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Bio
E-mailAs part of this newspaper's effort to engage more parents in their children's academic life, I talked to Memphis's school superintendent last week. Memphis got my attention because the district is hosting "parent demand" meetings across the city.
They are called "demand" seminars because Superintendent Kriner Cash said he had not heard enough from parents about the "demand side" of the equation. Specifically, he wasn't hearing enough demand for high-quality schools. As he told me over the phone, money has poured into schools over the last two decades to help "the supply" part of schooling, but the demand side needs more attention.
He says that he makes these points at every "parent demand" meeting:
1. You make sure your child shows up for school and on time.
2. You make sure your child's homework is done and he or she is dressed properly.
3. You teach your child to respect people.
2. You make sure your child's homework is done and he or she is dressed properly.
3. You teach your child to respect people.
If you do that, he tells parents, I will personally intervene for you at your school.
At that point, he says, there's a chance to have a dialogue with parents about such things as "demanding" more AP courses. I particularly loved this line: "If you can come retrieve your cell phone when you left it at school, you can be there to demand more rigor."
Memphis has about 250 parents attending each meeting, Cash reports. And someone from the district takes the names of attendees, puts them on a mailing list and gets them on committees. Broadly speaking, the district keeps after them to remain engaged with their children's academics.
Before any one assumes I'm suggesting Dallas does nothing along these lines, let me be clear: Dallas is pursuing some good ideas vis-à-vis parenting. That