School became a central focus for their lives, not a separate entity to be thought of from nine to three. They and their families are a part of our family. Figman was referring to the collaboration at Hillside of a community-based Earth Day Fair to promote environmental awareness. Staff and parents work together in a publishing center to enable every one of the 350 students to publish a book. The second collaborative effort involves the training of a cadre of parents who work with students on technology.
Parents work directly with students.
They also involve the community by obtaining grants and volunteers. Although both of these projects take place in school, there is a positive flow into family life at home. Principals report that surveys play a significant function in identifying priorities, feedback, foci, suggestions and recommendations. Parents from Adlai E Stevenson School, along with community members, completed an opinion survey for the Fairfield School District to help set priorities and planning. Midtown Community School conducts interviews with parents to get new ideas on how to improve.