Delaware schools seeking to improve parent engagement and student performance need to focus on resources, teacher passion, and communication, Sussex County parents said at the recent Hispanic Parent Engagement Summit organized by the La Colectiva initiative of La Esperanza.
The Summit gathered attendees from across the county, drawing attention to how parents can help their children succeed in school – and then take on leadership and advocacy roles in schools and parent organizations.
Parents and La Colectiva leadership group members who spoke on a closing panel reflected on how Delaware can improve education and parent involvement.
Schools need to borrow good teaching practices from other districts, not reinvent the wheel, said Galo Meza. “If I have a teacher in Milford who teaches math exceptionally, why can’t I replicate that teaching in the other districts and improve those learning processes? Same case in English,” he said. “There may be a need to complete a preparation process jointly with the teachers.”
Marleny Garcia and Lidia Pichardo observed that information-sharing is critical if schools want parents to be involved and engaged. “There is a lack of information on our part, that we are not focused,” Garcia said. “There are all sorts of things out there. If we don’t search, we won’t find out about anything.” Pichardo said that when conflicts arise, communication can help defuse the challenges. “I say talking about them is the way to solve them,” she said.
Parents’ voice should be heard and paid attention to, said panel moderator Javier Torrijos, former chair of the Delaware Hispanic Commission. “The education of our children should be the No. 1 priority in our families,” he said. “If we don’t do that, I don’t know what the future will hold for our children.”
The Summit grew out of the Parent Engagement Project, which began a year ago with research from an Arsht-Cannon Fellow to identify best practices to help Hispanic parents connect with schools. The organization has also been involved in a working group with parents, educators and advocates.
“This Summit was an excellent first step toward helping parents develop their voices and providing tools for success,” said Jen Fuqua, La Esperanza executive director. “The issues identified here will create a roadmap for tackling some of the larger challenges multilingual learners face in our schools.”
La Colectiva de Delaware is an initiative of La Esperanza, the only bicultural and bilingual multi-service nonprofit agency in Sussex County that provides free services in family development, immigration, victim services, and education for Hispanic adults, children and families. La Colectiva is sponsored by the Arsht-Cannon Fund at the Delaware Community Foundation.