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PTA Tries to Get More Hispanic Parents Involved in Schools
April 20, 2004 While the National PTA does not track the ethnicity of members, a recent survey indicated that about 3 percent of the six million PTA members nationwide are Hispanic. About 15 percent of the nation's school-age children are Hispanic, and the number is expected to swell to 25 percent by 2025. "This is one of the fastest-growing communities, and the numbers say to us that we need to do more," said Shirley Igo, National PTA president. The outreach program, which began this month in San Diego, Miami and San Antonio, will use billboards and radio advertisements in Spanish featuring the slogan "Good parents aren't born, they're made." The National PTA says it will spend about $250,000 for the program, which will also distribute new translations of recruitment materials. Elsie Perez, a regional PTA vice president in Texas, said Spanish materials would help her attract new leaders. Though most PTA members in her region are Hispanic, few attend national conferences or take wider leadership roles, Ms. Perez said. "There is a sense of `Well, I don't feel like I'm welcomed,' " she said. "Hopefully that will change. The more parents they see involved from the Hispanic culture, the more willing they will be to get involved." Ms. Perez will be among about 15 mentors in the Rio Grande Valley who will train recruits to run for regional and national positions. Ms. Igo said: "So far, we had failed to develop that leadership. We need to move forward and do it appropriately." Language may be the biggest barrier that stops parents from becoming PTA members and leaders, and some local chapters are trying ways to eliminate that hurdle. In the McAllen Independent School District in Texas, every flier and letter the schools send home is written in Spanish as well as English, said the superintendent, Joe E. Gonzales, who is involved in the National PTA's program. About 70 percent of the parents in the district do not speak English, Dr. Gonzales said. Last month in Sanford, Fla., a PTA chapter started using earphones to transmit translations of remarks at meetings to Spanish-speaking parents. A few schools have two PTA chapters, one holding meetings in Spanish and the other in English. That is a start, but chapters should work to integrate populations as much as possible, said Delia Pompa, chairwoman of the PTA's Hispanic advisory board and the executive director of the National Association of Bilingual Educators. "You don't want a divide; that is not the goal here," Ms. Pompa said. Social-class issues also stop some Hispanics from joining PTA's, which are often dominated by stay-at-home mothers, said Jimmy Morales, a Miami-Dade County commissioner and a member of the PTA's Hispanic advisory board. Annual dues range from $4 to $10, and many parents see PTA's as fund-raising organizations, Mr. Morales said. One challenge, he said, is to convince parents that groups can work as advocacy and lobbying organizations. "There isn't an equivalent of this in Latin American countries," Mr. Morale said of the PTA. "We have to show parents that this is a way to become active in your schools, to talk with the people who make decisions." Dr. Gonzales, the superintendent in McAllen, said door-to-door membership drives and phone banks might be used in some areas to speak directly to parents about PTA goals. Direct contact is valued in Hispanic culture, he said, adding, "That is the kind of thing that will make parents feel invested and welcome." Ms. Igo said this was the first PTA program intended to reach an ethnic group. If the program in the three pilot states is successful, a national campaign will begin in 2004, she said. |
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