In a school system where sometimes only a handful of parents attend PTA meetings, teachers and principals at Baltimore schools say they need more help from parents to stem school violence and keep kids from dropping out.

City schools chief Andres Alonso plans to unveil a plan tonight with six components that reach out to parents in person, online and through surveys.

The first part is hiring The Family League of Baltimore to mobilize community organizations and churches around clusters of schools to engage parents with reading and math parties, for example, or over meals, schools spokesman Michael Sarbanes said.

The league, which collects data on community programs for children, will analyze the system’s parent outreach effort.

This story continues below
Advertisement

The school board will debate tonight whether to abolish “school-improvement teams,” a collection of teachers, administrators and parents at each school that monitors test scores and strategizes on how to boost student achievement. The teams would be replaced with “school and family community councils” that include four parents and two residents who will advise Alonso on the school budgets and provide feedback on principals’ effectiveness.

Schools officials also want to increase parent participation in a school climate survey from 30 to 60 percent.

Starting this month, the school system is offering parents of rising fifth- and sixth-graders and eighth- and ninth-graders training on transitions to middle and high school and their options for schools, including the combined middle-high schools opening this fall.

The last two parent outreach projects comprise a “parent portal,” a Web site where parents can view their students’ grades and homework assignments, and an e-mail directory so parents can e-mail teachers.

Alonso said he hoped these initiatives would make “community partners responsible in the same way schools are responsible.”

kvolkmann@baltimoreexaminer.com