Parent advocacy group starts up in SAD 29

By Joseph Cyr
Staff Writer
    HOULTON — Concerns over educational issues have prompted one Houlton resident to form a new parent advocacy group aimed at improving education for students in SAD 29/RSU29.
    Fred Grant, a 1988 graduate of Houlton High School and a current member of the Houlton Town Council, is looking to build a parental advocacy group  — Families For Education  —designed to ascertain what some of the important issues are for parents of school-aged children and to also provide an avenue for those concerns to be addressed by school officials.
    “Education is extremely important to me and my family,” Grant said. “This has been a sort of monkey on my back for about a year now. Given the recent issues with AYP (Adequate Yearly Progress), I thought the time was now for the community to take an active role in education and take our opportunities to a new level.”
    An introductory meeting will be held Wednesday, April 7 from 6:30-8 p.m. at Watson Hall in the Church of the Good Shepard on Main Street. While the group will be geared toward parents and caregivers of students attending SAD 29, it is open to any individuals interested in improving education in the community.
    The initial goals Grant created for the group are:
    • To seek out and clarify the views, opinions and ideas of parents and caregivers as it relates to education.
    • To ensure that parents are supported in their right to express their views, opinions and ideas.
    • To create open dialogue between families and the district with the intent to improve and enhance education.
    • To educate and train parents to be better partners in education.
    “It is our fundamental belief that parents and families are vital partners to the academic success of our children,” Grant said. “We will strive not only to be better parents and caregivers, but also advocate for an educational process that welcomes, encourages and integrates active family participation and input at all levels.”
    At the group’s introductory meeting, an election of officers will take place, as well as laying the foundation for which direction the group wishes to go. The participants will then break up into smaller focus groups and the information gathered in those groups will be presented to identify the most pressing concerns and to develop a plan of action.
    “Over the past year, I have had the opportunity to talk to hundreds of parents who have had frustrations and concerns on multiple levels,” Grant said. “The one connecting thing that I have heard over and over is parents feel marginalized.”
    The recent designation of Houlton High School as one of 10 “persistently low performing schools” by the Department of Education, based on SAT scores in reading and math, prompted Grant to take action. He said he had heard from many individuals in the community who had an interest in expressing their thoughts on the matter, but since there was no organized avenue for parents to voice those concerns, some felt frustrated.
    “We have a very organized teacher’s group, but we don’t have a real organized parental group,” Grant said. “I talked to the administration about a year ago about creating a vehicle for parents and families, in a positive manner, be able to come and offer suggestions to be a part of the educational process.”
    For more information on Families For Education, visit http://FamiliesForEducation.org. To contact the group, call 207-619-0473 or by e-mail at info@familiesforeducation.org. There is a Twitter account at: http://twitter.com/FamsForEd and there are plans for a Facebook page as well.