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Helping Single Parents Help Students Succeed

Principals, teachers, and others can work together to help single parents and their children. In some cases, staff awareness and in-service training sessions may help develop stronger ties with a school's single parents.

Other schools have taken this a step farther: they have developed support groups so they can discuss issues that are common to single parents. The most successful of those sessions are held at various times of day -- during the school day, in the evening, or on the weekend -- and offer childcare services.

To help single parents who work outside the home, parent-teacher conferences and some other activities are scheduled in the morning (before school) or in the evening (after work). As the schedule for parent-teacher conferences is being developed, some teachers contact the single parents first to give them opportunities to select the best times for their conferences.

Some school leaders reward their teachers who make an extra effort to reach out to single parents by coming in early, staying late, or coming in on a Saturday. Rewards might include offers of comp time.

Read more practical tips from George Pawlas…

• Share the Pride: Six "Pride Statements" Get Year Off to a Great Start
• Getting the Most Out of Parent-Teacher Conferences
• Newsletters: An Essential Tool for Every Principal
• Building Positive Relationships With the Media
• The Benefits of Being an MBWA Principal
• More Tips for Great Newsletters
• 50 Million Students Can't Be Wrong: Improving Perceptions of Your School
• Support Personnel Are P.R. People Too
• Create a School Profile Brochure

Meet Dr. George E. Pawlas George E. Pawlas has written the book on PR for school principals -- literally! In The Administrator's Guide to School-Community Relations, Pawlas presents a treasury of practical tips and strategies for principals. The book includes hundreds of principal-tested ideas, illustrations, and templates to help you create successful school newsletters and other communication tools; use the media to your school's advantage; enhance parent and family involvement; work with the community and local businesses; deal with crisis situations; and much more. Pawlas has been an educator for nearly four decades. He has served as an elementary school teacher and principal, a district administrator, and a state education department consultant. Currently he is a professor of educational leadership at the University of Central Florida. In addition, Pawlas has authored dozens of articles and coauthored three editions of a book on educational supervision. He is a frequent presenter at local and national conferences.

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08/07/2006