Parent and Community Engagement in Education

More than 50 parents and concerned leaders, including Kern County Superintendent of Schools Christine Fraizer, and Kern High School District Trustee Dr. Bill Perry, came together on Saturday, August 29^th 2009, to discuss the importance of parent engagement in education. 

The meeting opened with an icebreaker asking those in attendance to consider what they would fix in their local community if they had power—many answered they would  improve the educational system.

The icebreaker was followed by a speech from new Kern County Superintendent of Schools Christine Fraizer.  Superintendent Fraizer echoed the concerns of those present and gave a personal testimony to the importance of parent engagement. The Superintendent emphasized that without the support of her family, particularly her mother, she would never have been able to work her way through college, become a teacher, and rise to the position of superintendent.

After the Superintendent’s remarks, Andrae Gonzales presented facts about the Kern High School District’s dropout and college readiness rates which started an energized discussion about next steps.  The topic of next steps buzzed in the air over lunch as the participants prepared for a group activity. During the afternoon session, participants were asked to circulate around the room and provide creative possible solutions to the problems which contribute to current culture in education.

The discussion tat followed was lively, and positive energy of possibility grew. As th meeting came to a close, ti was agreed that Faith In Action would conduct similar meetings in the future, and an Education Committee was formed. 

As a follow up to the previous Parent and Community Engagement in Education meeting, Faith In Action hosted the Parent Engagement meeting at Bakersfield’s University of California Merced Center on October 10th, 2009.  Over 70 parents, students, and concerned residents of Kern County convened to learn and discuss how to help their student achieve academic success.  The keynote speaker of the event was California State University's President Horace Mitchell.  He gave an informative and motivational speech, encouraging parents to be involved in the education of their students, and was available for a question and answer session thereafter.  This was followed by a workshop where attendees discussed and planned next steps they can take to improve Kern County's academic standing. 

Faith In Action finished the year strong with another Parent Engagement Meeting held at Golden Valley High School.  Joel Heinrichs, President of the Kern High School District Board of Trustees, spoke to parents, relating his own story of how influential his parents were in his education and graduation from South High School.  Again, parents had the opportunity to ask questions and learn more about the climate of the Kern High School District.  Parents spent the afternoon learning about and practicing relationship-building with their children’s teachers, counselor, and administration through 1x1 conversations.  Parents left energized, and Faith In Action entered the New Year resolved to bring even more Kern County parents into this important work.