Parent-Teacher Connection Wins McKeesport Recognition

By Karen Zapf

Gretchen Bazala enjoys being involved in parent-teacher association at the White Oak Elementary School, saying she never has to beg parents to become involved.

“For some events, we have 50 to 60 parents who volunteer,” said Bazala of White Oak, the organization’s vice president.

McKeesport is the only school district in Allegheny County to receive one of the 2008 Speaker’s Golden Apple Awards for Education Innovation. McKeesport received the award for parental involvement.

The awards are given annually by Pennsylvania’s Speaker of the House. Speaker Dennis M. O’Brien conducted a ceremony to present the awards on June 9 in Harrisburg.

All Pennsylvania public elementary, middle and secondary schools, as well as vocational-technical schools, charter schools and intermediate units, are eligible to apply for the awards, which were initiated in 2005.

The other winning school districts were from York, Bucks and Chester counties, and West Philadelphia.

Bazala, whose son, Preston, 7, is a second-grader at White Oak Elementary, said the school has many opportunities for parents to volunteer throughout the school year.

“We have 300 (people) in our PTA,” Bazala said. “And they’re not just parents. There’s grandparents.”

The school has 276 students.

Bazala said activities such as the third-grade celebration for students “graduating” to the intermediate school, field trips and family fun night bring out many volunteers.

“We have no problem finding parents,” Bazala said.

McKeesport applied for the award in April. The district indicated on its application that its parental involvement program is based on Epstein’s Framework of Six Types of Involvement: decision-making, volunteering, learning at home, parenting, communicating and working with the community.

Bazala said part of the success is the quality of staff at White Oak Elementary.

“The principal and the staff have made it so easy and so much fun to do things,” Bazala said.

How to apply

Districts that are interested in applying for a Golden Apple Award can access the Web site at www.goldenappleawards.com.

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