Parent Involvement Organizations

Together, these organizations give voice to parents by affirming, validating, and legitimizing parental issues and concerns, and by helping parents meet the challenges of managing their children’s education and well-being. Together, they establish the means for the exploration and integration of diverse ideas, strategies, and learning opportunities in an atmosphere that fosters a sense of belonging. As a result, these organizations empower parents to take action. By connecting parents to school officials, community members, other parents, knowledge, and powerful allies, these organizations build bridges and networks that support schools and sustain whole communities.


Parent Membership Organizations

Black Alliance for Educational Options (BAEO)

BAEO focuses on ensuring access to school choice programs for African American children.

Grandma's Kids
The Center for Intergenerational Learning at Temple University provides family support services to children in out-of-home placement (kinship, foster care, group homes, etc.). The primary population is elementary children not living with their biological parent, often because of parent abandonment, substance abuse, illness, incarceration, neglect and/or abuse. The children range in age from seven to 12 years old and attend one of four Philadelphia public elementary schools. The program consists of two primary components: (1) after school activities for targeted children and (2) caregiver support through the provision of parent education and individualized family resource and referral.

National Parent Teacher Association (PTA)
The National PTA encourages parent and public involvement in the public schools. Contact a chapter near you. (Pennsylvania’s PTA contact is Tomi Waters Boylstein, at (717) 564-8985. See http://www.papta.org)

Parents for Public Schools (PPS)
PPS is a national organization that recruits students, involves parents, and improves public schools.

The National Association of Partners in Education (NAPE)
NAPE is a teacher–parent engagement-through-partnerships program. Its efforts are focused through three core competencies: training and technical assistance, research and materials development, and a unique national member network.

Pennsylvania Children’s Advocacy Network (PA-CAN)
This grassroots arm of Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children is a group of select Pennsylvanians who are concerned about children’s issues and are willing to act on their behalf.

Parent Support Organizations

American Federation of Teachers (AFT) Parent Page

ASPIRA, Inc. of Pennsylvania
ASPIRA is dedicated to the education of Puerto Rican and Latino youth in the hopes of developing their intellectual, cultural, and leadership abilities. Goals include increased access to quality leadership and educational development opportunities for youth and parents, through leadership skills development, educational endeavors, cultural awareness, and social action The ultimate goal is to combat the socioeconomic problems that have historically afflicted the Puerto Rican and Latino communities.

A Better Chance
A Better Chance works with minority youth to increase their opportunities, both academic and vocationally.

The Center for Grieving Children, Teens and Families
Grief support groups for children and teens (ages 6 to 18) are held throughout the school year to help young people who have experienced the death of someone close. Other Services include educational programs for families , as well as support and referral. Families must attend an orientation session before beginning support groups. Orientation is conducted each month. These groups are offered at the center at no charge to families. The mission of the center for grieving children, teens and families is to provide a safe and caring place where children, teens, and their families grieving a death or other significant loss can find the support to grow through their healing process. For more information, call 215-427-6767.

Children, Youth and Family Consortium (CYFC)
CYFC serves as a bridge to a wide range of information and resources about children and families.

Connect for Kids
Connect for Kids helps adults make their communities better places for families and children. The website offers a place on the Internet for adults—parents, grandparents, educators, policymakers and others—who want to become more active citizens, from volunteering to voting with kids in mind.

Cross City Campaign for Urban School Reform
The Cross City Campaign for Urban School Reform is a national network of parents, community members, teachers, principals, central office administrators, researchers, and others seeking to create high-quality schools that ensure educational success for young people in urban areas. It backs policies and practices that move authority, resources, and accountability to the school level, and it seeks to reconnect schools with their communities while rethinking the role of school districts.

Family Education Network offers grade-specific guides to your child's development, including what you should know about kindergarten, first grade, second grade, third grade, fourth grade, fifth grade, sixth grade, seventh grade, and eighth grade, plus some tips about high school and afterwards.

The Family Involvement Network of Educators (FINE)
This Harvard Family Research Project offers parents current research findings on parent involvement practices, while providing a place for colleagues in the field of education to connect and communicate.

Focus Five for Kids: Pennsylvania’s Campaign for Children & Families
Founded by a number of other Pennsylvania advocacy organizations, Focus Five for Kids focuses on five interdependent issues it believes are vital to the future success and prosperity of Pennsylvania. The five issues are ensuring that Pennsylvania’s children: (1) grow up healthy, (2) enter school ready to learn, (3) get a high-quality education, (4) have safe places to go and things to do after school, and (5) live in stable and supportive families.

Good Schools Pennsylvania
Good Schools Pennsylvania is a coalition of organizations that have made significant commitments to mobilize their constituencies to become advocates for improved education for all children.

National Coalition for Parent Involvement in Education (NCPIE)
NCPIE is a coalition of major education, community, public service, and advocacy organizations seeking to developing effective family–school partnerships throughout America.

National Institute on Out-of-School Time (NIOST)
The mission of NIOST is to ensure that all children have access to high-quality programs, activities, and opportunities during nonschool hours.

The Office of Non-School Hours Services overseess and supports opportunities for students during the after-school hours, weekends, and summers. The office is responsible for the Extended Day program, 21st Century Learning Centers, After-school Programs, Beacon Programs, Elect Student Works, Freedom Schools, and Summer Program.

Parentsunite.org: National Parenting Association
The National Parenting Association was founded by author-activist Sylvia Ann Hewlett to give parents a greater voice in the public arena. The organization’s goal is to build a parents’ movement that unites mothers and fathers across the country, creating a society that values parenting, benefits children, and strengthens America.

ParentSuccess.com
Visit this site for monthly tips, tips archive, resources, and a bookstore of practical and unique books for parents.

Pennsylvania Parent Information Resource Center
The basic goal of the Pennsylvania Parent Information Resource Center is to initiate and expand opportunities for Pennsylvania’s parents to be involved in their children’s education.

Philadelphia’s Beacon Schools
Beacons are community centers located in schools. They serve families living in the neighborhood and the children who attend that school and other community schools. Beacons are a strategy for rebuilding communities of support and improved academic success for children and their families in urban neighborhoods. The goal of Philadelphia’s Beacon program is to: establish “safe havens,” support community safety and organization, provide educational assistance and enrichment, expand youth development and leadership, and offer employment and training activities and opportunities.

Philadelphia Safe and Sound
Philadelphia Safe and Sound was established to improve the health and well-being of children, through collaboration with government, foundations, corporations, and community groups. Among its goals are to develop and evaluate innovative and successful prevention and youth development initiatives, and to reform government systems so that decision-making is driven by research, results, and accountability. It also seeks to enhance community safety, support the development of children’s services, reduce youth violence by collaborating with law enforcement, and ensure that children have the appropriate supports to successfully complete higher education and secure employment.

The Steppingstone Foundation
Ths Steppingstone Foundation is a nonprofit organization that develops and implements programs for children from educationally underprivileged backgrounds.

The Children’s Partnership (TCP)
Undertakes short-term efforts to systematically build a constituency for children, youth, and families that will support and sustain positive advances for children over the long haul.

Education Law Center: Pennsylvania (ELC)
ELC is a nonprofit, legal advocacy organization seeking to ensure that all of Pennsylvania’s children have access to a quality public education. The center and its staff provide many free services, including: representing parents and children in lawsuits that seek important reforms; advocating policies that improve children’s educational opportunities and student outcomes; operating a telephone HelpLine that dispenses information to families, advocates, and others about students’ legal rights (in the Philadelphia area, 9 a.m.–1 p.m., M–F, 215-238-6970); and training parents and professionals.

The Education Trust
The Education Trust is an independent nonprofit organization striving to make schools and colleges work for all of the young people they serve. It operates under the beliefs that, in order to improve K–12 education, it is necessary to change the way postsecondary education does business, and that postsecondary education needs improving as much as does K–12 education. It also emphasizes attempting to close the achievement gaps that separate low-income students and students of color from other youth.

The National Black Child Development Institute (NBCDI)
The mission of NBCDI is to protect the well-being of all African American children. The organization develops a wide range of programs to replace one-size-fits-all strategies and works to change the deficit-oriented paradigm that many educators use with one that promotes initiatives that serve children based on their strengths and needs.

PA Alliance for Children & Families
The PA Alliance for Children & Families is a nonprofit educational and advocacy organization that advocates for resources and policies that strengthen family life and educate policymakers about services for families. It also engages in activities that help its member agencies provide needed and quality services to local families.

Partnership for Fair Chance Schools
The Partnership for Fair Chance Schools strives to create a system of public education that gives every child a fair chance to learn—and every school a fair chance to teach—what is already provided in the best public schools of Pennsylvania.

Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children
Pennsylvania Partnerships for Children works to improve the well-being of Pennsylvania’s children by: building awareness of children’s issues among policymakers; producing research-based publications analyzing children’s needs and proposing solutions; empowering groups and citizens to act on behalf of children; and representing the interests of children in the state’s and nation’s capitols.

The Pennsylvania School Reform Network (PSRN)
The nonprofit PSRN works to provide an excellent education for each and every child in Pennsylvania. It works with state policymakers, local homemakers, teachers, students, professionals, and all who are willing to work toward improving the state’s public schools.

Philadelphia Citizens for Children and Youth (PCCY)
PCCY’s purpose is to promote the lives and life chances of the children in the region through thoughtful and informed advocacy. It seeks to make the lives of Philadelphia—and the region’s children—better, fighting for children to get their fair share of city and state budgets, for homeless children, for abused children, for children receiving inadequate health care, and others.

Philadelphia Education Fund (PEF)
Philadelphia Education Fund is an independent nonprofit organization seeking to improve the quality of public education for all of Philadelphia’s children. It aims to ensure that all of Philadelphia’s children can be successful in postsecondary education and beyond, through such initiatives as direct student services, professional development for teachers and administrators, public engagement, research, and policy recommendations.

Research for Action (RFA)
RFA is a Philadelphia-based, nonprofit organization that works with public school districts, educational institutions, and community organizations to improve the educational opportunities and outcomes for those who are traditionally disadvantaged by race/ethnicity, class, gender, language/cultural difference, and ability/disability. RFA believes in democratic involvement in education, that brings together parents, teachers, students, administrators, community members, and policymakers to strategize about school reform.