News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
News and Opinion from Sisters, Oregon
Parent volunteers provide a vital spark at Sisters Elementary School, steering the education of their children and helping busy staff teach and supervise students.
According to Principal Tim Comfort, 239 volunteers helped out in a wide range of capacities this year. Comfort calculates the monetary value of the hours worked at $49,900, based on a minimum wage.
"It's just phenomenal," Comfort said.
The principal said that, if the district spent that money on a staff person, "there's no way you could match what this army of volunteers does."
Volunteers engage students in reading and mathematics practice, both one-on-one and in small groups. They also provide playground supervision and serve as aides and trouble-shooters in the computer lab.
Parents accompany their children on field trips, help stage classroom parties and activities and mobilize for the annual Clean the Green maintenance effort.
"Another huge effort has been our art literacy program this year," Comfort said.
Parents who have a particular passion help teach units on their favorite artists and their work.
Parents also play an active role in shaping the education of their children, according to Comfort.
Volunteers serve on the policy-recommending site council and on the school's curriculum committee.
This level and quality of parental involvement is not always the norm, Comfort acknowledged. In some districts, parents and teachers develop an adversarial relationship that hinders communication and ultimately makes it hard to deliver a good education.
Comfort said he has always made a concerted effort to welcome and encourage parental involvement. Now, the spirit of voluntarism seems to have caught hold.
"I think that this has built on itself," Comfort said. "People realize it's meaningful, it's appreciated and it makes a difference."
Jim Cornelius is editor in chief of The Nugget and author of “Warriors of the Wildlands: True Tales of the Frontier Partisans.” A history buff, he explores frontier history across three centuries and several continents on his podcast, The Frontier Partisans. For more information visit www.frontierpartisans.com.
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