Who's Your Doña?

Do you know who The Doña is in your school community? She is The Mother. You know, The One. Heck, she could be The Grandmother. She is the lady that you always call when you need something done on your campus or the lady that awaits you in the office advocating for the children that are not her own. She cares. Alot.

She is very important to you. Not because she could potentially change the world with her PTA ninja skills of volunteerism, baking, and fundraising abilities but because she is also The Doña outside your campus too. In fact, she might NOT be involved in PTA at all but she is mighty influential outside your walls and you need to find her. She is your set of ears and the answer to many unanswered questions. She is the culture your are trying to understand and she encompasses your student's experiences that can be brought into your instruction.

Her abilities and mainly influence outside of your school can have a significant positive impact on getting the rest of your parents informed and participating in your school community. She hangs out on the stoop, in the courtyard, at the local restaurant, and when she talks the rest of the mothers in the community listen! She tells all the other moms what programs are available to help them meet their needs, when goods go on sale, she interprets documents and translates when needed, she offers wisdom and gives moms a good old talking to that sometimes you can't. (Mainly because you can't ethically and sometimes legally tell your parents what you might really want to say.)

Educators, move this up on your to do list: establish a relevant relationship with the Doña on your campus for the purpose of transforming your community school to one that encompasses parents, teachers, students, and the community for a system that brings children up TOGETHER. Work with her. Give her your ideas and listen to hers. She will have a local insight that no research article or family engagement model will. Let her know that she is important and that she has the power to positively impact the generations in her neighborhood. She will move the community forward with you because she has already done so without you.

Let her become part of your family because, regardless of what you think, the neighborhood that your school serves is more important to her than to you.
Adelante. Juntos. Amados, Dalinda Gonzalez-Alcantar, M.Ed-CEO of eJucomm

The above thoughts are provoked by Larry Ferlazzo's words found at http://engagingparentsinschool.edublogs.org/2012/02/18/parent-leadership-is-often-missing-link-in-community-schools/