Volunteer parent, Kirstian Siddiq works with kindergartener Leo W.
on a math problem.
Twenty Lower School parents have volunteered to be Class Parents, aiding teachers in the classroom as well as acting as communications conduits between the classroom and the parent community.
Cuffee parent, Amy Walsh, mother of 2nd grader Julian Perry, is leading the initiative. She describes the role as “a community organizer of each class…someone that could strengthen the school, support the teachers, and most importantly, support parent/children relationships in simple ways that don’t require a lot of hours. The Class Parent can work with the teacher to find ways that we can contribute more actively to the class, taking advantage of the skills, experience, and diverse languages and cultures that we bring as parents.”
Class parent duties are determined by the class parent and will vary from class to class depending on the unique needs of the teacher, the parents of the class, and the interests of the class parent. The class parent might organize out-of-school play days and meet-and-greets in local parks for families, arrange for parents to attend class to read to students, present on a topic or lead recess activities, organize snack contributions, and more. All class parents serve as a liaison between the parents and teacher.
Family Engagement Coordinator, Olinda Matos stated, “We are working on getting our Class Parents instructions on how to get a BCI (Background Criminal Investigation) and we are also working on a Class Parent guide book.”
If you would like to volunteer to be a Class Parent, please contact Olinda Matos (omatos@paulcuffee.org).