Cobb County school board members have approved a proposal calling on its schools to boost parent engagement.
The board voted 7-0 at a meeting Thursday to support the measure, which directs schools to "establish programs and practices that enhance parental involvement and reflect the needs of the students and their families," according to the school district.
“The district believes family and community engagement is critical to student and district success.”
Cobb school board member David Morgan had previously proposed an initiative that would have penalized students for poor parent involvement.
The school board voted it down in January. It would have barred Pebblebrook High School students from extracurricular activities if their parents don’t attend meetings with teachers and act more “engaged” in their children’s academic work.
Morgan argued it would help boost academic achievement at Pebblebrook, a lower-performing school. Parents and education scholars said it is unfair to poor and working families and punishes students for their parents' inactions.
In March, Morgan brought his idea back to the board with some changes. Instead of mandating parent involvement, the new measure would “incentivize” parents to take part in more school activities.
Parents would earn “credits” for attending parent-teacher conferences, open house events, Road to Graduation meetings, curriculum nights and other activities.
With the board’s vote on Thursday, Morgan said schools can still pursue creating programs that “incentivize” parent involvement, if they want to.
“It’s up to the schools come up with the details,” Morgan said.
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