Parents, students, and community members provide important perspectives, particularly in discussing major school initiatives. They can also offer unique and valuable technical assistance, expanding the resources and pool of knowledge available to the school. Jackie Morgan, the principal of Lee Elementary in El Paso, Texas, invites business and community representatives and parents to participate in making decisions as part of the Campus Improvement Team and tracks the needs of students' families using surveys. Trousdale sees the parents of the students as particularly significant to the success of her school. We have an active, involved group of parents who work and train along with staff members.
Information is a source of power.
With access to high-quality information about topics related to school reform, teachers, administrators, parents, students, and community members can make decisions based on knowledge instead of emotion. Valuable information can be obtained by studying research materials, searching the Internet, visiting other schools with similar challenges, attending trainings and conferences, and networking. At Ysleta Middle School, Trousdale builds the knowledge base of parents as well as that of the staff by sending representatives of both to professional development sessions and conferences. Another type of information that can be very powerful is a principal's understanding of the internal workings of a school. It's crucial for me to know what's going on with the students and the teachers.