

“Schools are not always seen as the most invitingand welcoming of places,” said Kenneth Hunter. “Ifthe school can be warm and open, offering addedvalue to the community, it makes the job of educa-tors much easier. Educators must try to make theschool of value to the community. Open the buildingto the community and parents and build relation-ships with them.”

Educators have discovered a variety of practices thatcan improve teacher-parent communications andincrease family involvement in learning activities. Itcan be as simple as letting parents know how andwhen to contact teachers. Other practices includeissuing progress reports to parents between reportcards, conducting workshops on academic topics,outlining school expectations, and inviting parentsto assemblies that celebrate achievement.

It is important for educators to consider the culture,language, and diverse needs and strengths of familiesto support their children’s education. Once educa-tors develop relationships and trust among parents,they are more likely to get parents involved in theeducation process. Practices that encourage parent-student interaction at home are often associatedwith a gain in the percentage of students scoring atthe satisfactory proficiency level or higher—forexample, assigning homework that involves familiesor offering lending libraries with related materialsfor families and students to use at home.

Richard McClure is a former principal at MauldinHigh School, Greenville, South Carolina, who con-ducted focus groups with parents and other stake-holders to identify problems and opportunitieswithin the school. With the help of a steering com-mittee, he founded Bridging the Gap, an effort thatincluded minority parents, staff, and communitymembers. Two Sunday meetings were held for theparents of minority students. Child care and trans-portation were provided to allow as many parents aspossible to attend these important meetings.McClure listened to their concerns during monthlymeetings and recorded the information for use inimplementing the program. His efforts improvedrelationships with parents and academic perfor-mance by students.

“I wanted to know if the school could more effec-tively meet the academic needs of their children,”explained McClure. “Ultimately, my goal was tobetter serve minority students. I wanted to make cer-

National Civ ic Review DOI : 10.1002/ncr Summer 2006

The Ambassadors in Education Award programrecognizes public middle and high school educa-tors who work to strengthen their schools and theirsurrounding communities by building relation-ships among all stakeholders.

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tain that minority parents had access to adequateinformation upon which they could plan for the aca-demic futures of their children. This included pro-viding performance data, available school services,career information, how the scheduling processworked, the structure and implication of curriculumchoices, and the financial requirements of postsec-ondary education.”

The dialogue between the parents and school per-sonnel enhanced relationships, improved confidencein the school, and created an atmosphere of open-ness that was lacking before, said McClure.“Communications are fundamental to buildingtrust, which underlies the strength of any relation-ship,” he said.

Thomas Cason, principal of Soldan InternationalStudies High School in St. Louis, made regular visitsto the homes of some students who needed supportin achieving academic, social, or personal goals.“Visiting their homes is one way for me to learnmore about them and a way to get parents moreinvolved in their child’s education,” he said. “In themajority of circumstances, I have found home visitsto be very helpful and productive when the intent isto improve relationships and show parents and stu-dents that I care. One must make sure that parentsand students understand that home visits by theprincipal are not a consequence for negative studentbehavior but rather a genuine effort to support thestudent over the long term.”

Some of these visits have taken Cason to areas of thecity that are considered dangerous. He found thateven in the roughest housing projects studentslooked out for his property and personal safety oncethey knew the purpose of his visit. “They are usual-ly surprised that I would embark on an endeavorsuch as this, but they usually applaud my efforts,”he said. “I have data on each student and parents arevery receptive to my visit. From time to time a stu-dent may feel uncomfortable knowing that I amaware of his or her living conditions. However, this

uneasiness soon subsides when we begin to focus onthe relationship that we’ve already established. Iwould not suggest that all principals make home vis-its. However, I believe that making home visits hasmade me a better principal.”

Phyllis Turner organized workshops for parents toimprove their life skills. She also established parentinvolvement initiatives and met monthly with repre-sentatives from the local housing authority, residentsassociation, housing project board, and EmoryUniversity to plan those outreach strategies. In2001, Turner was charged with writing and imple-menting the school’s first parental involvement plan.Teachers were required to call each student’s parentswithin the first two weeks of school, followed by aweekly call to parents of students who were not pro-gressing. Parents were given the opportunity to vol-unteer as daily greeters, hallway and cafeteriamonitors, school switchboard operators, clericalworkers, and chaperones. Parents also participatedin training workshops and offered input by servingon the parent involvement committee. Turner feltthe effort was successful when parents took chargeof the annual teacher appreciation celebration, fur-nishing gifts and a continental breakfast.

As these award-winning examples illustrate, educa-tors can overcome nonsupportive adversarial rela-tionships with families. Although theserelationships can be challenging at first, they paydividends to all stakeholders. Schools and homesthat share perspectives, resources, goals, informa-tion, and the task of teaching give children the sta-bility, consistency, and encouragement they need foracademic success. Schools and families that worktogether can build the developmental assets avail-able to youth, which makes the educational processmore efficient and effective.

Improving Connections Between Community Sec-tors and Schools

There is a growing recognition among educatorsthat better partnerships between community-based


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organizations need to be established, but as winnersof the Ambassador in Education Award havelearned, school-community relationships are noteasy to develop and sustain. Educators can be sooverwhelmed with the demands of accountabilitythat they don’t recognize how community memberscan help.

Community builders often do not understand theeducation system they hope to help, or the magni-tude of the challenge. Such differences lead to frictionthat can make it difficult for community-buildingorganizations and schools to work together.

As educators know, basic issues arise from differ-ences in organizational size, structure, and staffingbetween schools and community organizations.Community builders can find the school bureaucra-cy frustrating, while their lack of knowledge aboutthe educational process may frustrate educators.

As suggested by both research and practice, schoolshave the opportunity to change how communitiessupport the educational system and process. TheAmbassadors in Education Award program hashighlighted many instance of educators developingproductive relationships with community membersand organizations.

“Aligning the school and community is a difficulttask when there has been a practice of isolation bythe various stakeholders,” said Albert Holland,principal of Boston’s Health Careers Academy.“Getting started is the toughest step, especially whenyou’re overwhelmed by the demands from theschool district or state. However, having a strategicplanning process is a key to involving all key stake-holders, which starts with your students, parents,staff, and partners.”

Holland manages a partnership between BostonPublic Schools and Northeastern University, whichcreated the school for students who want to pursuea career in health sciences. He helped secure funding

from companies in the Greater Boston area, amongthem TJX, Blue Cross Blue Shield, Brigham’s andWomen’s hospitals, Massachusetts HealthCommission, Boston Children’s Hospital, and theMassachusetts Bay Transit Authority. Through thesepartnerships, the school is able to hold after-schoolprograms and give scholarships to students. Thanksto these corporate relationships, the school also cre-ated a Dress for Success program.

“Involving and listening to all the stakeholders isimportant, and coming up with an engagementprocess and plan must be inclusive, and you musttake the lead,” said Holland. “It is critical to workas well as to communicate with parents and com-munity not only as stakeholders but also as teachers.Our children not only learn at school but they learnat home and in their communities.”

Gregory Vallone, the former principal at JamesMonroe High School in Los Angeles, fostered part-nerships with schools, community organizations,and area businesses. As a result, school-to-careerprograms in nursing, culinary arts, robotics, anima-tion, and film production have been created orexpanded. He also developed the school’s UniversityPreparatory Program, which brings rigorous mathand science instruction, links to the business com-munity, and connections to California StateNorthridge, to help students attend college. Underhis direction, the school also established relation-ships with Whole Foods Markets and One ServiceCenter to help the students and educators at theschool develop healthier eating habits.

Kevin McCarthy, a former principal at RobinsonHigh School in Tampa, Florida, brought togetherthe Tampa Housing Authority, government officials,school district personnel, and the school’s communi-ty to address the need for improved housing in aneighborhood across the street from the school. Thisdialogue led to a land swap between the school andthe Housing Authority for the benefit of all commu-nity stakeholders. He was also very involved in the


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neighborhood chamber of commerce. He workedwith the local air force base to form the McDillAeronautical Academy, an aviation program for stu-dents at his school. He helped forge a partnershipbetween the school district and the Military ChildCoalition, to help transition the children of militaryfamilies before and after base transfers.

In 1991 and 1992, the media was full of unfavorablestories about Denver Public School students. “Publicopinion was that our students were underachievingand lacking discipline, which was offensive to me,”said Steve Finesilver. “I had taught and coached formore than a dozen years. The children that I hadworked with were motivated, hardworking, and hadpride, loyalty, and respect for others.”

In late 1992 and early 1993, Finesilver and a col-league started Jobs By George. Their goal was tofind jobs for eight or nine diligent students towork doing manual labor and provide communityservice near the school. They made more than adozen appointments with businesses to offer jobsto their students.

“The initial appointments and presentations weremet with disbelief, and at times sarcasm,” herecalled. “It was clear that many businesses werenot yet willing to give our students an opportunityfor employment. Finally, we secured agreements tokeep eight students working for the summer.Dutifully, they performed their community serviceand earned their paychecks and school credit. Since1999, we have employed 80 to 105 students eachsummer and we have provided scholarships for stu-dents who have put in three or more years of exem-plary service.

“Jobs By George involves parents during the appli-cation, hiring, and orientation process. Parents arestrong advocates of hard work, responsibility, andyoung people having summer employment. Withoutparental involvement, it would be impossible forJobs By George to succeed.”

In 2004 and 2005, the program was expanded toemploy students from eight school districts andtwenty colleges and universities. Jobs By George hasevolved without large grants or public funding andhas employed hundreds of young people. The pro-gram owns construction equipment and a hugearray of tools and machinery. College students nowadminister Jobs By George.

Finesilver’s advice to other educators who mightconsider similar programs: “Be persistent and will-ing to face rejection. People are not automaticallywilling to give youngsters a chance or an opportuni-ty. It’s essential to communicate and work with par-ents and community members.”

Principal Hunter started the Chicago school’sService Learning Advisory Board to foster servicelearning opportunities for students. Through thisprogram, the school built productive relationshipswith numerous organizations, including the RedCross, the Northwest Neighborhood Federation,Mather Café, and Hanson Elementary School.Educators meet with these community organizationsand others regularly. Hunter also recruited the localalderman to serve on the Local School Council andto help connect the school to the community.

“As a kid in school, I found that much of what I waslearning was disconnected from the experience inthe wider world,” said Hunter. “To me it justseemed that connecting the school to the communi-ty in which it resides made sense. Our kids comefrom outside the school, return to homes outside theschool. Therefore my school, or any school, musthave connectivity to the real life, the real world inwhich our students exist.

“Our service learning advisory board has madegood connections with community service organiza-tions,” he said. “We are on excellent terms with ourcommunity college, and we have partnerships withSteppenwolf Theater, Chicago Children’s Choir, andthe Museum Campus, including Shedd Aquarium,


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Field Museum, and Adler Planetarium. Our localpoliticians and business leaders see our school as areal asset to the community,” he said.

Susan Eggleston, a teacher at Riverside High Schoolin Greenville, South Carolina, established relation-ships with local nonprofits to offer classes on a vari-ety of issues and create professional pathways intothe human services field. “It was so exciting to seethe students become so involved in the communityand to realize how much they got out of volunteer-ing and helping others,” she said. “It added a newspark to teaching.

“Students realize they can make a difference in thelives of others,” she added. “This will hopefully leadthem to a life filled with a desire to help others. Thatis where the real joy comes from, and they gain anappreciation for this at an early age. Is it always suc-cessful? No, but you cannot really do anything aboutthat. Just focus on all the positive steps they take.

“Often parents and community members can offerexpertise in fields outside the teacher’s scope. I feelthat by bringing members of the community into myclasses the students get not only what I know butwhat the experts know, and the students become thetrue winners,” she said.

Darren Wells, a teacher at J. P. Timilty MiddleSchool in Boston, asked people from area colleges,universities, hospitals, and other organizations tocome into the classroom to share their perspectivesand experiences with the students. He also recruitsvolunteers to serve as pen pals to students. “I havebeen volunteering in the community since my under-graduate days,” he explained. “I try to be involvedin many ways, including bike riding for charity, sit-ting on educational boards and committees, andparticipating in tutoring and mentoring programssponsored by community-based organizations. Bypursuing my interests and meeting many kinds ofpeople in the process, benefits have come to my stu-dents. Free or reduced tickets to events, food, and

in-kind services are just a few of the things that haveresulted from my networking in the community.”

Peter Giles, a teacher at Chelsea Vocational Schoolin New York City, drew on his community connec-tions to recruit a variety of people from all walks oflife to coach or judge student competitions and con-vince a nonprofit organization to bring program-ming into the school. “As soon as I started myteaching position, I knew that the kids were missingout on a lot in school,” he said. “It seemed that allin-school resources were being exhausted, so I real-ized early on the importance of bringing in outsidehelp through the community.”

Observing adult role models is one of the mostimportant ways in which children learn. Schools canformalize programs that put students in communitysettings where they can assist, observe, and learnfrom adult role models. The development and man-agement of opportunities for youth can help educa-tors solidify and refine important relationships withother stakeholders in the community.

Conclusion

To realize the benefits of community collaboration,teachers and principals need to understand all stake-holder groups in the community: families, business-es, nonprofit organizations, human service agencies.This is where many relationships between educatorsand community members have failed in the past.

The challenges, opportunities, and resources avail-able to solve educational problems are unique toeach community. However, when educators, par-ents, and community stakeholders work collabora-tively in pursuit of common goals, the educationalenvironment and outcomes improve accordingly.

In many communities, it’s up to educators to initiateand develop productive relationships with familiesand other stakeholders in the educational process.Once these relationships are built, however, they canimprove student behavior and academic perfor-


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mance. These relationships also help the school giveback to the community through increased volun-teerism and resource sharing. The more develop-mental assets available to youth, the better theeducational outcomes for all.

It takes gifted and dedicated educators to step for-ward and initiate relationships with parents andcommunity members. As the Ambassadors inEducation Award program demonstrates, America’spublic schools are blessed with some great educatorsand leaders. Schools and entire communities need torecognize these leaders and encourage them to con-tinue their great work, while inspiring others to fol-low their examples.

“The community of a school starts with parents,and then includes the immediate community, and isfollowed by the extended community—the agen-cies and institutions that play a role in the educa-tional process of our children,” said AlbertHolland. “We must come together to educate, nur-ture, and instill in our students a sense of commu-nity. I consider the children I educate as my ownchildren and I want no less for them than I wantfor my own children.”

Gary R. Chandler is a former director of the Ambassadors inEducation Award program.

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Outstanding educators and citizens: Improving the connection between our public schools and our communities