In some cases, that has meant parents getting involved in setting budgets, hiring teachers and choosing curriculum. In general, it has meant schools are trying to put out at least some form of a welcome mat for parents where one may have been hard to find before. On the other hand, the context of society has changed so much. It is a given among all involved in the school scene that it is a big boost for a child to come from a home that supports educational success, starting with such basic things as getting a child to school each morning and asking the child at supper what went on that day. The flip side is that in recent national surveys, both the public as a whole and teachers specifically have listed parents not doing their job as one of the biggest problems for American education.
Parents tend to give themselves somewhat better marks.
At least in the eyes of the public, there is a strong sense of how critical a family's role is in educational success. The same was true when the question was about a child from a family that reads a lot but who goes to a bad school vs. a family that doesn't read a lot but the child goes to a good school. On the one hand, there's no dispute that this weakens a child's prospects for success. On the other, a strongly held view among many who are seeking better results in central cities such as Milwaukee's is that the school cannot use the home life of kids as an excuse for not succeeding. Both sentiments may well be valid.