Corporate sponsorship of public education has become an incredible boost for districts trying to meet stricter federal and state mandates on tight budgets. Organizations like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the Carnegie Corporation, and the Ford Foundation have invested billions of dollars in the nation's public schools. While this is essential, the Sacramento Schools are focusing on an even more important partner in public education. The Parents.
Importance of Parent Involvement in Sacramento Schools
Sacramento Public Schools are under the usual pressure to raise test scores, meet budget requirements, and improve graduation rates of its students. And there are many methods that they are using to do it. But a look at the parent education program of the Sacramento Schools highlights an awareness of the importance of the home environment that often gets lost amidst the frenzy for higher test scores. Numerous studies have proven the correlation between parent education, involvement, and socio-economic status to student academic success. And recent attention on the alarming achievement gap between minority and white students is warranted. But where does the solution begin?
For the Sacramento Schools- it begins at home. Teachers in the Sacramento Schools are quick to point out that, as early as the pre-school years, an involved parent has a direct impact on a child's success in school. Parents who don't speak English, are high school drop-outs, or have financial problems are less able to support their children.
Programs for Parents at the Sacramento Schools
The Parent Support Services of the Sacramento Schools offers a variety of programs to improve parenting skills, help parents understand the educational system, teach English skills to speakers of foreign languages, and assist parents with skills needed to create a stronger family unit.
The first way of connecting parents with the Sacramento Schools is Parenthaven, an educational television show that parents can access without even stepping foot outside of their home. However, the goal of Sacramento Schools is to attract parents to the schools. The Parent Project Jr.? and the Parent Project Sr.? are classes offered to teach parents methods for improving family communications, and working with ?strong-willed or out of control children.? The junior class is for parents of 5-10 year olds, and focuses on choosing appropriate friends, family communication, and improving school performance, among other topics. Some of the issues addressed in the senior classes are dealing with children who hit or use drugs, gang involvement, and truancy.
Another outreach program is the Parent Teacher Home Visit Project. This is a joint effort of the local teacher's union, a faith based community group, and the Sacramento Schools. The goal is to get past the blame and distrust that often exists between faculty and low-income families. Another community-based program for parents in the Sacramento Schools is Parent University. Over 70 different classes on topics from money management to family arts appreciation are offered throughout the year.
While high socio-economic status has always been associated with student achievement in the Sacramento Schools, administrators acknowledge that the education and involvement that comes with that status is more important that the actual income of a family. The Sacramento Schools is making a wise, long-term investment into the success of its students, by putting a focus on their most important partners- the parents.
Why would you want to do that?
Team up with joint venture partners and establish a mutually beneficial relationship, (and start making a profit form your project in less time than you ever thought possible.)
What sort of people make great JV partners?
Anybody involved in the internet marketing industry or your specific niche can be a joint venture partner. One of the most common joint ventures occurs when one partner has a new product to sell and another partner has an existing mailing list to promote that product to.
Although this is the most common setup, joint ventures can be arranged between any of the following partners:
Membership sites
Promoters
Customer mailing list owners
Trainers
Copywriters
AdSense marketers
Subject matter experts
Consultants
So how do you find good JV partners?
Step 1. Decide what you need from your joint venture partner. What expertise or resources do they need to posses to contribute to your project?
If you are looking for someone to promote your membership site it may be tempting to approach the internet marketers that own the largest mailing lists. However, it may be more productive to look for individuals that are experts in your niche subject, whose customer lists will be more targeted to your project even if they are not as extensive.
Step 2. Networking is the key to finding a great joint venture partnership.
If you identify someone you would like to partner with, be careful about how you approach them. If you think they would make a good JV partner, the chances are many other internet marketers will have the same idea and they will get asked on a regular basis.
The following tips may help you when contacting your prospective JV partner:
•Find out everything about what they do beforehand. Read any reports or e-books they have written.
•If they have a membership site, sign up for it and get to know their subscribers. Is the project you want to involve this person in, or the product you want to sell really appropriate for their customers?
•Marketing Seminars offer a multitude of networking possibilities. Many great joint ventures have been conceived over a drink in the hotel bar, or over dinner at one of these seminars.
Step 3 Contacting a potential partner with your proposal.
•Try to get hold of their telephone number if possible rather than sending an e-mail.
•If you must send an e-mail, make it a personal one and not a standard request, or the chances are they will simply delete it.
•You need to try to build a relationship with this person. If they are going to enter a project with you, and potentially promote your product to their customers, they will want to know something about you and the way you work.
•Don’t give them a sales pitch. A more straightforward approach will be appreciated.
•Don’t assume they are only interested in the amount of money they can make from your project. They may be more concerned about the quality of your membership site and their credibility with their existing customer list.
Both Patricia Hawke & Jeremy Gislason are contributors for EditorialToday. The above articles have been edited for relevancy and timeliness. All write-ups, reviews, tips and guides published by EditorialToday.com and its partners or affiliates are for informational purposes only. They should not be used for any legal or any other type of advice. We do not endorse any author, contributor, writer or article posted by our team.
Patricia Hawke has sinced written about articles on various topics from Education, Food And Drink and Education Toys. Patricia Hawke is a staff writer for Schools K-12, providing free, in-depth reports on all U.S. public and private K-12 schools. For more information please visit. Patricia Hawke's top article generates over 246000 views. to your Favourites.
Jeremy Gislason has sinced written about articles on various topics from Work Life Balance, Education and The Internet. Jeremy Gislason is a leading expert on , marketing and online business. Do you want to market and sell all of your products faster?. Jeremy Gislason's top article generates over 5400 views. to your Favourites.