Get Involved

How much say do you have in your child’s education?

The truth is, more than you think. Decisions that affect your children are made every day by school boards, legislators and other elected officials. As a parent you have a voice in these discussions. But the decision makers are not going to come knocking on your door asking for your thoughts, you need to make your voice heard.

The first step is to learn the facts. Then you need to be prepared to offer up a possible solution to the issue at hand. This solution-centered approach is especially necessary when dealing with your local school district’s budgetary process. Right now school districts all over New York are facing tough economic choices and the cost of just doing business as usual is going up faster than most districts can handle. Now, with the statewide tax levy cap limiting the amount of money districts can raise to offset these costs, the only way to remain fiscally sound is to cut programs.

The only way to know if a program you value is slated for elimination is by getting informed ahead of time. This means going to the school board meetings when the budget is being proposed. Most Boards of Education post the upcoming meeting agendas for the school year on their website. Once you have the information, you’re in a position to work toward ensuring the safety of that program by spreading the word and organizing groups of parents to attend the school board meetings and advocate for the program you’re trying to save. However, remember that the budget is a zero-sum game. If you want to put something back into the budget, you’ll need to propose what can be taken out in order to make up the cost.

Getting Involved

Some issues that directly affect your children go beyond the scope of your local school budgets. If you identify an issue that you feel passionate about, don’t hesitate to take your actions to the next level.

For example, after six high school students and graduates from her community lost their lives in one year due to either drug overdose or accidents involving drugs, Dana Platin joined a chorus of voices in her community who vowed to do something about it. A deeper look into the issues revealed two key factors which contributed to the tragedies: a lack of adequate adolescent treatment centers anywhere near their Long Island community of Sachem in Suffolk County and the fact that minors were legally allowed to check themselves out of treatment without their parent’s permission.

A leader in her local PTA, Platin realized that one way to enact change was to get the New York State PTA behind the issue. She spearheaded an effort to craft a resolution that was then brought to the State PTA convention and officially adopted. Right away, Platin and the New York State PTA lobbied in Albany for Denise’s Law, named after a girl who died one week after her high school graduation. “I got a lot of people involved,” recalls Platin. “We went up to Albany and lobbied on behalf of Denise’s Law and we ran into a lot of obstacles. It went down party lines because the Democrats were behind us and the Republicans were just squashing us.” Eventually the resolution stalled in committee, but Platin has high hopes that it will move forward within the year.

When it does become legislation, it will be a testament to one parent’s determination to make a difference. Dana Platin is not a professional lobbyist; she’s a mother and a member of her community who saw a flaw in the system that was affecting children and stepped up to make a difference. It’s a model of action that should be embraced by us all, because parents have the right and ability to make their voices heard.

Whether you’re looking to influence your local school board, your state legislator, or your Congressman, the one thing that can sway a representative is hearing from a massive number of their constituents. The more they hear, the more they take note. But you don’t have to pound on your legislator’s office door to make a difference.

Here are some simple ways you can promote change in your school district.

Go to your local school board meetings and speak up. These meetings are open to the public and are the quickest way to learn what’s happening in your district. Don’t be afraid to express your opinion. Attending with a group that shares your view can help move an issue forward.

Write a letter. Any email to a legislator is first answered by a legislative aide, and more than one aide confided to us that it is very easy to hit the delete key. However, a stack of paper letters piling up in a legislator’s office cannot be ignored.

Create a coalition. Look around for businesses or other citizen groups who may have an interest in your goal and work together with them. There is power in numbers.

Join your local PTA. The PTA does more than run fundraisers. The NYS PTA is a 350,000-strong advocacy organization (and is connected with the 5,000,000 member national PTA organization).

Visit your representative. You have a better chance of getting to meet with your representative in their local district office as opposed to Albany, where you will be welcomed, but will probably end up meeting with their legislative aides.

Remember, you are your child’s best champion. Don’t be afraid to flex your muscle and work toward bettering her educational experience. If enough parents stand up, they will be heard. n

David Neilsen is a freelance writer from Tarrytown, where he is the father of two and president of the Elementary PTA of the Tarrytowns.

Visiting Your Legislator

When you visit your representative and sit down with them, or their aide, here are some things to keep in mind.

Introduce yourself and your title: Make sure to let the legislator or their aide know that you are a constituent, a parent, a member of the PTA, or just a concerned citizen. You are the people they are representing, and you are the people who can vote for them.

Be specific: Don’t waste a legislator’s time with vagaries. Have a specific issue to discuss and launch right in. Perhaps you want them to vote in a certain way on a bill. Perhaps you want them to take up your cause and introduce a bill. You may not get a direct answer, but you will communicate your cause and bring it to their attention.

Be prepared: If you are making the case for a position, do your homework and be ready with information that supports your position.

Be realistic: The legislator or aide will inevitably ask questions and you may not have all the answers. Don’t make them up. Admit when you don’t know something and offer to get back to them with the information.

Make it personal: How will this change in legislation affect your school district? Have a personal story that illustrates the difficulties you are trying to overcome.

Be brief: Don’t overstay your welcome. If you and your legislator have come to an agreement, thank them and excuse yourself.

Follow-up: Send a thank you note (on paper) after your visit. Always stay in touch.