As advocates, leaders, and community members, parents are capable of providing unique grassroots educational leadership in our schools. We cannot create high-quality schools without the partnership of parents. Empowering the voices of parents in our education system is critical to the success of our students.
Creating and establishing parent organizations are a useful and effective way to organize parent voices and amplify their power in the educational landscape. Effective advocacy involves identifying the purpose and objectives of the work in the communities, understanding the issues and opinions behind the causes, investing in the power of the advocates, and strategically leveraging available tools and skills to maximum utility.
Parent Leadership: Tools for Effective Advocacy and Organizing (PDF)
This toolkit provides an outline of how to create and establish a parent organization with the right structure, leadership, and procedures for your school. The resources below are designed to support parents, families, and schools in supporting their parent organization's effectiveness and sustainability.
Use the below links to view the Parent Leadership Toolkit by sections:
- Getting Started: Knowing the Issues
- Getting Started: Understanding the Terms
- Getting Started: Getting a Parent Organization Started at Your School
- Goal/Agenda Setting: Establishing a Mission & Vision Statement
- Nuts & Bolts: Establishing Procedures & Operations for Your Parent Organization
- Funding and Budgeting: Getting Resources for Your Parent Organization
- Building Relationships and Partnerships: Establishing Trust and Fostering Effective Communication
- Building Parent Capacity: Diversity & Recruitment
- Appendix: Parent Organization Resources
Finally, are you looking for a way to provide meaningful feedback to DC’s education and policy leaders on a host of issues? Get started here by checking out the following leadership opportunities across our great city.